Got a Briggs and Stratton riding mower which only sees less than 20hrs a year. Still a good idea to change the oil filter every year? I do try and change the oil once a year with Rotella dino.
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20hrs a year, still change oil filter every year?
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Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
Originally Posted By: Radman
Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
I may 40 years of engine rebuilding, I still have yet to see the elusive Acid Wear
Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
I may 40 years of engine rebuilding, I still have yet to see the elusive Acid Wear
Originally Posted By: Bluestream
Originally Posted By: Radman
Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
I may 40 years of engine rebuilding, I still have yet to see the elusive Acid Wear
Can't agree more. So many people bring up the inevitable "acid build up in the oil" scare and likely have never seen it nor experienced it themselves. It's just another hype to get people to spend money on unnecessary oil changes.
As far as the oil filter, I have a riding mower with a Kawasaki engine that has around 500 hours on it. The machine is ten years old. It gets a new filter every 150 hours or three years. Got another riding mower with a Honda twin in it. That engine gets only about 20 hours a year on it. It gets a new filter every five years. I change the oil annually on both machines and run HDEO usually. Right now I have 10W40 in them. Both machines start and run as good as they day I bought them.
The choice is yours but I'd put at least 100 hours on the filter and change the oil as per manufacturer's instructions.
Originally Posted By: Radman
Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
I may 40 years of engine rebuilding, I still have yet to see the elusive Acid Wear
Can't agree more. So many people bring up the inevitable "acid build up in the oil" scare and likely have never seen it nor experienced it themselves. It's just another hype to get people to spend money on unnecessary oil changes.
As far as the oil filter, I have a riding mower with a Kawasaki engine that has around 500 hours on it. The machine is ten years old. It gets a new filter every 150 hours or three years. Got another riding mower with a Honda twin in it. That engine gets only about 20 hours a year on it. It gets a new filter every five years. I change the oil annually on both machines and run HDEO usually. Right now I have 10W40 in them. Both machines start and run as good as they day I bought them.
The choice is yours but I'd put at least 100 hours on the filter and change the oil as per manufacturer's instructions.
Good question. I think i am guilty of throwing perfectly good oil out for no good reason.
Most of my small engines get 10hrs or less a year, the snowblower about 20hrs, yet i toss out GC after 10 hrs because its been a year.
Most of my small engines get 10hrs or less a year, the snowblower about 20hrs, yet i toss out GC after 10 hrs because its been a year.
Leave it go! i only put 30-50hrs a season on my Briggs 18.5 INTEK,i use amsoil ACD and a P1 filter,going on my third season in 2012,no problems,probably going to go for 500 hrs.
Originally Posted By: daman
Leave it go! i only put 30-50hrs a season on my Briggs 18.5 INTEK,i use amsoil ACD and a P1 filter,going on my third season in 2012,no problems,probably going to go for 500 hrs.
Just to double check on this: you think an OCI of 10-17 years is a good idea??
Leave it go! i only put 30-50hrs a season on my Briggs 18.5 INTEK,i use amsoil ACD and a P1 filter,going on my third season in 2012,no problems,probably going to go for 500 hrs.
Just to double check on this: you think an OCI of 10-17 years is a good idea??
I wouldn't change it at all. The motor is fine with oil in it for 5-10 years. The rest of the mower will wear out before the engine. Just keep the air filter clean..
Originally Posted By: Gabe
Originally Posted By: daman
Leave it go! i only put 30-50hrs a season on my Briggs 18.5 INTEK,i use amsoil ACD and a P1 filter,going on my third season in 2012,no problems,probably going to go for 500 hrs.
Just to double check on this: you think an OCI of 10-17 years is a good idea??
Some seasons do get more thats just an "average" use, but yea why not? last valve adjustment she looked new inside.
Originally Posted By: daman
Leave it go! i only put 30-50hrs a season on my Briggs 18.5 INTEK,i use amsoil ACD and a P1 filter,going on my third season in 2012,no problems,probably going to go for 500 hrs.
Just to double check on this: you think an OCI of 10-17 years is a good idea??
Some seasons do get more thats just an "average" use, but yea why not? last valve adjustment she looked new inside.
I've just picked up a JD130 tractor, so what do I know about that. lol.. However, if it was me, I change the filter whenever I change the oil which I just did, once a season regardless of hours./
My motto is why screw around with a fine piece of machinery
for the price of a pizza? doesn't make sense. People scimp on oil/filters to save a dollar then go right out and spend money on something stupid. Pizza, 1 night - $15, oil change - all season or 5000 miles. you do the math lol.
My motto is why screw around with a fine piece of machinery
for the price of a pizza? doesn't make sense. People scimp on oil/filters to save a dollar then go right out and spend money on something stupid. Pizza, 1 night - $15, oil change - all season or 5000 miles. you do the math lol.
Originally Posted By: Jeepster_nut
I wouldn't change it at all. The motor is fine with oil in it for 5-10 years. The rest of the mower will wear out before the engine. Just keep the air filter clean..
Yep true,my brother has a 1980's or so 12.5 hp craftsman mower and i don't think he's changed oil three times in it!!
I wouldn't change it at all. The motor is fine with oil in it for 5-10 years. The rest of the mower will wear out before the engine. Just keep the air filter clean..
Yep true,my brother has a 1980's or so 12.5 hp craftsman mower and i don't think he's changed oil three times in it!!
I don't do yearly oil changes on my seldom used engines. When I finally do get around to the 4 year change, the oil looks fine (generally Mobil 1 15W-50 or 5W-40 TDT) .
Some engines, like my Kawasaki fire hose pump, does not see many hours, but it does see enough starts throughout the year to prevent fuel related problems. I leave that oil in a long time. Maybe I'll check it tomorrow.
Some engines, like my Kawasaki fire hose pump, does not see many hours, but it does see enough starts throughout the year to prevent fuel related problems. I leave that oil in a long time. Maybe I'll check it tomorrow.
To each his own, I have pretty much extended the OCI in most of my engines since I came to BITOG. .
"People scimp on oil/filters to save a dollar then go right out and spend money on something stupid."
Something stupid like changing an oil filter and/or doing an oil change that's absolutely unnecessary?
It's all about perspective.
Tell us how engines without pressurized oil systems seem to last forever with very little maintenance and NO oil filter?
I'm a firm believer in good maintenance and have numerous engines that I maintain. All my stuff runs well and I've yet to have an issue with anything due to oil. Reasonable maintenance is more than sufficient on any OPE engine.
As my father used to say:
There's a difference between scratching your butt and tearing it.
Something stupid like changing an oil filter and/or doing an oil change that's absolutely unnecessary?
It's all about perspective.
Tell us how engines without pressurized oil systems seem to last forever with very little maintenance and NO oil filter?
I'm a firm believer in good maintenance and have numerous engines that I maintain. All my stuff runs well and I've yet to have an issue with anything due to oil. Reasonable maintenance is more than sufficient on any OPE engine.
As my father used to say:
There's a difference between scratching your butt and tearing it.
Originally Posted By: byez
Got a Briggs and Stratton riding mower which only sees less than 20hrs a year. Still a good idea to change the oil filter every year? I do try and change the oil once a year with Rotella dino.
I assume this is a Briggs V-twin?
At 20hrs, the drained oil will look almost new.
If it's your once a year time to give the engine and machine a good look-over, then by all means change the oil.
I know when I owned riding mowers, I typically did around ~35hrs per year. I would do oil/filter changes every 1.5 - 2yrs with low cost heavy-duty engine oils.
Joel
Got a Briggs and Stratton riding mower which only sees less than 20hrs a year. Still a good idea to change the oil filter every year? I do try and change the oil once a year with Rotella dino.
I assume this is a Briggs V-twin?
At 20hrs, the drained oil will look almost new.
If it's your once a year time to give the engine and machine a good look-over, then by all means change the oil.
I know when I owned riding mowers, I typically did around ~35hrs per year. I would do oil/filter changes every 1.5 - 2yrs with low cost heavy-duty engine oils.
Joel
I have a similar usage tractor...while it might not seem like its bad, they will get moisture in them from sitting. I've seen evidence of moisture in mine, and I'd change it just for that reason...especially if you use it any in cold weather.
Originally Posted By: deeter16317
I have a similar usage tractor...while it might not seem like its bad, they will get moisture in them from sitting. I've seen evidence of moisture in mine, and I'd change it just for that reason...especially if you use it any in cold weather.
The next good run with 200-250deg oil temps will cure that..
I have a similar usage tractor...while it might not seem like its bad, they will get moisture in them from sitting. I've seen evidence of moisture in mine, and I'd change it just for that reason...especially if you use it any in cold weather.
The next good run with 200-250deg oil temps will cure that..
Any machine that has been brought up to operating temperature and run like that for a while will not have water in the oil when it's shut down. If stored in a shelter where it won't be rained on or have water physically pour into the engine, it will not accumulate any significant amount of moisture from condensation.
Oil condensation issues are generally caused by engines being run in cold temps and not being brought up to operating temperatures.
Run the engine until it's hot, put it away and don't sweat it. It will be fine.
Oil condensation issues are generally caused by engines being run in cold temps and not being brought up to operating temperatures.
Run the engine until it's hot, put it away and don't sweat it. It will be fine.
Originally Posted By: Bluestream
Originally Posted By: Radman
Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
I may 40 years of engine rebuilding, I still have yet to see the elusive Acid Wear
I have seen it on motorcycle engines. Especially Harley Davidson cam bearings. They are susceptible to corrosion on the bearing races. Then the bearing grenades and takes the oil pump with it which takes the rest of the engine with it. This almost always happens when under heavy loading like getting on the freeway or passing.
Originally Posted By: Radman
Oil & Filters are cheap insurance. I would change it out just prior to Winter storage to prevent acid wear.
I may 40 years of engine rebuilding, I still have yet to see the elusive Acid Wear
I have seen it on motorcycle engines. Especially Harley Davidson cam bearings. They are susceptible to corrosion on the bearing races. Then the bearing grenades and takes the oil pump with it which takes the rest of the engine with it. This almost always happens when under heavy loading like getting on the freeway or passing.
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