How to drain oil on B&S mower engine?

[The_Nuke]

I just bought a MTD push mower that has a Briggs & Stratton 450 series engine (148cc). It is used (approximately 3 yrs old I believe), so I wanted to change the oil in it before I put it through another Texas summer of mowing. But I cannot figure out how I am supposed to drain the oil.

Anyone know the recommend oil drain method for this engine?

The manual that came with it has directions and pictures for this task, but they are all for the other engine that came in this mower I guess, because the pics and instructions do not match what I have on this mower.

The engine does have a oil dipstick (and I assume it is also the oil fill spot), but it is at the top left of the motor (rear), so I figured it was not meant to be the oil drain as well.

I've worked on cars all my life, but this is the first 2 cycle I've ever messed with, so I am reluctant to just try things until I get it right like I do sometimes on a car. I can usually fix what I break on those, but I am not so confident about these alien beasts.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

My parents just bought a new mower with a B&S OHV engine. To drain the oil - remove dipstick and tip over.

 

[Bandito440]

This is not a 2-cycle motor if it has a dipstick.

Some B&S engines have a drain plug under the deck that accepts a square 3/8" or 1/2" drive. If yours doesn't, you'll need to tip it over and drain the oil through the dipstick tube. This is easiest with hot oil, but don't burn yourself on the muffler.

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
My parents just bought a new mower with a B&S OHV engine. To drain the oil - remove dipstick and tip over.


yeah, I guess that is pretty much the only way to do it...I guess the warnings in the manual about never tipping it over for too long, blah blah blah, had an effect on me. Now I'm nervous about doing anything for fear of screwing it up.

thanks for the help,
nuke

 

[Falken]

I had a B&S Brute that was brand new and I looked, there was a 3/8" square socket bolt to drain the oil.

Just click a 3/8" drive extension in and click on your ratchet.

Make sure to clean under the lawnmower with WD-40 where the drain plug is before you start.

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: Bandito440
This is not a 2-cycle motor if it has a dipstick...


really...[censored], I didn't even know they had anything other than 2 strokes in small engine versions...I guess I haven't been paying much attention in a while.

thanks

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: Falken
I had a B&S Brute that was brand new and I looked, there was a 3/8" square socket bolt to drain the oil.

Just click a 3/8" drive extension in and click on your ratchet.

Make sure to clean under the lawnmower with WD-40 where the drain plug is before you start.


I just checked under the deck and did not see anything like that...granted it was just a once-over, but it's pretty plain underneath, so would be hard to hide from me.

I will double-check it again though before I go the route of turning it upside down to drain the oil.

thanks for the help,
nuke

 

[dernp]

Just be careful if you're tipping it on it's side. Sometimes the fuel will come racing out of the gas cap. On my Sears Craftsman mower with a Briggs engine I usually dump the oil when the fuel level is low.

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: dernp
Just be careful if you're tipping it on it's side. Sometimes the fuel will come racing out of the gas cap. On my Sears Craftsman mower with a Briggs engine I usually dump the oil when the fuel level is low.


yeah, I made sure to run it until it ran out of gas to keep the gasoline spillage to a minimum when I do the oil change.

that was one warning in the manual I took to heart and remembered for sure.

 

[BigCahuna]

New mowers come without drain plugs these days. You can tip it over and get the oil out. But try to run the gas out of it first so it doesn't leak out as well. Or you can get a vacuum setup and suck the oil out.The sell them at boat stores if that's how you want to go.,,

 

[spackard]

PLEASE NOTE: Vertical shaft engines, Series 300 to 550, may not feature a bottom oil drain as shown above. If this is the case, oil must be poured out of the oil fill tube as outlined in your engine Operator's Manual.

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
New mowers come without drain plugs these days. You can tip it over and get the oil out. But try to run the gas out of it first so it doesn't leak out as well. Or you can get a vacuum setup and suck the oil out.The sell them at boat stores if that's how you want to go.,,


sounds like having one of those vacuum setups would be the way to go, how much do they usually run?

I won't be doing this often enough to justify spending much money on it...

 

[supton]

Years ago I started using a vacuum pump to pull oil out of the dipstick tube on my VW. Works really great in this application too. Probably not a great solution unless if you own a German car also.

I don't think anything will get hurt by tipping over. The big issue would be tipping forward and letting oil sit on the piston, where it will likely go past the rings--but the dipstick is (usually?) on the other side of the engine. Pouring gasoline out is a bigger issue.

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: spackard
PLEASE NOTE: Vertical shaft engines, Series 300 to 550, may not feature a bottom oil drain as shown above. If this is the case, oil must be poured out of the oil fill tube as outlined in your engine Operator's Manual.


My owner's manual has instructions for changing the oil, but not for the Model 10000 I have, only for the Model 90000 which I guess was also sold in this mower.

 

[Whimsey]

Get a hand extraction pump and put a length of clear tubing on it and your good to go. I use mine for changing out the ps fluid. They run in the $10-15 range.

Whimsey

 

[The_Nuke]

Originally Posted By: Whimsey
Get a hand extraction pump and put a length of clear tubing on it and your good to go. I use mine for changing out the ps fluid. They run in the $10-15 range.

Whimsey


I might can swing that, thanks for the info

 

[Quattro Pete]

Just tip it over. I did try the extractor on my mower with a newer B&S 190cc engine, but it wasn't able to suck all of it out.

 

[bchannell]

Wally world and auto stores all sell an oil transfer pump that is designed to pump oil from it's original container into an engine or transmission, whatever. Just stick the suction line in the oil level hole, and all the way down and pump 'er out. You won't get it all, but it doesn't matter, not enough will remain to make any real difference. I've been using the same pump for a couple years now and I think it cost $7.

A word to the wise, these stores also sell a transfer pump that is orange and has hoses that slip into friction fittings for this very purpose. I would steer clear of these, while the idea is good, the execution is horrible. The hoses tend to come out of the fittings at the most in opportune times, and it's like trying to put your finger in the dike when it happens. I still have a huge oil stain on my garage floor from such an adventure. I'd love to get my hands on the engineer who designed these pieces of [censored]. They are a good idea that simply got lost in the manufacturing.

 

[JTK]

Nuke, don't feel bad brother.

My $600 Snapper commercial mulcher has a Briggs "professional" series engine w/ a spin-on oil filter and an oil drain under the deck. Problem is, you can't use the oil drain w/out dumping oil into the belt cover and all over the drive belt.

Like said above, the easiest option is to run them totally out of gas. Flip'em over and dump the old oil out the dipstick tube when warm/hot. Running them completely out of gas will eliminate any issues with inverting the engine. I too have tried to suck out the oil on small OPE engines. You can't get it all out and it's not worth the hassle for the little amount of oil in them.

This is like the engine on mine:

 

[bubbatime]

Laughing at all the "suck it out" recommendations. LMAO. Just tip the freaking mower over. It's free and works better.

This coming from a guy that does about 200 oil changes per year on lawn mowers. There really isn't a simpler, more effective way.