Instant Start AFter 6 Months

[Boomer]

Last October, I took my 1 year old Snapper Ninja mulching mower with the B&S engine and ran the gas out of it. I changed the oil using Rotella stright 30 wt, replaced the spark plug (and add storage fooging oil to the cylinder while doing the change). I put the mower away for the winter after sharpening the blade and cleaning under neath the deck. Today, I added fresh gas to the tank, took the mower outside, pulled once on the starter cord and...vroooooom. Started on the first pull. Ran very smoothly. I could not be more pleased.

 

[660mag]

Cool.
Does your briggs engine have a primer, or auto choke?
And the burning question. Was the fuel you ran out e10?

 

[The motor guy]

lol. Why doesn't that happen to me? ive had very bad luck with running equipment out of fuel for storage.

 

[Tgator]

Originally Posted By: motor_oil_madman
lol. Why doesn't that happen to me? ive had very bad luck with running equipment out of fuel for storage.


I did some reading about this last year - seems like quite a few folks are now recommending adding stabilizer to the fuel and leaving the tank full. Rationale seemed to be that the small amounts of non-stabilized fuel throughout the system could become varnish.

Never had the best success with the run-it-dry method myself, so I went ahead and did the stabilizer/full tank thing this year. Can't say it started on the 1st pull...more like 5th or so, but that's not bad for a fairly old mower. Ran fine too....

 

[barlowc]

My 5-year old Toro Super Recycler has a B&S engine and has always started each spring on the first or second pull. I run it dry in the fall, change the oil in the spring (currently using PYB SAE HD-30), and put in fresh gas. That's it. I may replace the spark plug this year since it's been five years.

 

[boraticus]

I keep a spare plug in the garage for most everything I own. Plugs don't get changed unless they need to be. I've got plugs that are at least 25 years old still working fine.

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: Tgator
Originally Posted By: motor_oil_madman
lol. Why doesn't that happen to me? ive had very bad luck with running equipment out of fuel for storage.


I did some reading about this last year - seems like quite a few folks are now recommending adding stabilizer to the fuel and leaving the tank full. Rationale seemed to be that the small amounts of non-stabilized fuel throughout the system could become varnish.


That's the way I store my stuff as well: full of fuel. I add Stabil to the fuel can every time I fill it, so every drop of fuel the machines gets is stabilized fuel. This has worked the best for me. At the beginning and end of each use, the tank in the machine gets topped off and that's how they sit.

I've never had much luck, either, with trying to run stuff dry.

 

[Mamala Bay]

Originally Posted By: boraticus
I keep a spare plug in the garage for most everything I own. Plugs don't get changed unless they need to be. I've got plugs that are at least 25 years old still working fine.


Plugs should be changed depending on the hours of usage. On a commercial level plugs are changed out from 300-500 hours of usage. For home usage see limited hours per yearly I'd opt to clean the plugs with fine sand paper before storage but also to check the condition of the plugs.

Also brand new plugs has the highest ignition and performance during it's life cycle.. It's a very slow curve from when new till when it needs to be replaced.

 

[boraticus]

Well, here are my spark plug replacement parameters"

Engine starts easy and runs good = no plug replacement.

Engine hard to start and won't run good = clean plug.

Engine still hard to start = new plug if plug related.

In over 30 years of using 30 to 40 machines, two cycle, four cycle, singles, twins, fours, sixes, and eights, I've only had two spark plugs actually fail. That's it. I've changed plugs after five or six years in my outboard two stroke engines and didn't see any change in performance. None. Now I just clean them once a year and run them until they [censored] out. I use pretty much NGKs. They seem to perform the same all the time despite their age.

 

[Mr_Joe]

I used to run the tank 'dry'(I don't think the carb & float bowl was really dry). I now fill up with non-ethanol gas & add the stable or maybe 'seafoam'. I also usually only change plugs when needed or worn. I did have a plug on an ATV where part of the porcelen broke off. I do think it's good to look them over occasionally & maybe put some anti-seize on the threads.

 

[Boomer]

Yes, my gas here is E10 but I do run 92 octane. I always add Stabil to the fuel when I put gas in the can so that any tiny amount left when running the system dry has Stabil in it. I do the same service on my snowblower with an 8 hp Tecumseh every year . That snowblower has been run HARD and has completed 24 years of use!

 

[Vikas]

I was shocked that my 11 year Honda lawnmower started on the very first yank and there was not even a puff of smoke. I don't remember exactly what I had done at the end of the fall except, I recall turning off the petcock and letting it die on its own. I had put Stabil and few other chemicals which I no longer remember. I always have stash of B-12, Seafoam, Techron, Regane etc and generally put at least some in the gas tank.

Only thing I did little bit different yesterday was to turn on the petcock in the night and filled the gas tank and little bit of MMO. In the morning, I spun the engine very slowly for a revolution or two and then yanked on the cord. It immediately started as if it was not even stored for 6 months! I was NOT expecting it at all. It needed about a minute of warming up before it could run without choke.

If MMO did this, color me impressed! I don't particularly like my Honda as I feel it is low on power. I should seriously consider doing cylinder soak with MMO.

Seriously, I was dreading the day and was quite apprehensive about the first start. I recall last year, it gave me quite a headache at the beginning of the season. I was mentally all prepared for a big battle but the mower raised the white flag

- Vikas