is it better to change oil at the beginning or end of the season?

[nomas]

I have never seen any damage caused by " acidic oil " . I HAVE seen OPE sit up for months , even years with used motor oil and still run just fine . Just another answer looking for a problem .
The single best advice I have ever seen about OPE and oil , is to make sure it has some in it .

 

[odie]

Better safe than sorry . Gets lots of use with 3+ acres . It's a JD130 .

 

[Quantico]

Please explain how having motor oil setting in the bottom of the oil pan is going to protect all the metal surfaces inside the crankcase any better than having drained used oil from the oil pan.

In both scenarios, if the engine has ran, then motor oil has been splattered throughout, and should have covered all surfaces in the crankcase. Except for the film of oil that may stay on the surfaces from surface tension, all of it drains back into the pan. Draining or not draining the pan is not going to provide any more or less protection in the crankcase.

If you are correct in your theory, no one should ever buy any of these newer small engine tools that are shipped without being filled with oil. A very common practice these days. Almost all compressors are filled with oil by the consumer. They are rarely shipped with oil inside the compressor.

I look at it this way.. a sheet of steel even wiped with oil will corrode pretty fast left in the open. Put that sheet of steel in a tub of oil and it should be good until the end of time.
Its your machine.. you do whatever pleases you. But I think oil will drip off metal surfaces and leave metal unprotected.

 

[z71bill]

With my generator I change it after I use it - then it can sit in the box for years without being used again -

So when I put it back in service - I start it up to make sure it still works - let it warm up with a light load - then change the oil.

It takes 16 ounces of oil -- my lawn mowers take 12 -- a 5 quart jug of SuperTec full synthetic is $17 - why worry about a maintenance item that is under $2? Just change it.

Since I mow all year around - I will change oil every 6 months - which is about 25 hours of mowing. I could easily go 12 months - but for $1.50 in oil and 10 minutes of my time I can keep fresh oil in my mower.

 

[RDY4WAR]

Change oil at end of season before storing it for the winter. After the oil change, start the engine and run it for a minute or two to cycle the fresh oil. This way you reduce the amount of contaminants & acids that can cause corrosion and other problems during storage.

This right here.

 

[Quantico]

I loaned my generator last year. Just changed oil on it. Ran it out of fuel last year. Every few months i pull the rope ten times to move the oil thru the engine and move the valve springs around

 

[Eddie]

I change it whenever I should based on engine time. Sometimes summer, sometimes fall. I don't even try to over think something so insignificant in my life.

 

[dlundblad]

To the people in the “change it at the end of the season” crowd, isn’t the engine sitting with the contaminants in the oil all season long anyways?

 

[Lubener]

I change it when it is needed. Doesn't matter to me when in the calendar that might occur.

 

[Ride_Red]

To the people in the “change it at the end of the season” crowd, isn’t the engine sitting with the contaminants in the oil all season long anyways?

I typically change at the end of the season. Then it sits for 5 months with fresh oil in it.

as opposed to...

Let it sit with dirty oil for 5 months and then change it in the spring.


In both cases, the oil starts fresh in the spring and gradually gets dirty throughout the season.

 

[Warlord]

Does anyone have any evidence or reading material that would explain this acidic oil nightmare scenario? It sounds a lot like old wife science to me. Some people never change their mower oil and the block doesn’t disintegrate. Used motor oil is sprayed on undercarriages as rust proofing and doesn’t seem to eat through the frames. It seems that if this was a real thing worth worrying about there would be evidence of it.

 

[Scrubcadet10]

I always change mine in the spring.