Mower storage..

[Rolla07]

I've heard alot of opinions..run it out of gas and leave empty or fill with non ethanol gas (no stabilizer) or heard to use non eth and stabilizer..my first time winterizing a mower. It will be stored outside in my shed through winter..damp amd cold Montreal weather. Appreciate your advice

 

[SatinSilver]

Tighten gas tank lid. Try to use Top Tier gas and just leave it. Had a Craftsman mower sit 4 years through the winters and it started just fine. Since yours will be started in the spring it will be fine. In the spring top it with some fresh gas and it will be good to go.

 

[Garak]

My mower is fairly new and never had ethanol, and I used Stabil as directed. Last year (second season for the mower), the carb [censored] out royally. The small engine guy couldn't point to ethanol, like is the SOP.

Over this winter, the exact same procedure worked out fine. Apparently, there were a few issues with that specific model of carb.

Yet, about 25 years ago, my dad and I found an old B&S engine that was sitting in the scrap heap for a good 20 years or so. We got in running in under an hour, just with fresh gas, fresh oil, and cleaning the plugs. Go figure.

 

[raytseng]

Id use a drop of stabilizer. However if you dont have additional need for stabilizer then its wasteful to buy a bottle.

Instead get bottle of redline si1, which also does stabilizing and use a capful for the mower and rest in your car.

This worked for me in a neglected 20yr old mower that is only used once every couple months and would require carb to be drained each time.

 

[Quest]

I use stabiliser with E10 gas.

I also get a thick sheet of plastic (i.e. the plastic wrapping materials used for packaging case of campbell soup), jam it on top of the fuel-filler neck before re-capping.

This would stop (or at least minimising) the fuel vapour from venting to the atmosphere, and in-return: not to suck in moisture from the surroundings.

Also: for B&S side-draft mowers: I added a small twist type fuel shutoff valve, a 150micron mesh type fuel filter, and then shut off the fuel, fog the engine before putting it into storage.

Same goes with my Honda powered BE pressure washer.

Q.

 

[mk378]

If it is easy to do on your model (bowl type carb with a nut on the bottom), run it out of gas then loosen the nut to drain the last few drops out of the carb.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

I've always just put them away with fuel that contains Stabil. I've used E10 for 30+ years and never had a single fuel related issue. And I own or have owned trimmers, a couple of chainsaws that only see use once a year or so, mowers (everything from push mowers to a zero turn commercial John Deere), a tiller, pressure washers, and a few others I'm sure I'm forgetting.

I wouldn't store any gas more than a month or so without Stabil, so I add it to my 30 gallon portable tank every time I fill it up. That way I know anything that gets filled from the portable tank has Stabil in it at any time of the year.

 

[The_Jeff]

I've had failures both ways. I think my next move is going to be about a 1:10 ratio of gas to 2 stroke oil, with a little sta-bil too, run through before parking.

Empty carbs grow "white fuzz" on the aluminum inside. Like moss. Gross.

 

[Kawiguy454]

a full tank with sta-bil.

 

[The motor guy]

Originally Posted By: SatinSilver
Tighten gas tank lid. Try to use Top Tier gas and just leave it. Had a Craftsman mower sit 4 years through the winters and it started just fine. Since yours will be started in the spring it will be fine. In the spring top it with some fresh gas and it will be good to go.


Why can't you start it up once a month and run it? That's what I do with the 10 different engines I have and I don't have problems. I don't even worry about how old the gas gets, the important part is making sure that same fuel doesn't sit in the carb all winter and gunk it up.

 

[Quest]

those "white fuzz" from pot-metal corrosion is caused by moisture-induced deteriorated gasoline soaking the pot-metal (primary material of choice for making carb).

I've been using B&S advanced fuel treatment to dope my gasoline for OPE for the past year now, and I'm putting my faith on the additional metal deactivators and anti-oxidants that came along with it to protect my B&S mower carb from deterioration.

I don't believe in firing up OPE engines once a month , for once I properly prepared my OPE engines, they will be prepped and stored (esp. in the case of my 2 recently acquired prized Honda portable gennys) for a few years at a time, and then will be fueled and fired up when they are being called for.

For Honda OPE engines: I'd drain the carb before fogging the engine; for B&S sidedraft with walbro clones, I shut off the fuel supply (gasoline doped of course); run and fog the engine before putting it into storage.

those metal deactivators will keep my carb in good state over winter time.

Lastly: unlike most OPE users: I'm never afraid to tear any carbs apart and investigate (rebuild them when needed), so, to me, carb problem may never be an issue afterall.

Q.

 

[spasm3]

I use stabil marine, and 1 oz of tcw-3 in 5 gallons fuel.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: motor_oil_madman
Why can't you start it up once a month and run it?

Piddling around with a lawnmower engine in a Montreal winter, particularly if he put a monograde in it, more so if it's buried in snow, would not be my idea of a good time.

 

[Joel_MD]

I use E10 gas in my small engines because it's the only thing available in my area, but toward the end of the season I'll run the tank dry and switch to an engineered fuel like TruFuel or VP Small Engine Fuel the last time or two that I use it. Then I just leave that fuel in the tank during the off season. I spray fogging oil into the carb while the engine is running to kill it, then change the oil and air filter. I'll buy a new spark plug and duct tape it to the top of the engine to remind me to change it, but next spring I'll start the engine and run it on the old spark plug to burn off the fogging oil before I change it.

 

[fdcg27]

Doesn't matter.
I've taken elaborate steps to winterize OPEs and I've also had one sitting dry of fuel where it got damp for more than four years.
They typically start right up either way and live long lives.
OPEs are pretty hard to kill.
They were designed to tolerate abuse and neglect.
Just be sure to keep oil in any small engine and it'll outlast the machine it came on.

 

[JustinH]

I have a ten year old briggs with the original carb on it.

It was surging a little bit.

Put a little B12 chemtool in with some fresh gas, new plug, new filter.

Mower runs fine.

I would recommend a little b12 in the fuel, and change the oil and just let it sit during the winter.