Start Your Lawnmowers...

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: Warstud
Just a reminder to run your lawnmowers before you actually need it. It's pretty warm here today so I went out and started mine. I used some gas that I had for the snowblower that was some-what fresh. Message here is "Don't wait until you need it..to run it"


I might "need" to use my snowblower or run my generator, but I never "need" to run my lawnmower. The lawn can always wait.

 

[Donald]

Its easier on the lawnmower over the winter vs the snowblower over the summer. Gas going bad is a chemical process and is always slower in the cold weather.

 

[nikorasu]

I dragged out the old John Deere 14 SE push mower last night that my father gave me and pulled the oil filter and drained the oil. Washed the foam air filter as well.

Installed a new Purolator Classic L14476 filter and almost a full quart of Formula Shell 10w30.

Then I found out it still had old gas in it, but at least he had turned the shut off to off and ran the carb dry. Pulled it a few times and it started up finally.

 

[PhilsSmallEngine]

Just pulled out the DuraForce engines. It took my '98 5 pulls to fire up and my '02 4 pulls. My beyond resale Briggs 625 Lawn Boy 3 pulls to fire up and start bagging the debris the mulchers left behind. Excellent considering I stored all of them outside this winter with no winterization other than running them dry.

 

[kmrcstintn]

no OPE (HOA contracted lawn maintenance...barely) but 2 motorcycles...

Honda Shadow: storage...slightly overpressue tires, Startron stabilizer (higher concentration than 'daily use' amount), top off gas, run treated gas thru system, shut off petcock & drain carb bowl, plug in battery tender, lock it up, cover it up, and cringe while waiting for spring; startup...turn on petcock, pull out choke, and hit starter several times until vacuum actuated carburetor gets gas into cylinder, idle for 10 minutes while working throttle a few times, adjust choke until idling normal, shut off engine, and spike gas in tank with K100 MG+; first actual ride start up was much easier...topped off with new 87 fuel & a bit of MMO

Suzuki GZ250: storage: same as above but petcock doesn't have an off position so the fuel evaporates as it sits (petcock has a 'prime' setting to refill carb bowl) start up: same as above but use prime setting on petcock...still takes a few hits of the starter;

K100 MG+ will be my new long term storage stabilizing agent...will use Startron during riding season when bikes/vehicle take turns sitting for more than a few days.

 

[dlundblad]

Originally Posted By: kb9skw
I dragged out the old John Deere 14 SE push mower last night that my father gave me and pulled the oil filter and drained the oil. Washed the foam air filter as well.

Installed a new Purolator Classic L14476 filter and almost a full quart of Formula Shell 10w30.

Then I found out it still had old gas in it, but at least he had turned the shut off to off and ran the carb dry. Pulled it a few times and it started up finally.


This sounds like an awesome mower to have.

 

[jhellwig]

Found a little water in my push mower gas tank today. I got it out to mow with after it had been parked in my shed checked the oil and then went to see how much gas was in it. I could see maybe a teaspoon of water beaded up under the gas. I know how the water got in and it wasn't the e10 that had been sitting in it. Over the winter snow had blown in the peak on the roof and covered everything sitting under it. The tank was maybe a quarter of the way full.

All I did to get it started was top the gas off. Push the primer 3 times and it started up on the first pull. It is one of the little 500 series briggs l head engines with the suction lift carb.

 

[fdcg27]

Originally Posted By: fdcg27
Just as with winter stored cars, I never start a mower until I'm ready to put it to work.
I figure that if it ran fine in the fall, then it'll run fine in the spring.
It's sometimes a little difficult to get the things to start in the spring, but a small shot of ether never fails to get them running and after that, I have no further issues.


Today was the day.
The weather was gorgeous and the grass was getting high.
I pulled a 1995 Tecumseh powered machine out of the garage that had been carefully winter prepped with a full tank of E10 and nothing else.
Gave the primer a few pumps and the machine lit right off on the second pull. No ether nor anything else to get it running.
It had not been run in six months.
You guys who put lots of effort into preparing your OPEs for winter storage kill me.
The engines just don't seem to care either way.