What did I do wrong?

[Fredbear]

After getting my new Honda mower my youngest son said he could make use of my old Briggs 3.5 hp push mower. So I thought I would clean it up ,sharpen blade,change oil etc.
Now I normally just tilt the mower at about 45% to just scrape off most of the grass but this time thought I would do a proper job and tip the mower on its side with exhaust down and air filter up which is what I thought was right.
After about 10 mins I notice a pool of oil and on checking the dipstick found that most of the oil has leaked out.
Hard to see exactly where this has leaked as its all over that side of the engine.
Have i done permanent damage and if you cant tip the mower on its side how can you properly clean deck underside and change blade?

 

[jorton]

I think the oil drained out the oil fill tube. That would mean the dip stick seal is bad, or it is loose.

 

[Radman]

Any mower would leak oil from being laid on it's side. Just top it off and don't worry about it.

 

[Fredbear]

Originally Posted By: jorton
I think the oil drained out the oil fill tube. That would mean the dip stick seal is bad, or it is loose.

No it didn;t come from the oil drain tube-that was dry-it was mainly around the exhaust and when I started it there was clouds of smoke for about 5 mins so it seems that somehow the oil has come out of the exhaust valve and into the exhaust but i don't see how it could have got past the piston and into the combustion chamber.

 

[spasm3]

you might have tilted it with the carb side down, oil ran in to it. Always tilt it so the carb is on the high side.

 

[Fredbear]

Originally Posted By: spasm3
you might have tilted it with the carb side down, oil ran in to it. Always tilt it so the carb is on the high side.

I mentioned in my original post that I tilted it with air filter up and exhaust down-thanks.

 

[boraticus]

I've had that happen numerous times. Top off the oil and go cut grass. Other than the mess on the floor, it's nothing.

Do the cleaning of the deck etc. during an oil change. Drain the oil then do the other work. When finished, fill the engine.

 

[JTK]

I've flipped my Honda GC powered Honda mower on either side without oil leakage. Of course you'll get gas leakage if set carb-down.

 

[SrDriver]

Had a heak of a mess with my Honda mower by turning it on the wrong side.

Oil in the air filter - real mess.

Learned to tilt it only to the side the the oil fill tube is on.

 

[oily boyd]

Quote:
tilt it only to the side the the oil fill tube is on


Good advice.

I clean my HRX at the end of the season: drain oil out of the fill tube (by tilting mower or you could extract it), run gas tank dry (then drain carb bowl). Then you can tilt it any way you need to in order to get it clean.

Fill up with fresh oil when done. Don't forget: to check the oil level, insert dipstick without screwing it in.

 

[Fredbear]

Originally Posted By: boraticus
I've had that happen numerous times. Top off the oil and go cut grass. Other than the mess on the floor, it's nothing.

Do the cleaning of the deck etc. during an oil change. Drain the oil then do the other work. When finished, fill the engine.

Yea-good advice-thanks.

 

[Fredbear]

Originally Posted By: oily boyd
Quote:
tilt it only to the side the the oil fill tube is on


Good advice.

I clean my HRX at the end of the season: drain oil out of the fill tube (by tilting mower or you could extract it), run gas tank dry (then drain carb bowl). Then you can tilt it any way you need to in order to get it clean.
Sounds like a plan-thanks

Fill up with fresh oil when done. Don't forget: to check the oil level, insert dipstick without screwing it in.

 

[Fredbear]

Originally Posted By: Fredbear
Originally Posted By: oily boyd
Quote:
tilt it only to the side the the oil fill tube is on


Good advice.

I clean my HRX at the end of the season: drain oil out of the fill tube (by tilting mower or you could extract it), run gas tank dry (then drain carb bowl). Then you can tilt it any way you need to in order to get it clean.


Fill up with fresh oil when done. Don't forget: to check the oil level, insert dipstick without screwing it in.

Sounds like a plan-Thanks

 

[UNC017]

Originally Posted By: Fredbear
After getting my new Honda mower my youngest son said he could make use of my old Briggs 3.5 hp push mower. So I thought I would clean it up ,sharpen blade,change oil etc.
Now I normally just tilt the mower at about 45% to just scrape off most of the grass but this time thought I would do a proper job and tip the mower on its side with exhaust down and air filter up which is what I thought was right.
After about 10 mins I notice a pool of oil and on checking the dipstick found that most of the oil has leaked out.
Hard to see exactly where this has leaked as its all over that side of the engine.
Have i done permanent damage and if you cant tip the mower on its side how can you properly clean deck underside and change blade?



When you tilt it on that side, oil runs into the breather mechanism, fills it, and then drips out the tube leading to the carb. It also tends to fil the carb with oil and then when you go to start it up it will a) be hard to start due to the oil fouling the spark plug, and b) when it does start it will fog mosquitos in a 4 block radius. ;-p

No permanent harm is done. Next time tip it the OTHER way and oil won't fill up the breather.

 

[hate2work]

That's weird, I've tilted my HRX217HXA many times with the carb side up with zero problems.

Don't do as 440magnum suggests, having oil in your carb/air filter is not a good thing.

 

[Nick R]

It happens. Happened alot when I had a mower with that same engine. It has the potential to be leaking from a few different places.

-The exhaust itself, the valve spring cover is just behind the muffler, it's that little rectangular cover. If the valve stem seals are worn, it could leak into the exhaust port, and out the muffler.

-Valve Spring cover seals could be old, and when you tip it it's leaking out from the cover.

-The PCV duct, that runs into the carb. When you tip it, it would fill the duct with oil, and seals might not hold it, so it will leak out onto that side. Additionally, when you go to start it if you don't wait a few minutes, it will fill the carb with oil, and it will smoke like crazy for a few minutes.

 

[TFB1]

Well A B&S really should not leak oil with the exhaust side down... That could indicate worn valve guide(s)and/or bad valve stem seals, but as long as it runs OK and isn't using excessive oil, I would not be loosing any sleep(then I ran one for over a dozen years that needed oil added with every fill up)...

I've never seen a 3.5Hp Briggs that had valve stem seals on either intake or exhaust but I haven't opened one newer than maybe 20 years old...