GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

Dioclese · 21-11-2007, 05:29 AM posted to alt.home.lawn.garden

"Art" wrote in message
...
wrote:
Is it better to do your regular maintenance (oil change, plug,
filters) at the begining of spring, right before you go to use the
tractor, or do it before you store it for the winter? Gas tank full,
treated with stabil, or empty? I did prewinter storing maintenance
last year and seemed to be ok, full gas treated too to prevent
condensation.

Definitely change oil at the end of the season so it is stored with clean
oil. The full of fuel or empty is a debate that's been around a while.
What it boils down to it that older machines with metal fuel tanks tend to
collect quite a bit of condensation when not full of fuel. So stabilize
and fill those to the top. Newer equipment generally has plastic tanks and
don't have that problem so for them you should probably put in a small
amount of stabilizer and run it out of fuel.
Gas cans should be stored full, stabilized and sealed up tight or just
empty them into you car and get fresh fuel in the spring. Filters and plug
doesn't really matter when but since you're doing the oil at the end of
the season it makes sense to do that stuff while you're waiting for the
oil to drain completely. Don't forget to hit all the grease fittings with
the grease gun while you're at it.

--
Art

Just thought I'd throw this out there regarding storage and fuel. The
primary problem is water. Long term storage of fuel in tank, be it metal or
plastic, that's not full will develop some condensation over and over again.
An empty tank will do the same thing, just no fuel to mix with. In both
cases, the water settles to the bottom of the tank.

The secondary problem is breakdown of the gasoline. A few months is okay
for storage. Beyond that, some form of gas additive is needed to slow the
process down.

In summary, add "dry gas" additive, fill the tank to full. No matter the
gas tank material.
Dave