Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark Heptonstal
Hi,
I was hoping someone could help us avoid some trauma next year!
For the first time, we've invested in a petrol mower (mountfield) and a strimmer (ryobi) - 4 stroke and 2 stroke respectively. As it's coming to winter, is there Anything special needs doing to these to prepare them for a long period of no use. Do I run the mower till it runs out of fuel? Should there be a fuel drain somewhere?
Any help or ideas that will ensure they start next year would be greatfully appreciated.
Regards,
mark&victoria
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As at have mentioned, it can be confusing what is best to do in these situations as some people never have a problem with machinery standing over the winter and others have problems every year!
The main problems is that modern "Unleaded" fuel only has a shelf life of approx 2-3 months. After this time the liquid that is left will start to thicken and can possibly block fule lines, main jets etc etc.
This is more of a problem for engines which do not have a "Primer" (round bulb that needs to be pumped 3-4 time and is used instead of, or often in conjunction with a choke". The Primer will flush old, stale fuel from the carb and replace it with fresh from the fuel tank (providing you have filled the tank with fresh fuel from the filling station which is always recommended when the start of the grass cutting season is upon us).
This feature is on the majority of 2-stroke engines (such as your Ryobi) and along with the 2 stroke oil that is present in the mix, I would recommend leaving it alone and just adding a fresh Fuel / Oil mix when you require the machine again next year.
As for the Mountfield, if it is the more modern variety from a large DIY Store! It will be fitted with Mountfields own engine (RM45, RM65, SV150, RV150 or similar) which is a "choked" engine which does NOT have a primer. For this machine I would recommend allowing the engine to run out of fuel prior to storage for the winter and refilling it with fresh at the start of the season. It will require 2 or 3 more pulls than usual to start as each pull on the recoil starter draws the fresh fuel through the system but once this has happened it should start straight away.
I would not recommend the use of Fuel Stabilisers for either the Mountfield Engine or a Honda Engine as I have found they tend to cause more problems than stale fuel does.
If your Mounfield is fitted with a Briggs & Stratton engine, It should feature a Primer system but NO choke mechanism. This engine will work with Fuel Stabilisers or it can just be left and filled with fresh fuel again at the start of the season and use the primer to pump the fresh fuel through again as mentioned above.
Avoid storing in "variable conditions" such as in an outhouse or garage with a tumble dryer so example. This can cause excess moisture to form inside the engine and will rust internal components etc.
Hope this helps
Mountfield Spare Parts - Lawnmower World