Did I break this mower?

[benski]

It'll be interesting to see what the post mortem on that engine reveals. Checking the oil before every day's mowing is a great way to prolong the life of any equipment, obviously. I'm also a big fan of premium synthetic oil, but that's been covered elsewhere..:smile:
To the Honda man; We would routinely over fill the Honda gensets we used on our research vessels so that the low oil cut-off didn't interrupt our surveys. With the boat pitching and rolling, there wasn't a good option.:smile:

 

[phcaan]

I'm not 100% sure on 8 inches, it was 2 weeks worth of growth in Northern Virginia with a bunch of rain, for whatever it's worth.

It was never asked of me to check or add oil to any equipment.

My husband did go talk to him. He was told to leave when he pointed out that either a.) he watched me "abuse" the equipment and did nothing to stop it or b.) he didn't see me and has no idea at what speed I was mowing. Eventually he got him to calm down and agree to take it in and see what the shop says. Still haven't heard back.

I would think that no one should be blamed before the mower gets checked out by a reputable shop. I can't think of anything other than running out of oil that would not be covered by warranty unless the owner purchased the mower used, and in that case it may have been an existing problem.

 

[Fastshivy]

Sounds like the oil is full of gas to me. Or at the least it ran oil into the cylinder when you tipped it to chip at the mud. If this is the whole story and nothing but the whole story I would not worry until the shop looked it over and made their observations known. Your boss is a typical boss. I have never had one that was not unreasonable at times and always trying to gain a buck or one hundred bucks any time and any way he could from any employee. In fact, most of the guys I have worked for over the years simply could not get along with anyone long enough to hold a job so they had to become a boss in order to make a living.

I agree with the above synopsis. The business is usually responsible for their equipment. By this I mean, there is always a risk of equipment being broken by employees, it goes with the territory. An owner assumes that risk unless malice or total negligence is involved. If you were just buzzing along cutting grass, like others have stated it would simply stall. I definitely would not pay....stuff happens. Any up dates from servicing dealer?

 

[meamjw]

If you had been mowing faster than the engine could handle it would have been bogging down and likely even dying many times before blowing up. It's my guess the A-hole just figured you were too dumb to know any different and he would get you to foot the bill. It's never an employee's responsibility to cover the cost of repairs unless there is clear evidence of carelessness when the employee knew better. Besides all that, the entire mower does not need to be replaced. Maybe the engine does not even need to be replaced. A good mechanic should have diagnosed it before the jerk got his knickers in a big knot.

 

[ump107]

On some Honda engines, there is a device called Oil Alert. It is a simple float switch in the oil pan. If the oil level drops too low, the switch ground the ignition and the engine shuts down. If the oil level is too low before the the operator tries to start the engine, it engine won't start. On some products, there is a small circuit that drives an "Oil Alert" lamp, which flashes when you try and start the engine to indicate the oil level is too low. Oil Alert is featured on all Honda generators, pumps, and many other power equipment products that usually remain stationary during operation.

All that said, no Honda walk-behinds mowers have an Oil Alert device (!). This is because most mowers are operated at various inclines, degrees of elevation, rough soil conditions, etc., and it would be very difficult to make a float inside the oil pan operate reliably.

I presume this only applies to the Honda branded mowers not all applications of Honda engines. My Ransomes mower with the Honda GVX 390 has the oil alert on it. It is a audible alarm that goes off when the oil is too low I have only ever had it activate when I was changing the oil. I would speculate because there was just enough charge left in the system to power the alarm briefly.

 

[DaForce]

I don't know what engine is on the mower or if the oil system is a slap stick or pressurized system. You mentioned that you were mowing the slopes and that may be part of the cause. I have slopes of 15-35 degrees along the two roads running by my property and in some places it is to steep to use my riding mower. I had a high wheel push mower I used and it had an 8hp Briggs 4 cycle engine.

The problem I had that mowing in a certain direction with the mower tipped to the left at up to 35 degrees the engine would overheat and stop. It turns out that at that amount of tilt the oil would pool to one side of the pan and the slap stick would not disperse enough oil (if any) to lubricate the engine and it would overheat and stop suddenly.

Don't know if that was the problem in the failure of your mower but you might consider that.

 

[harryr6574]

Hi, I am old guy who used to be a Honda tech and I can tell you that Honda makes some of the best engines in the world. That being said I think 8" tall grass is a tall order for any mower, but the only issue would be bogging down or not cutting good. I do not buy the fact that you blew the mower up. Most all Hondas have what is called and oil alert system which will shut the engine down if it gets low on oil. If you were cutting on a pretty good slope the oil could move to one side, particularly if the oil was a little low, causing the oil alert to shut the mower off. Also, if on a slope it is possible for both the oil and the gas to leak out of the overflow on the carb and the vent on the crankcase. I would like to see the tech work on it to make sure he and your boss aren't trying to pull something. Another thing, if on a slope the oil would almost certainly get into the cyl. causing white smoke. Good luck, but I have to say I never blamed an employee for breaking something, it is the owners responsibility to make sure the equipment is in shape to do the days work. What if you had let his daughter use the mower. I know this is long winded, but I believe I would find another boss. Harry,

 

[Corvet3640]

Also, 8 inches of what? 8 inches of wet crabgrass is harder than 8 inches an other tall fescue grass. But it comes down to what your boss instructed you to do. I agree with the previous posters. If my employee is using a power drill as a hammer next to me and I watch him/her do it then the drill dies. My fault. Same person is told not to and does it anyway, their fault. I have over worked equipment unintentionally, you don't it any favors- but every time I have done so they start to run poor,(misfire low no power) or just choke out. Let it cool and get back in the game. The two repairs required from these stunts included cleaning a dirty radiator shield on a John Deere mower, and replacing the spark plugs on-come to think of it another John Deere mower I borrowed. I have had one engine subject to gas and oil mixing. It was a tow behind swisher mower with high hours and subject to serious physical beating during operations. Never overworked.

 

[themowerguy]

From my experience, I would guess that when you stopped to clean out under the deck, there may have been a piece of debris in the fuel system that caused the float valve to stick open, allowing the carb to dump gas into the cylinder. Gas is thin enough to seep past the rings which would thin out the oil and cause it to dump through the crankcase vent - hence the leaked gas and oil and the smoke. While this would not be covered under warranty, it is also not anyone in particular's fault. It is just one of those things that happens. It probably needs an oil change and to have the carburetor cleaned, then run until any residual oil in the breather or cylinder burns off and it will be good to go again. Hope this helps! ($0.02)

 

[Glenn300]

First if the mower was smoking the oil was too low orthe oil too hot or too thin
and it was a brakdown of the oil cauing smoke

second of all if the mower would not restart there is a good possibility that
the fuel vapor locked in the carb and prevented it from starting or if the oil
was low and the engine had a switch that will not allow the engine to run if
the oil is too low.

Check the compression and if good = proably low or bad oil if compression
is bad then the engine may have broken a ring but doubtful on a good mower

Once the oil is filled to the proper level then spin the engine with the spark
plug out and see if it fires - if it does then it only leaves the fuel as the problem
If the engine does not fire then find out if it is a bad coil or oil sensor or
a grounded out coil

Now the only thing left to check is the fuel flow.If you spray starting fluid into the intake of the carb and it starts and dies start looking for a clogged fuel tank or clogged fuel line or fuel filter or a blockage of fuel going into the carb. Or there
exist the possibilit that the fuel had a lot of water in it and the fuel would
not run the engine. Also make sure also the carb chokes and dechokes properly before condeming the carb to tear it down and repair it.