Check to see if the oil smells like gas. If it does, you have a carb float/needle not seating, allowing fuel to flow through the carb, into the cylinder, into the crankcase.
How much of an increase are you seeing? Are you checking it the same way each time? Proper way, of course, is to set the dipstick on the fill tube, without screwing it down. If the increase is of significance, it is likely as Rivets mentioned.
Check to see if the oil smells like gas. If it does, you have a carb float/needle not seating, allowing fuel to flow through the carb, into the cylinder, into the crankcase.
Do you think this can happen while the engine is running? With the Ariens IKON XD mower, the gas tank is lower than the carb and I find it hard to think that there could be a siphon between the carb and gas tank when the engine is not running. I will drain the oil and see if it has a gas smell. Thanks for your input.
Bill Mc.
How much of an increase are you seeing? Are you checking it the same way each time? Proper way, of course, is to set the dipstick on the fill tube, without screwing it down. If the increase is of significance, it is likely as Rivets mentioned.
I do check it with out screwing the dipstick back down. This is the 2nd. year on this mower and I changed the oil before starting this season. Since then, I have noticed a slight increase above the normal level each time we mow. Today I noticed it was going higher each time we mow and began to think it might be gas in the oil.
On my FR601V 20hp with externally vented carburetor there was a factory tip not to oil prefilter.
Before my oil level would slowly raise until engine fouled plugs. Now oil level stays constant. You could try oiling the prefilter and cleaning often.
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Smell the dipstick, you can usually tell if it smells like gas has invaded the system.
Take a cigarette lighter and see if the oil burns on the dipstick. But get it away from the engine as not to set it on fire just incase. If it does then you have gas in the fuel.
