Strange oil usage.

[7394]

Good Luck on that.

 

[slomo]

I've got a 48" Cub Z Force S with a Kohler Command CV680 engine with just over 150 hours on it. The mower is run on a fairly flat lawn & the only time it's run in any kind of dirty conditions is in the fall when I mulch leaves with it. It has never used any oil and gets a complete service & cleaned up every November before I put it away for the winter. It's a '13 model, so it's being run less than 20 hours per year. It has always had a mulching kit on it. It gets blown out after every mowing and the air filter has never gotten dirty. The only thing I did different last fall when I put it away was when I filled it with gas and poured Sea Foam in the gas tank, I added an extra 2 or 3 ounces just to empty the bottle.
This spring when I started it up the first time it smoked. A lot... As soon as the motor warmed up it quit smoking, ran fine, and had good power, just like it always has. I wondered at the time if it smoked so bad when I started it because of the extra Sea Foam I had added when I stored it for the winter. I idled it down a couple of times to open & close gates & each time I throttled it back up it would blow out a cloud of gray smoke for a few seconds and then clear up again. When I finished mowing I let it cool down & then blew it off with my leaf blower like I've always done & then put it back in my shed. I checked the engine oil the next day and had to add 6oz. of oil. (Kohler 10W30 Synth. blend, which is the only oil it's ever had) Once again, I've never had to add a single ounce over the past 8 years. I did check the muffler tip & it was typically clean, with just a bit of dry, gray residue on my finger.
I decided since there was no noise, knock, or power loss in the engine, to mow at least one more time before checking with my dealer about what was going on. The second mowing was an exact replay of the first except instead of using 6 ounces of oil it only used 2 ounces. I decided to keep using it. The 3rd mowing, it acted exactly the same as the first 2, except that I had to add about 4 ounces of oil. The muffler tip was black when I checked that time & slightly moist.
After that I checked with my dealer and one other dealership & told them what happened & both of them suggested I keep using it & see if it gets any worse before bringing it in to get checked. One of them suggested possibly checking valve adjustment. The other dealer said it has hydraulic lifters & won't need the valves checked...
I mowed for the 4th time today & it's another repeat of the first 3 mowings. Lots of smoke on startup, then running clean with great power & no unusual engine noise. I got puffs of gray smoke each time I would idle it down & then go full throttle again. I did notice today that after letting it cool down for 10 minutes and then blowing it off like I always do, that the red oil light cycled on & off after I started it to put it back in the shed. It went out & stayed out when I throttled it up. I have not noticed it coming on while mowing, but I suppose it's possible... This has always happened occasionally for a few seconds when I start the engine cold. I guess it's time to get it checked out. Any thoughts before I haul it in?

I've re-read your initial post.
Engine was flawless for 8 years. Engine did NOT smoke at this time.
You added Seafoam and threw in a little extra because that's how we do it in America instead of READING the directions. Read again you added an entire bottle.
Engine sat all winter with high solvency Seafoam in the engine.
Next spring it smoked A LOT.


I would call Seafoam and demand a new engine.
Make a video of the tear down. Show the bore and any carbon gouges in the cylinder bore/s.

SEA FOAM SALES CO.​

510 North Chestnut Street
Chaska, MN 55318
ph (952) 938-4811
fax (952) 938-5841


slomo

 

[Big Jon]

I've re-read your initial post.
Engine was flawless for 8 years. Engine did NOT smoke at this time.
You added Seafoam and threw in a little extra because that's how we do it in America instead of READING the directions. Read again you added an entire bottle.
Engine sat all winter with high solvency Seafoam in the engine.
Next spring it smoked A LOT.


I would call Seafoam and demand a new engine.
Make a video of the tear down. Show the bore and any carbon gouges in the cylinder bore/s.

SEA FOAM SALES CO.​

510 North Chestnut Street
Chaska, MN 55318
ph (952) 938-4811
fax (952) 938-5841


slomo

You certainly like to push buttons & try to rile people up, don't you slomo! Since you re-read my initial post and got out of what I wrote, that I put in a whole bottle of SeaFoam, you must be a poor reader. You are correct that it is 8 years old. It ran flawless for 8 years (2013-2020) and started smoking on start up and using oil this spring.
As far a my my pouring in a whole bottle of Seafoam, perhaps you should read it again. I put in SeaFoam (1 ounce per gallon = 4 ounces, and put in what was left in the bottle (an additional 2-3 ounces. That's 6 or 7 ounces total in a full 4 gallon tank. The bottles I purchase are 16 oz. bottles so that's less than half than a bottle. My best guess is that SeaFoam did not ruin my engine. I'm guessing head gasket and will hopefully know soon.
No need to reply as I see no need to correspond with you again.

 

[LT1045wrh]

Is the valve cover directly over the muffler? Mine smokes after sitting a while due to the oil dripping out of the valve cover seal and oiling up the muffler.

 

[Big Jon]

Is the valve cover directly over the muffler? Mine smokes after sitting a while due to the oil dripping out of the valve cover seal and oiling up the muffler.

No it's not actually, and there are no oil leaks (yet) on my engine. The inside of the muffler outlet has just started getting a bit oily to the touch the past two mowings. Before that it was normal with just a bit of gray exhaust dust coming off on my finger.

 

[JDeere101]

I don,t use Seafoam, Some people I know that have used it have had issues after they used it in the gas or oil.

 

[7394]

I don't use Seafoam in my oil, but I swear by it for use in my gas tanks, w/100% gas for over winter storage. .

It even freed up an old air gun I forgot about & it froze up. Added a bit of seafoam & let it sit a couple days & the air gun slowly started working again.

 

[Big Jon]

Here's a follow up on my Kohler engine. The shop called me back about 10 days ago & told me my Cub was done & ready to pick up. We've been in a serious draught here in SW Iowa this spring so even though my lawn was starting to look pretty rough, I decided to wait until we've had some rain until I mow again. I did talk with the mechanic who worked on the engine & found out that it had a blown head gasket. He replaced both head gaskets, checked the valves & replaced the spark plugs. He also changed the oil & filter. I asked him about carbon buildup & he told me it looked like a new engine inside. I also asked him about his thoughts on using SeaFoam in the gas & he told me he's a firm believer in it & uses it in everything he owns. He claims it's the best way to keep carbs & injectors from gumming up. Total cost for parts, labor & sales tax was $321. Since we got a bit over 2" of rain on Sunday, I mowed yesterday & the little Cub performed like new. I'm heading out now to our local Bomgaars store to pick up a few more cans of SeaFoam...