Toro ss4260 oil change - drain setup !

[John34]

I would love to know which imbecile designed the oil drain system and where they got their mail order engineering degree. It's a level of dumbassery I've almost never seen. You slip a hose onto the barbed tee fitting (in cramped space) open the long plug, etc etc....

I'm thinking of replumbing the thing and extending the piping out/towards the back with an ell, a nipple, and a plug (or cap), and cap off the barbed end of the tee. I'm not even sure if the plug on the end of the tee (where I would add an ell pointing towards the back) is NPT. Does anyone know? Anyone come up with a better solution other than sucking it out of the fill pipe?

Maybe I'll see f I can find a size of fuel line / emissions hose that fits onto that barbed end and leave it in place permanently.

Yes, I have a somewhat similar, cheap, ill designed way to drain oil on Toro Timemaster Kohler. I’m going to replace the drain line with a braided piece and the Stens drain plug. Better than original, I think. Purchased on Amazon. Hope that helps. Stens 125-508 Oil Drain Plug , Black

 

[Freddie21]

I would love to know which imbecile designed the oil drain system and where they got their mail order engineering degree. It's a level of dumbassery I've almost never seen. You slip a hose onto the barbed tee fitting (in cramped space) open the long plug, etc etc....

I'm thinking of replumbing the thing and extending the piping out/towards the back with an ell, a nipple, and a plug (or cap), and cap off the barbed end of the tee. I'm not even sure if the plug on the end of the tee (where I would add an ell pointing towards the back) is NPT. Does anyone know? Anyone come up with a better solution other than sucking it out of the fill pipe?

Maybe I'll see f I can find a size of fuel line / emissions hose that fits onto that barbed end and leave it in place permanently.

All the engines I have worked on were 3\8" npt

 

[TobyU]

From what I gather, many of these engines come to the manufacturer of the machine with simply the pipe plug stuck in them and often one on each side because they have multiple drains.
They probably come with the foot drain thing that Briggs has used for a long time in a little bag with the engine or maybe they buy those separately but it's pretty much up to the manufacture of the machine to put them in and this also creates a problem because for a couple of decades now I can tell you that over 70% of those are not tightened enough when they are first installed and by the time they get to me, or any other tech, or the owner in just a few short number of years, they are so loose you can take them out with your fingers and they are typically leaking oil at least seeping a little bit.
I would venture to say it's more like 8 out of 10 of them are loose.
So many machines over the years have had a set up of plumbing pipe installed currently with a nice little cap on it so you can drain your oil quickly, much easier, and much cleaner.
Be happy that you at least have some sort of quick drain because being able to stick a piece of hose on that makes it a lot easier. Remember, you don't necessarily have to have the same diameter hose. I've used a piece of probably half inch or 5/8 heater hose for years.
It doesn't stick and stay on the nipple but it still works fine.
Also, I made up a nice little drain out of a 2 L bottle and off it out of those 20 oz or 1 L bottles by cutting it so it's open on the half top after cutting the bottom off then you can slide this right underneath the drain up against the engine and this works even for the ones that just had the pipe plug because those will make it extreme mess without some sort of drain or funnel attachment.
Many of the newer machines come with a little trough style plastic drain thing that's meant to do just this but I find that my homemade cut up bottle works better.
Then I have another one that I use to pour my used oil back into the 5-quart and the 2 gallon containers because it flows much faster than your typical funnel.

 

[jcworks]

I have a zeroturn Toro with the same issue. When draining oil, I finally just gave up on the setup they had and let it run out. Idiot design...must have been someone from Rio Linda. I was at the dealer one day and talked to him about it. He knew ,and he agreed. He sold me a screw in hose ($45) similar to the one Lawn Addict posted for you. It was actually a hose for another mower. Its pretty stiff so I just screwed it into motor, curved it to the rear of the mower, and just leave it there all the time. Drain it into a bucket. Pizazzz.

 

[7394]

All the engines I have worked on were 3\8" npt

Freddie21- The New Kawasaki's are Metric thread.. Just saying. M20 - 2.50

He sold me a screw in hose ($45) similar to the one Lawn Addict posted for you.

Cool, I get mine off Fee-Bay for a few bucks less..

 

[SlopeMan2]

I would love to know which imbecile designed the oil drain system and where they got their mail order engineering degree. It's a level of dumbassery I've almost never seen. You slip a hose onto the barbed tee fitting (in cramped space) open the long plug, etc etc....

I'm thinking of replumbing the thing and extending the piping out/towards the back with an ell, a nipple, and a plug (or cap), and cap off the barbed end of the tee. I'm not even sure if the plug on the end of the tee (where I would add an ell pointing towards the back) is NPT. Does anyone know? Anyone come up with a better solution other than sucking it out of the fill pipe?

Maybe I'll see f I can find a size of fuel line / emissions hose that fits onto that barbed end and leave it in place permanently.

I would love to know which imbecile designed the oil drain system and where they got their mail order engineering degree. It's a level of dumbassery I've almost never seen. You slip a hose onto the barbed tee fitting (in cramped space) open the long plug, etc etc....

I'm thinking of replumbing the thing and extending the piping out/towards the back with an ell, a nipple, and a plug (or cap), and cap off the barbed end of the tee. I'm not even sure if the plug on the end of the tee (where I would add an ell pointing towards the back) is NPT. Does anyone know? Anyone come up with a better solution other than sucking it out of the fill pipe?

Maybe I'll see f I can find a size of fuel line / emissions hose that fits onto that barbed end and leave it in place permanently.

I know what you mean. I have used a plumbing pipe nipple extension and cap for the oil draining purpose. But, more recently, just suck the crankcase dry with a 3/8 copper tube and 12v vacuum pump. It does a good job - messy, but quick. My cub cadet 1554 27 hp Kohlar with 800 hours still going without a hitch. Good luck.

 

[AutoMechanic]

Doesn’t sound as bad as the mower I was working on over the weekend. It was a Toro zero turn. And even worse it was a Kohler engine Kohler Confidant to be exact. I looked like a total idiot because the YouTube video showed a plastic drain like a traditional riding mower has well get there and it’s a square plug in a really confined space and bad angle. And of course I grabbed my wrench sets that didn’t have an 11mm or 7/16 in it. Luckily this person lives right across the street from three auto parts stores so I ran across the street to AutoZone and got the needed wrench and picked up a stubby adjustable wrench too. I ordered a socket to fit over the square. That’s a really stupid design. And when I drained the oil it went everywhere to all over this persons driveway. At least I have two wrenches to add to my over 200 wrenches that I already own though LOL. Had I not been 30 miles from home I would of ran home and got stuff to make the job easier or to work which this person also lives right next to my work however it was Sunday and I couldn’t get into the shop. It was also the first mower I’ve seen with two spark plugs I showed up with one and luckily AutoZone had those too. At least I’m not the only one dealing with a bad design and since this person is a family member I’ll have to work on it again since I’m the mechanic haha.

 

[packardv8]

My 4235 Kohler has a drain hose which disappears under the engine somewhere and a square pipe plug in the end. It's awkward to remove, but the real problem is it's the slowest draining of any of the dozens of small engines I've owned over sixty years.

 

[7394]

My 4235 Kohler has a drain hose which disappears under the engine somewhere and a square pipe plug in the end. It's awkward to remove, but the real problem is it's the slowest draining of any of the dozens of small engines I've owned over sixty years.

My neighbor has the Kohler on his Toro, Hose isn't fastest draining. But it is clean & EZ...
PS: remember to loosen the oil fill cap to allow air in during drain.. I always cover the opening with clean rag..

 

[jcworks]

It may be slow, yes. My 23hp Kawasaki is slow too. I had to add on a drain hose because it came from the factory with a short drain hose that was inadequate. But at least now that I've added the drain hose it doesn't drain all over the frame of the mower. Just change oil at a time when you can let it sit overnight, and move on -- thats my best advice.