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Winter storage advice

#1

Vanousb

Vanousb

Draining the gas and dropping a little oil in spark plug to store away my Echo and honda trimmers for the season. Starting to put away a couple older honda push mowers. Just wanted to ask how others prepare mowers for off season storage. How about bigger zero turn mowers? Always looking for ideas to improve equipment performance and longevity.


#2

7394

7394

Well, I don't drain the gas, instead I add the appropriate amount 1 oz per gallon of gas using Seafoam* to stabilize the fuel.. Never had a problem..

1st winter for my new Toro Z which I already have added Seafoam to the fuel, but my other mowers I always fogged the cylinders, then put the spark plugs back in.. The Z will get fogged too..

& Everything gets a good cleaning. I don't wash 'em. But blow them off & wipe them down. And I do wax my stuff too..


#3

robert@honda

robert@honda

In the metro Atlanta area where I live, all gasoline sold contains at least 10% ethanol, and even adding a fuel stabilizer does not help much. So, I always fully drain the tank and carburetor on my mower at the end of the season, and dump leftover fuel in the can into my car's tank. I then fill up 2 x 5 gallon cans with stabilizer to run a generator during power failures / ice storms. Start over with fresh fuel in the spring.

If I could buy some non-ethanol fuel without (driving to a marina or airport and paying $5 a gallon, for it) I'd suspect treating it with fuel stabilizer would do just fine and last for a least six to nine months with no issues.


#4

Carscw

Carscw

robert@honda said:
In the metro Atlanta area where I live, all gasoline sold contains at least 10% ethanol, and even adding a fuel stabilizer does not help much. So, I always fully drain the tank and carburetor on my mower at the end of the season, and dump leftover fuel in the can into my car's tank. I then fill up 2 x 5 gallon cans with stabilizer to run a generator during power failures / ice storms. Start over with fresh fuel in the spring. If I could buy some non-ethanol fuel without (driving to a marina or airport and paying $5 a gallon, for it) I'd suspect treating it with fuel stabilizer would do just fine and last for a least six to nine months with no issues.
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You better get some gas for the snow blower. I think we going to get hit hard with snow this year.


#5

robert@honda

robert@honda

Carscw said:
You better get some gas for the snow blower. I think we going to get hit hard with snow this year.
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The day I really need a snow blower in Atlanta is the day I move to Florida. :tongue:

We usually get a good dusting in late January, early February, and every 5-7 years there's a good-sized dump of snow that completely paralyzes the city for a few days.


#6

Carscw

Carscw

robert@honda said:
The day I really need a snow blower in Atlanta is the day I move to Florida. :tongue: We usually get a good dusting in late January, early February, and every 5-7 years there's a good-sized dump of snow that completely paralyzes the city for a few days.
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I am only 2 hours north on 75 from you.

We got 6 inches last year when Atlanta got the ice.

With the record lows we had this summer we getting snow this winter.

Maybe like back in 93


#7

7394

7394

I guess we are lucky to still have 100% gas, & reasonably priced, it is the only gas I use in my mowers.

Carscw- I hope your winter weather prediction is wrong, since I'm north of you is SE of TN..


#8

Carscw

Carscw

7394 said:
I guess we are lucky to still have 100% gas, & reasonably priced, it is the only gas I use in my mowers. Carscw- I hope your winter weather prediction is wrong, since I'm north of you is SE of TN..
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I hope I am wrong also.
I hate the cold and the snow.


#9

Lawnboy18

Lawnboy18

Carscw said:
I am only 2 hours north on 75 from you.

We got 6 inches last year when Atlanta got the ice.

With the record lows we had this summer we getting snow this winter.

Maybe like back in 93
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Come on over here! We get a foot or two sometimes. I still go out and do my things.

And now I will have fun in 4wd with the Chevy. The Ranger was way too loose (in all ways).

For storage, I run all my handhelds dry. I do use STIHL oil which contains fuel stabilizer (that is what they claim) so that helps too. I then clean all my equipment and store it. The mowers will have fuel stab and run dried that way if there is some fuel left in carb, ethanol will not eat the carb.


#10

exotion

exotion

I simply run my equipment for 5-10 mins every couple weeks.... Throughout the winter go outside with a cup of coco make a lot of noise come back in easy as pie never have issues.

The only part of the ethanol that hurts things is when it sits in the carb so I just run them to operating temp. I also go through and rebuild most of my equipment in the winter anyway.

Draining your carb can be worse than leaving gas. Nothing like leaving room for condensation to build. Also your letting rubber parts dry up


#11

R

redmondjp

As many others do, I also leave the fuel in the system, preferably with the fuel tank completely full (to eliminate in-tank condensation).

I previously used stabilized pump gas without any issues, and now have switched to ethanol-free gas which one can use without a stabilizer (at least over the winter).

I used to put some oil in the cylinder, but I don't bother with that any longer either. In extremely humid environs, or coastal regions with salty air, I would do this and/or fog the motor.


#12

7394

7394

redmondjp -

I agree about 100% gas being ok over the winter alone. Guess I just feel better with the gas treated to a dose of Seafoam..

Plus I plug in one of my .750mA amp smart chargers, keep the battery up for it's winters sleep..


#13

N

NJsnapper

I dump in a good ethenol type stabilizer in the tank and let it run for 15 minutes. Then I shut off the fuel petcock(I installed em on all my equipment) and let it stall to remove all the fuel after the valve. I then drain the fuel bowl on the carb.


#14

O

oldyellr

I put some Stabil in the tank before the last time I use it so ut gets in the float bowl, then put a Battery Tender on the battery to keep it healthy over the winter. That's all.


#15

7394

7394

oldyellr said:
I put some Stabil in the tank before the last time I use it so it gets in the float bowl, then put a Battery Tender on the battery to keep it healthy over the winter. That's all.
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oldyellr- I'm sure you are aware that once you open that new bottle of stabil, if you do not use it all up in 2 years, it goes bad.. (says it right on the bottle).

That's another reason I like Seafoam*... Un-limited shelf life.. But that's just my preference..


#16

O

oldyellr

7394 said:
oldyellr- I'm sure you are aware that once you open that new bottle of stabil, if you do not use it all up in 2 years, it goes bad.. (says it right on the bottle).

That's another reason I like Seafoam*... Un-limited shelf life.. But that's just my preference..
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Interesting. I did not know that about Stabil and I've been using it for years. So, unless you have quite a number of engines you need to store, you'd have to buy a new bottle of Stabil every 2 years. I wonder if there's an additive to stabilize Stabil? :tongue:

So how would I use this Seafoam? Just squirt some in the gas tank, or do I have to disconnect fuel lines and squirt it in? Does it have to be cleaned out in the spring, or will it just start up and go? I've seen seen it mentioned on car forums and it's controversial.


#17

Lawnboy18

Lawnboy18

Pulled the blower out. Started on second start. I think that if I would of pulled harder it would of almost started on first pull. It fired good. It had gas from last winter in it and nothing bad happened. I didn't even put fuel stab in it. I checked the oil. It was pretty clean and still had a good viscosity (check with my fingers).


#18

7394

7394

oldyellr said:
Interesting. I did not know that about Stabil and I've been using it for years. So, unless you have quite a number of engines you need to store, you'd have to buy a new bottle of Stabil every 2 years. I wonder if there's an additive to stabilize Stabil? :tongue:

So how would I use this Seafoam? Just squirt some in the gas tank, or do I have to disconnect fuel lines and squirt it in? Does it have to be cleaned out in the spring, or will it just start up and go? I've seen seen it mentioned on car forums and it's controversial.
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oldyellr- Seafoam* is just as easy, add 1 oz of it per 1 gallon gas ratio. I prefer adding the Seafoam first in my gas can, then pump gas in on top of it. Shake it up, & add it to your gas engine.
Comes in 16 oz cans, any auto parts store likely has it. Costs a lil more than stabil, but makes up for it in the long run.

It does NOT need cleaned out, since it cleans the engine internals itself.. (carb , combustion chamber(s), valves etc.. Spring time you just fire up & go..

It has been around since 1942, my Dad used it, & got me started using it bout 45 years ago.. Never any problems using it..


#19

exotion

exotion

On really old car engines that have never been cleaned before. It can loosen big chunks of carbon and do some damage. On lawn mower engines you don't need to worry about it


#20

Lawnboy18

Lawnboy18

I though that seefoam was only for smoke shows for cars to gum out there engines from carbon. I didn't know that you could simply use as a cleaner.


#21

7394

7394

Seafoam has many uses. From Gas treatment, to oil treatments. And agree with exotion about use on old auto engines that have never been cleaned, there is that possibility.

I have also used it to clean up my impact guns & other air tools.


Seafoam.jpg


#22

jgayman01

jgayman01

oldyellr said:
Interesting. I did not know that about Stabil and I've been using it for years. So, unless you have quite a number of engines you need to store, you'd have to buy a new bottle of Stabil every 2 years. I wonder if there's an additive to stabilize Stabil? :tongue:
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This shouldn't be a problem really. Sta-Bil comes in various sized containers, from 32 oz. all the way down to 4 oz. Simply purchase the size appropriate to your annual fuel consumption. To ensure you have the freshest product, purchase from a store with high turn-over and buy a container based on one year of fuel usage. I use it year round in all my small engines and even a 32 oz. bottle doesn't last 2-years. :smile:


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