Pumping Oil Out Of Lawnmower Engine?

How big is your lawnmower?  Tipping it over is the usual method, at
least for a small push-mower!

Tim.

On 24 Apr 2005 04:56:13 -0700, shoppa@trailing-edge.com wrote:


it's just a John Deere self propelled walk behind mower with a
Kawasaki engine  on it...

Bill

They all have oil drain plugs

No, they don't!  Most do would be correct.  Some, like one I have, give
instructions on how to tip it over to get the oil out, or suggest siphon or
drill-pump.

Never say never I guess.

Pop <g>

One thing that seems to not get mentioned ( except in the manuals, which
obviously don't get read) is that before tipping a mower for ANY reason
it is imperative that the spark plug wire be disconnected.
Unless, of course, you want to be known as "3-fingers Jack", or some such.

Pontification concluded; we now return you to your scheduled
broadcasting. ;-)

--
   If you find a posting or message from myself offensive,
inappropriate, or disruptive, please ignore it. If you don't know
how to ignore a posting,complain to me and I will demonstrate.

Hi Bill -

My lawnmowers have drain holes at the bottom of the engine - just remove
the plug and it drains. Check around the bottom of the engine for a bolt
- loosen it - see what happens.

Harry

m Ransley wrote:

I have a toro self propelled that doesn't have a drain plug.  I hav eto
tip the mower on its side to drain out the fill tube.

You have to understand Ransley.  His mentality is that if he hasn't seen it,
it doesn't exist.  And it doesn't help that you write in that you have one,
and it has no drain plug.

He doesn't believe there is a Statue of Liberty, St. Louis Arch, or a Grand
Canyon, either, because he has personally never been there.

So, when dealing with Ransley, you must understand who and what you are
dealing with.

HTH

STeve

On Sun, 24 Apr 2005 10:26:19 -0700, "SteveB"


My "bottom of the line" Murray mower with B&S engine has drain plug
(which I use)  But manual says preferred method is run engine dry of
gas, tip mower over (away from carb and crankcase vent) to dump oil
out dipstick tube... The may be concerned with DIY'er around blade? or
leaving the plug out?
Chuck

My Yardman, which has a top oil fill with a dipstick, has no other
drain plug. It even says so in the manual. The method is to tip it on
its side -- the only method listed in the manual, I might add. I tip
the mower so the fill tube is on the bottom, next to the ground, and
drain it into an old flat baking pan. It's actually easier than the
kind with a drain plug.

Tip it carb side up, you can do it with a walk behind mower.  How do
you expect to sharpen the blades?

Bill wrote:

    My mower has a drain plug and the manual recommends either using that or
just removing the oil cap and tipping the mower, which is what I do.  Easier
than fooling with some sort of pump.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia's Muire duit

Bill,

I've been using the "tip it over to drain" method for decades and it works
fine for me.  I always do this down at the curb.  I place the drain pan
in the street by the curb and I roll the mower up near the street with 2
wheels on the concrete curb and 2 wheels on the lawn.  I then tip the
mower so that 2 wheels remain on the curb.

I usually let the mower idle for a few minutes before draining the oil so
that the oil flows better.  I refill with oil, mow the lawn, and then
drain/refill again.  That may be obsessive, but we don't change oil
that often and the extra cost and effort is really rather minimal.

My first mower was a cheaps generic model with a B&S engine.  It lasted
25 years with oil changes once per year and the engine looked fine when
I tore it down before tossing it in the trash.  I needed/wanted a better
mower with self-propel since my 11 year-old son was starting a mowing
business. Otherwise, I probably could have gotten another decade out of
the old mower.  (Note: I changed the oil once per month during the first
year.  See comments below about break-in.)

If we still had 4 cycle engines on our main mowers, then I'd be changing
oil at least once a month since the son is mowing about 10 lawns per week
now.  I switched to 2 cycle engines, so obviously we aren't concerned
with oil changes anymore.  We do have 2 backup mowers which seldom
get used and they get the "tip it over to drain" treatment every fall, even
if they haven't been used all season.

By the way, if your engine is well broken-in, consider a switch to "Mobile 1"
or a similar high quality synthetic motor oil.  I would consider the mower to
be broken-in at the end of one mowing season, assuming that you are mowing
at least once per week throughout that season.  Likewise, if you are
very concerned about optimal treatment of the engine, then you should
consider adding a ounce or so of "Tufoil" along with the "Mobile 1".
But only after the engine has been properly broken-in.   Tufoil contains
extremely fine PTFE particles (ie, "Teflon" particles) plus soluble
molybdenum and is considered the best engine oil additive by many
serious DIY types.  Cheap PTFE additives have poor quality control
and may contain poorer grades of PTFE (all "Teflon" is not the same)
and improper particle sizes.

Also, if this is a new mower, then change oil frequently during the first
season.  There is no filter on a typical push mower engine and the engine
produces a lot of very fine metal filings when it is going through the
break-in period.  This is a normal and necessary process, but it is
important to minimize subsequent damage which can be caused by
those fine metal particles.  Draining and replacing the oil frequently
during the break-in period is the only way to prevent the damage from
this debris.

Good luck,
Gideon

PS:  Most advise that I have listed above is also applicable for
auto engines, although I've had poor luck tipping the minivan over
at the curb to drain the oil.    But I'm still trying.    :)

==============

Bill wrote in message ...
What is a cheap and effective method of removing oil from your
lawnmower engine? I want to change the oil in my lawnmower and I am
seriously considering just tipping it over to drain the engine oil...

Bill

I have never seen a motor without a drain plug somewhere, whether it is
under the deck or not it may be hard to find. Draining from the lowpoint
will remove more sediment , or it will stay inside not fully draining.
Many plugs are magnetic to hold metal shavings, this is another reason
to remove and clean the plug.

I've got 2 mowers with no drain plug. There's a spot on the bottom where it
would be, but the hole was never drilled out.

Bob

   I've heard lots of guys say NOT to use synthetic oil on old engines
- 100,000 miles plus.
 
   What's your take on that?

 
 

JimL wrote:

    Will I have never had a mower get 100,000 miles on it, but for cars the
advice was given because synthetic for a couple of reasons would tend to
seep past oil seals and start leaking on some older automobile engines.
This does not apply to lawnmower engines.  Nor does it apply to current
synthetic oils or cars, as both have changed.

    I have never bothered to use synthetic for a mower, but I can't see why
it would hurt and it would have some advantages.


--
Joseph Meehan

Dia's duit

Chrysler minivans took care of that for you. One of the mini engines they
made, the threads for the oil filter were a tiny bit smaller than the usual
filter. You'd go get your oil changed, and a hundred or so miles later the
oil filter would pop off. And a mile after that the engine would sieze up.

--

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
     www.lds.org
     www.mormons.com


Bill,

Good luck,
Gideon

PS:  Most advise that I have listed above is also applicable for
auto engines, although I've had poor luck tipping the minivan over
at the curb to drain the oil.    But I'm still trying.    :)

==============

Gideon wrote:

    Nice trick.  I would have to use that, or something similar.


    PTFE should not be a problem in mowers, but I would not use it in a
modern automobile engine.


--
Joseph Meehan

Dia's duit