# Winterize lawn mower question



## NJ-lawn (Jun 25, 2018)

I'm gonna put the mower to bed and I had a question that might be silly but here it goes. If I store it with a full tank of tru fuel ethanol free gas does it still need to be treated? I'm thinking no, it's the ethanol that causes the problems?


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## FATC1TY (Jul 12, 2017)

Yeah, the ethanol is the problem, and it might be okay. Maybe crank it once or twice for a minute or two during the off season.

Better question is, why store full anyways? It's always best to not give it the opportunity to gel up and gum up anything if you don't have to.


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## MasterMech (Sep 24, 2017)

FATC1TY said:


> Yeah, the ethanol is the problem, and it might be okay. Maybe crank it once or twice for a minute or two during the off season.
> 
> Better question is, why store full anyways? It's always best to not give it the opportunity to gel up and gum up anything if you don't have to.


Full is actually better than anything other than bone dry. Removing airspace from the fuel system is good for storage times that are are not measured in years.

Winter storage isn't nearly as problematic as summer storage can be. Hence why snowmobiles, snow blowers, etc. are notorious for fuel storage issues. Lawn equipment is a bit better off, any seasonal fuel-storage problems are usually just stale fuel that's been exposed to air in the carb bowl and/or tank.

For lawn equip, I usually recommend filling the tank with treated fuel to the very top, up into the filler neck. Shut off the petcock and run/drain the carb dry. If you change the oil when putting it to bed for the winter, you have almost nothing to do in the spring,. Connect the battery (if equipped), turn on the fuel, check the oil and get to it.


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## FATC1TY (Jul 12, 2017)

MasterMech said:


> FATC1TY said:
> 
> 
> > Yeah, the ethanol is the problem, and it might be okay. Maybe crank it once or twice for a minute or two during the off season.
> ...


I don't disagree, but an empty, sealed gas tank just needs fresh fuel in the spring too. Im thinking more along the lines that many people still have mowers that don't have a fuel shutoff. The carb will stay full of fuel all season. It's one thing to keep fuel from going stale, it's another like you said, keeping it in the carb which is the ultimate goal if you want trouble come spring time.

I run mine dry along with a little stabil and some sea foam in the last bit of gas. Close off the fuel shutoff, change the oil, spray the reel with wd40 and into the corner for a 3 month slumber.

My toro recycler is used during winter and spring, but rarely if ever the rest of the season and I don't have a fuel shutoff. I drain it and run stabil at a high dose and shut it off.


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## Lust4Lawn (Aug 4, 2020)

I prefer bone dry tanks and dry carb bowls.

Oil changed at the end of the season asking with any maintenance like fresh plug, air filter of needed and stuff like that.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Some say storing with a full tank helps prevent condensation from forming on the inside walls of the tank.


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## NJ-lawn (Jun 25, 2018)

I think I'm gonna fill it up with treated fuel and set a reminder once a month to run the mower for 5 min to burn up the fuel sitting in the bowl.

Thanks gents


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## dicko1 (Oct 25, 2019)

When putting away a small 2 cycle engine, is it best to run the carb dry? I'm of the impression that since the oil is in the fuel, running things dry will damage the cylinder and piston when the fuel/lubrication stops. Kind of like what happens when running lean.


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## 7824 (Oct 23, 2019)

Run it dry and do all maintenance. You can add seafoam to the final tank that you are running dry, but it's not necessary. You shouldn't be using ethanol free fuel unless you have used ethanol free fuel from day 1 and have never used anything else in there.


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## MasterMech (Sep 24, 2017)

****o1 said:


> When putting away a small 2 cycle engine, is it best to run the carb dry? I'm of the impression that since the oil is in the fuel, running things dry will damage the cylinder and piston when the fuel/lubrication stops. Kind of like what happens when running lean.


Running it dry doesn't run it out of oil. If you were to disassemble it immediately after, you'd find plenty of oil in the engine still. Running a two-stroke lean does a couple bad things. Increases heat, reduces power which usually results in the operator applying more load, which in turn increases heat.... and yes, the rate at which the oil gets replenished is diminished. So you have a reduced amount of oil, at high-load, and it's running hot.... hmmm.

Running dry is far less damaging than the varnishing, corrosion, or rubber rot that occurs from fuel sitting in the carb.


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## cutigers08 (Aug 16, 2019)

My winters are super cold or super long. but I generally just run the carb dry if there is a shut off or try to run the whole system dry if there is not. Other than that I don't do anything else and have never had issues.


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## dfw_pilot (Jan 28, 2017)

I'm an empty the bowl guy.


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## Symbiont01 (Nov 20, 2018)

Guys, I think if you have non-ethanol, stabilized fuel that he will be fine, especially if he starts it at least once a month.

Tayrl Fixes All has been doing an experiment on fuel storage and additives since January, and the results are not what I expected, thats for sure!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHSdbu23quw


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