# First engine start of season



## DickR (Jan 27, 2018)

Last week I got the Husqvarna 227P (1 year old) out for the first time. Hand start would not work, so I got the cord and used the electric starter, initially to no avail. After multiple retries, with priming each time, the thing finally started and ran fine. The other day I used it again, and first pull of manual start was all it took, as was the case all last year. I always turn off the gas valve at the end of each use and let the engine run out of fuel. I also use stabilizer in the gas, especially after I'm done for the season.


So, I'm wondering about the starting instructions, where it says not to push the primer bulb more than three times (perhaps to avoid flooding?). Would it be unreasonable to expect to need more priming after nine months of non-use? I never had this problem with my very old John Deere 826, with Tecumseh engine, which always fired up on the first pull of the new season.


----------



## e.fisher26 (Nov 6, 2016)

Run it dry/ drain tank or use non-ethanol gas


——————————————
Noma 10/29
Cub cadet 5/26 conv to 8/26
Toro 8/24
Husqvarna st230p


----------



## AL- (Oct 27, 2014)

I run mine dry. drain tank and use non-ethanol. and then use excess gas in car. I can't explain why your JD Tecumseh worked so well.


----------



## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

when it comes to the first start of the season i generally prime the engine till i see a bit of gas drip on the grounds. sometimes the float is sticking or there is some old gas in the carb that needs to be pushed out and priming it till it leaks gas usually does it.


----------



## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

you got lucky. most of the time people are coming here about bad gas issues.


----------



## whimsey29 (Jul 9, 2016)

You're lucky, the NJ ethanol gas will plug my snow blower carb up in less than 3 months if I don't run it, even after running it dry. Thank goodness for the $13 replacement carbs I get from Ebay and Amazon :smile2:. 



Whimsey


----------



## SnowH8ter (Oct 8, 2018)

That Husky/LCT engine manual (push primer three times) assumes that the carb is full of fuel. If you run it dry (I do too), it'll likely take a half dozen or so primer squirts to get her going, especially if it's real cold. Starting the Tecumseh on my old Mastercraft was simple: Push primer until fuel is dripping from the carb, pull piston through TDC on the compression stroke and away we go. It always fired.


----------



## 132619 (Nov 20, 2018)

whimsey29 said:


> You're lucky, the NJ ethanol gas will plug my snow blower carb up in less than 3 months if I don't run it, even after running it dry. Thank goodness for the $13 replacement carbs I get from Ebay and Amazon :smile2:.
> 
> 
> 
> Whimsey


" NJ ethanol" gas man how correct! ever use a self test kit? don't be too shocked when one sees way over 10% sometimes, way over,


----------



## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

33 woodie said:


> " NJ ethanol" gas man how correct! ever use a self test kit? don't be too shocked when one sees way over 10% sometimes, way over,



Because it's cheper, and stations are ripping us off.


----------



## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

Even if you run it dry, I like to drop the carb bowl and spray some carb cleaner all over the inside. Preventitive measure, never let me down. 18 years with the same machine, started first pull when I started it every year. In 18 years, I never replaced the carb


It takes two minutes.


----------



## tpenfield (Feb 24, 2015)

It sounds like you are doing the right things. But . . . engines can be hard to start first time of the season. As long as you get it started and then it starts easily thereafter, I would not be overly concerned.


----------



## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

jsup said:


> Even if you run it dry, I like to drop the carb bowl and spray some carb cleaner all over the inside. Preventitive measure, never let me down. 18 years with the same machine, started first pull when I started it every year. In 18 years, I never replaced the carb
> 
> 
> It takes two minutes.


Are there any gaskets or seals that might get damaged when doing this on a new machine? I will be doing this next summer on my new Toro 826 OE.

Since I use non ethanol gas I chose to fire the machine up for 5 minutes every 3 to 4 weeks last summer. Someone else on the forum swears by it.

Didn't bother to run it dry as after the first time trying that, the machine was making such an erratic banging I was afraid it might damage some internals. Is that possible? Or am I being a weenie? :grin:


----------



## WVguy (Nov 24, 2018)

barney said:


> Didn't bother to run it dry as after the first time trying that, the machine was making such an erratic banging I was afraid it might damage some internals. Is that possible? Or am I being a weenie? :grin:


As long as the engine is *not under load* running it dry will not damage anything. It is running lean for a time and that is the cause of the erratic sounds. Just don't do that when it is under load since that can damage the engine.


----------



## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

You're only being a minor weenie  You can also add choke as it starts to die, to help reduce the amount that it leans out, at the end.

But like WVguy said, I wouldn't worry about it. Just do it with the machine sitting there, rather than blowing snow. 



PS- it's no worse than accidentally running out of gas during use. I've run my blower empty, and my tractor, which blowing/mowing. And they're seemingly no worse for the wear.


----------



## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

I seem to recall the rationale for not draining the carb and just starting it up occasionally (Using nonE) during the summer was:
1. it works
and
2. the gasket(s) don't get dried out/shrink? in a dry carb.

Any truth to #2 ?

*I'm gonna have to check and see if my carb has one of those drain buttons on the bottom.


----------



## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

barney said:


> Are there any gaskets or seals that might get damaged when doing this on a new machine? I will be doing this next summer on my new Toro 826 OE.
> 
> Since I use non ethanol gas I chose to fire the machine up for 5 minutes every 3 to 4 weeks last summer. Someone else on the forum swears by it.
> 
> Didn't bother to run it dry as after the first time trying that, the machine was making such an erratic banging I was afraid it might damage some internals. Is that possible? Or am I being a weenie? :grin:


 There's a rubber bowl gasket. Some are more delicate than others to seat, but it's not a big deal. 



If you're going to store it for a long time, you can fog it with fogging oil, just to play it safe. I'm building a machine to make doing this stuff easier. (storage and fogging).


----------



## zandor (Dec 15, 2017)

whimsey29 said:


> You're lucky, the NJ ethanol gas will plug my snow blower carb up in less than 3 months if I don't run it, even after running it dry. Thank goodness for the $13 replacement carbs I get from Ebay and Amazon :smile2:.
> 
> 
> 
> Whimsey


If you're having that much trouble with ethanol you might want to try picking up some synthetic gas at a box store. TruFuel, etc. Run it dry, pour a little synthetic in the tank, and run it dry again. It comes in "a bit short of a gallon" for ~$20 and containers that are a little under a quart/liter for $5-6. One of the little ones should be enough to flush the ethanol crap out of your carb a few times, so figure $5-6/year. Of course if you're feeling flush and lazy you could just run that stuff all the time.

Or you can drive to somewhere they sell non-ethanol pump gas. That might not be worth it unless you have some other reason to go. I should probably be stopping in Wisconsin and filling a 5 gallon can for the winter around Thanksgiving. I usually visit my parents for Thanksgiving, and there are plenty of places to get non-ethanol gas in Wisconsin on the way back.


----------



## knklehd1 (Feb 17, 2016)

jsup said:


> Even if you run it dry, I like to drop the carb bowl and spray some carb cleaner all over the inside. Preventitive measure, never let me down. 18 years with the same machine, started first pull when I started it every year. In 18 years, I never replaced the carb
> 
> 
> It takes two minutes.


This system has never let me down !!!!!!


----------



## 132619 (Nov 20, 2018)

since snow blowers and lawn mowers get used seasonally like boats,i tend to stay with marine methods of storing all machines, for stabilizer i use a marine ez store and ez start, it's a combo of gas stabilizer and fogging oil, https://www.amazon.com/Star-brite-Store-Storage-Additive/dp/B00144CSWO/ref=sr_1_14?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1547463563&sr=1-14&keywords=marine+store+and+start IMM i see it help in season where a snow blower can sit for a month or more,depending on old mother nature . end of season i drain the tank and run it dry, 

here's a link to some interesting marine info on winter storage,https://www.boatingmag.com/gear/boatinglab-tests-fuel-stabilizers


----------



## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Thanks for the links. That marine article started strong, with details, chemistry, etc. 

But then, sadly, it turned into (as far as I can tell):
-they all offer the same ethanol protection.
-some are cheaper than others. This I could have figured out, even without testing.
-some are easier to use. As far as I can tell, this just refers to whether the bottles has a built-in measuring & dispensing device. Which *is* a very clever & handy feature of my Marine StaBil bottle, but is again something I can figure out from pictures. 

I was hoping they would show technical differences over time, etc. Oh well, it's still a useful summary of products that are on the market. I may try Star Tron once I finish my current bottle.


----------



## 132619 (Nov 20, 2018)

IMM why not follow marine as the machines sit just like boats,
again personally i like the ez stor ez start at the double dose."2 shot glasses full to a gallon", as it has stabilizer and fogging oil in it, so it coats the cylinder wall and valves to reduce rusting ,lubes them at the same time making for easier starting after sitting, extends gas storage to 2 years kind of a win win in one. 

yes price between them lets the operator work within what they can afford or brand they may like yet they failed to say anything about marine techron


----------



## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

33 woodie said:


> IMM why not follow marine as the machines sit just like boats,
> again personally i like the ez stor ez start at the double dose."2 shot glasses full to a gallon", as it has stabilizer and fogging oil in it, so it coats the cylinder wall and valves to reduce rusting ,lubes them at the same time making for easier starting after sitting, extends gas storage to 2 years kind of a win win in one.
> 
> yes price between them lets the operator work within what they can afford or brand they may like yet they failed to say anything about marine techron


My favorite gasoline stabilizer is Sea Foam. I like to use it in all of my power equipment and It works better than stabil which I used to use years ago until I have had to pay money to have one of my sleds carburetors cleaned professionally. With Sea Foam I have never had any problems.


----------



## GoBlowSnow (Sep 4, 2015)

Incorrect. Sea Foam is not a true stabilizer. Stabil has what is needed for proper gasoline storage and treatment. Sea Foam is a cleaner, not a preserver. Yes yes yes you can say it works fine for you but the facts speak differently as to what Sea Foam is and does.


----------



## e.fisher26 (Nov 6, 2016)

Agree


——————————————
Noma 10/29
Cub cadet 5/26 conv to 8/26
Toro 8/24
Husqvarna st230p


----------



## BarryNY (Sep 10, 2018)

Make your own non-ethanol gas.
Add both Sta-bil storage and SeaFoam to your 5 gal container.
Rest easy...


----------

