# Husqvarna Oil Drain Solution



## davifam3 (Aug 1, 2019)

Hi All. I recently jumped on a clearance deal at Lowe’s and bought a Husqvarna ST224P that I think will serve my needs but I am very concerned when it comes time to do an oil change. Date of manufacture was 10/2018. Besides the crappy plastic and tiny dipstick, the drain plug is flush against the engine with no sort of extension! Has anyone on here come up with a good solution? I know Husqvarna has a two inch drain pipe I could probably get but, is there anything longer and more convenient? What a poor design. I’m not even sure what the plug hole size would be to rig up something myself. Is it 10mm? I’m considering simply buying a hand pump to go in through the filler hole and just suck the oil out when it comes time to change it. Thanks in advance for any solutions you can share! I contacted the company days ago. The “expert” acted like he never heard of this and bumped me to somebody else whom I haven’t heard back from. I tried to make contact again but have not gotten a response yet. Certainly there must be others with this poor set up.


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## Town (Jan 31, 2015)

There is a thread in the Husqvarna section here: https://www.snowblowerforum.com/for...s/62441-husqvarna-st224-fill-me-good-bad.html that includes some information on your problem. It appears that there was a chassis re-design that precluded the use of the short and long oil drain tubes. The short comes out the side of the engine while the long goes out the rear of the engine. Post 27 and post 40 provide pics of the machines for your info. Other posts give some other insights.

It appears there is a hole in the chassis under the engine drain plug which may allow oil onto the transmission. So the option of sucking out the oil from the fill plug seems like a good one. There does not as yet appear to be an answer to whether one or two short drain plugs will fit or whether your engine has a rear port for the long tube drain. 

You may want to keep track of that thread to see if a solution is identified. Good luck.


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## davifam3 (Aug 1, 2019)

Thanks for your reply and link. I read through it. Seems like others are going through the sane thing. I haven’t been getting anything out of Husqvarna which is also concerning from a customer service standpoint. By now, they should have devised a solution to the lack of a decent oil drain method. I’ve been looking at something called a Drainzit hose that would replace the oil drain plug but can’t seem to find anyone that knows the drain hole size. I guess I could tilt the unit and take the plug out and figure it out myself. Or I am still on the fence about just returning the whole thing and search for a better alternate brand. The last blower I replaced was a tiny little thing that lasted about 30 years in our family! A Dynamark! Which was a bargain brand back then! But had a Tecumseh Snow King engine that was unstoppable. Never threw a shear pin or anything. I gave it away a couple days ago. The carb was leaking and it seemed to be losing compression under load but was still functioning! They sure don’t make them like they used to!


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## davifam3 (Aug 1, 2019)

Cute little thang!


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

any pics of the machine in question maybe even some of the side and back? even if it don't have the drain tube it isn't that hard to change the oil. it is not like you have to change it every year. i would say oil is likely good for 5 years after the first break in oil change depending on how much it is used. usually you go by color or hours of use. i usually take the wheel off engines like that and use a old oil container that has been cut up as a funnel to keep the oil off the machine and drop into my oil change pan.


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## Landngroove (Oct 12, 2015)

What make engine is it? You could contact the manufacturer of the engine about an extension, or the size and thread of the drain hole. I had a similar problem with my Predator 212, but was able to buy a thread adaptor on Ebay, and used NPT extension found at my local hardware store


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## mr.krambo (Nov 17, 2019)

I bought a ST224P at Costco and was disappointed to find out that the machine didn’t come with an extension tube for draining oil. The manual implied the engine contained one at the rear, but my unit didn’t, having side drains instead.

After some research, I order the official 2” drain extension for the purpose of determining the oil drain hole size and thread size. With extension in hand, I visited my local hardware store and was able to determine the oil drain hole is 10mm with a 1.25mm (fine) thread.

I then called Drainzit to ask for the thread size on their 10mm model 1010 extension hose (also sold as HON1010). Turns out the 1010/HON1010 is a 1.25mm thread too, so I had found a match. Drainzit advised me their hoses were available on-line only, from Home Depot, NorthernTool and Amazon. I choose Amazon and two days later I had the 1010/HON1010 hose in hand.

Since I still hadn’t put gas in the unit, I was able to lay the unit on its side and remove the original drain plug without any oil coming out. It was a hassle to install the new Drainzit since I could only use a small open-ended wrench and tighten about 1/8 a revolution at a time, but I finally got the Drainzit installed. I chose to put the Drainzit on the left side (as you stand behind the unit), but it would work on either side. I also chose to mount the Drainzit hose to the frame using Velcro since that keeps the hose more securely away from the wheel during operation.

I have included images of what the Drainzit 1010/HON1010 looks like installed.


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## Girllovesherdog (Oct 15, 2020)

mr.krambo said:


> I bought a ST224P at Costco and was disappointed to find out that the machine didn’t come with an extension tube for draining oil. The manual implied the engine contained one at the rear, but my unit didn’t, having side drains instead.
> 
> After some research, I order the official 2” drain extension for the purpose of determining the oil drain hole size and thread size. With extension in hand, I visited my local hardware store and was able to determine the oil drain hole is 10mm with a 1.25mm (fine) thread.
> 
> ...


Thank you for posting your solution! I had the exact same situation and was stumped, so I very much appreciate you sharing. Could you please tell me if you installed the Drainzit with or without the included o-ring and metal washer? Thanks.


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## Dima (Jan 7, 2022)

mr.krambo said:


> I bought a ST224P at Costco and was disappointed to find out that the machine didn’t come with an extension tube for draining oil. The manual implied the engine contained one at the rear, but my unit didn’t, having side drains instead.
> 
> After some research, I order the official 2” drain extension for the purpose of determining the oil drain hole size and thread size. With extension in hand, I visited my local hardware store and was able to determine the oil drain hole is 10mm with a 1.25mm (fine) thread.
> 
> ...


Hi, thank you for posting the solution. 

IT IS A SHAME TO OWN HUSQVARNA, I AM BEYOND SHOCKED BY THIS WAY OF DEALING WTIH CUSTOMERS AND MAKING THEM TO INSTALL OIL DRAIN THEMSELVES. LITERALLY, I SPENT 3 HOURS LOCATING THE DRAIN PLUG, SINCE THE NEWER MODEL COMES WITH THE INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE PREVIOUS ONE. HUSQVARNA DOESN'T HAVE THE MANUAL FOR NEWER MODELS EVEN ONLINE. 

YOU WANT YOUR MACHINE TO WORK OUT OF THE BOX AND ST 224 IS DEFINITELY NOT MADE FOR THAT. NOW THINK, HOW HARD WAS TO EXTEND THE DRAIN FOR THE MANUFACTURER, 1-2 DOLLARS MAYBE? GIVEN THAT THE PREVIOUS ST224 MODEL HAD THE DRAIN.... GARBAGE COMPANY WITH DISAPPOINTING CUSTOMER SERVICE, NEVER AGAIN


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## Oneacer (Jan 3, 2011)

In the future, try not using all CAPS, very difficult to read ...


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## Dima (Jan 7, 2022)

Oneacer said:


> In the future, try not using all CAPS, very difficult to read ...



Sure thing, my bad, I just have no words to express my feelings to Husqvarna. Now, I know that i will have to drain oil for the first time and it will be a huge mess, since the oil needs to flow down via one side of the snowblower's metal body. Just how stupid is that the customer needs to waste time and money to find the solution for something the engineers should have taken care of... Manual doesn't show the oil drain location, dimensions, thread size... nothing that could help. I even thought about buying siphon to drain the oil tank via the place where you put the oil in. 

And why the older model has the long drain pipe (and on the back, where you do not need to unmount the wheel to drain the oil) is beyond my ability to understand the logic of the designer of Husqvarna st224 2020.


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## UncleBeep (Dec 30, 2021)

Hey, at least there's a solution. I was doing some end of season maintenance on a Toro Lawn Mower at my workplace. When I went to drain the oil, there was no drain plug! I then noticed a sticker on the cowl "Never needs oil changed". Um, yeah right. I had to suck the oil out.


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## Auger1 (Dec 4, 2020)

Husqvarna is not the only one with the oil drain problem. My HF 212cc engine is the same way I found out, what a mess it was to change oil after the break in period. In the next install of that engine I will re-tap the oil drain hole and put an extension on the new engine. My wife's Honda lawnmower is the same way only you have to flip the whole machine over to change oil on it, that's just a bad design.


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## distrbd (Dec 8, 2021)

I bought an ST224 a few weeks ago , it has to be 2021 model year ,has the same oil drain extension as my old Ariens , if you know the thread pitch, this extension can easily be made .


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## distrbd (Dec 8, 2021)

Auger1 said:


> Husqvarna is not the only one with the oil drain problem. My HF 212cc engine is the same way I found out, what a mess it was to change oil after the break in period. In the next install of that engine I will re-tap the oil drain hole and put an extension on the new engine.* My wife's Honda lawnmower is the same way only you have to flip the whole machine over to change oil on it, that's just a bad design.*


I've had the same problem with my Honda lawnmower, always had to flip the mower on it's side to drain the oil but this year I'm going to use the new inexpensive "oil extractor" to suck the old oil out, I always change the oil at the start of the season so I know it is relatively clean ,even if this extractor leaves a bit of oil in , it shouldn't matter, the reviews on the Princess Auto is more believable and based on what I've read this extractor can be used for both oil and gas, it sucks the fluid without going through the pump, and any suitable container can temporarily be used as long as the rubber cap seals it:


https://www.princessauto.com/en/16-litre-gas-oil-extractor/product/PA0008469512?skuId=8469512










Amazon.com : Briggs & Stratton 5430K Oil Extractor Pump, 1.6-Liter : Fuel Oil Drains : Patio, Lawn & Garden


Amazon.com : Briggs & Stratton 5430K Oil Extractor Pump, 1.6-Liter : Fuel Oil Drains : Patio, Lawn & Garden



www.amazon.com


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## Dima (Jan 7, 2022)

distrbd said:


> I bought an ST224 a few weeks ago , it has to be 2021 model year ,has the same oil drain extension as my old Ariens , if you know the thread pitch, this extension can easily be made .
> View attachment 186154


Thank you for your comment. 

"If you know" is the key phrase here, i do not know and i don't wanna know when buying $900+ snowblower)))) Also, how would you drain the oil for the first time before installing the drain extension? It will still be a huge mess. Or you have to flip the machine and unscrew the drain cap, but do the instructions have it? of course not. That only tells me that manufacturer doesn't care about the customer and has no idea about the engineering design. The flaw in design is critical. Pretty much sure that the whole system is build that way, since the engineering team did not give a flying f..k when developed this and any other models. And the oil access caps on both sides, you must be kidding me. Why not on the top, just why) It is hard to access even with funnel...


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## Dima (Jan 7, 2022)

distrbd said:


> I've had the same problem with my Honda lawnmower, always had to flip the mower on it's side to drain the oil but this year I'm going to use the new inexpensive "oil extractor" to suck the old oil out, I always change the oil at the start of the season so I know it is relatively clean ,even if this extractor leaves a bit of oil in , it shouldn't matter, the reviews on the Princess Auto is more believable and based on what I've read this extractor can be used for both oil and gas, it sucks the fluid without going through the pump, and any suitable container can temporarily be used as long as the rubber cap seals it:
> 
> 
> https://www.princessauto.com/en/16-litre-gas-oil-extractor/product/PA0008469512?skuId=8469512
> ...


I am not an expert by any means, but I believe you can brake the system if you use a syphon via side oil cap.


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## Auger1 (Dec 4, 2020)

distrbd said:


> I've had the same problem with my Honda lawnmower, always had to flip the mower on it's side to drain the oil but this year I'm going to use the new inexpensive "oil extractor" to suck the old oil out, I always change the oil at the start of the season so I know it is relatively clean ,even if this extractor leaves a bit of oil in , it shouldn't matter, the reviews on the Princess Auto is more believable and based on what I've read this extractor can be used for both oil and gas, it sucks the fluid without going through the pump, and any suitable container can temporarily be used as long as the rubber cap seals it:
> 
> 
> https://www.princessauto.com/en/16-litre-gas-oil-extractor/product/PA0008469512?skuId=8469512
> ...


Great idea.


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## tabora (Mar 1, 2017)

Auger1 said:


> My wife's Honda lawnmower is the same way only you have to flip the whole machine over to change oil on it


That's actually by design on the Honda GCV engines (there's no oil drain at all), but that draining technique also works well on the GXV engines that do have an oil drain. I added a Drainzit to my GXV120, though, and also to my GX390 on the HSS1332AATD.


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## BullFrog (Oct 14, 2015)

It's not a big deal to install a drain tube and not make a mess. Just tip the machine up into service mode as if you were going to remove the belly pan. The rest is obvious.


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## BullFrog (Oct 14, 2015)

I have two Honda lawn mowers. The old one has a bottom drain plug the new one does not. Both have the same filler neck. Despite the bottom drain I find it less messy and much easier to simply tip the mower on its side and drain the oil through the filler neck...as per tabora's illustration above.


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## BullFrog (Oct 14, 2015)

distrbd said:


> I've had the same problem with my Honda lawnmower, always had to flip the mower on it's side to drain the oil but this year I'm going to use the new inexpensive "oil extractor" to suck the old oil out, I always change the oil at the start of the season so I know it is relatively clean ,even if this extractor leaves a bit of oil in , it shouldn't matter, the reviews on the Princess Auto is more believable and based on what I've read this extractor can be used for both oil and gas, it sucks the fluid without going through the pump, and any suitable container can temporarily be used as long as the rubber cap seals it:
> 
> 
> https://www.princessauto.com/en/16-litre-gas-oil-extractor/product/PA0008469512?skuId=8469512
> ...


I bought the same extractor from PA a couple years ago. I like it. It works great and easy to use.


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## dr bob (Dec 12, 2015)

FWIW, 1/8 NPT nipples are 10.35mm OD, making them an ideal candidate for use as a drain tube. If you have a metric tap-and-die set, prepare one end of a galvanized or black steel pipe nipple with a 10mm die, and you can use a standard 1/8 NPT cap on the other (outer) end.


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## JennuineP (9 mo ago)

davifam3 said:


> Hi All. I recently jumped on a clearance deal at Lowe’s and bought a Husqvarna ST224P that I think will serve my needs but I am very concerned when it comes time to do an oil change. Date of manufacture was 10/2018. Besides the crappy plastic and tiny dipstick, the drain plug is flush against the engine with no sort of extension! Has anyone on here come up with a good solution? I know Husqvarna has a two inch drain pipe I could probably get but, is there anything longer and more convenient? What a poor design...


In March of 2021 I purchased the Husqvarna ST 227 snow blower, already assembled, storefront model, end of season sale. The 2021/2022 winter season was my first time using it. The snow blower operates wonderfully well, seems to push through anything I throw at it. Now, end of first season, wanted to change the oil. What a joke. The user manual and their online videos state the drain plug is at the back, which would make it easy to tip and easy to drain. But no, mine is located on the same side as the dip stick, and our solution was to carefully prop the whole product up onto wood blocks, remove the tire, then tip the product sideways (again using another wood block to help tip it), and drain it. It was not too hard to remove the tire, it's just a cotter pin. And yes, the oil drained down the side of the metal box, ugh, so annoying. But I have rolls and rolls of those blue shop wipes so we just wiped everything off once drained, and put everything back together.

Definitely a lot harder to do than it should be. It should be: pull plug, tip & drain, replace plug. Simple. I could have done that by myself. But instead we needed TWO people (in order lift the unit up and down a couple of times), a wrench and a ratchet set to get the damn plug undone, 4 to 5 pieces of wood to prop up and tip the unit, had to remove the tire, had to clean the oil off the side of the product. Much harder than it should be. BUT, at the end of the day, still doable. Now that we've done it once, we'll be a little better and faster at it next time.


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## tabora (Mar 1, 2017)

JennuineP said:


> Definitely a lot harder to do than it should be.


Get a Drainzit for it... See post number 7: Husqvarna Oil Drain Solution




__





Drainzit – Oil Drain Hoses


Just another WordPress site




www.drainzit.com


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## BullFrog (Oct 14, 2015)

JennuineP said:


> Definitely a lot harder to do than it should be.


Welcome to the group. The good thing is you'll likely only need to change the oil once a year.


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