PRE SEASON CHECK LIST
Oil
Drain the sump and replace the oil at the beginning of every season, or every 25
hours use.
Air Filter
Remove the air filter. If foam, wash in detergent with warm water, and dry. Then
rub in a small amount of light oil, say a teaspoon full. This aids the filter to trap
dust particles.
Spark Plug
It’s worth changing the plug every season.
Check the spark plug gap and adjust if necessary.
Check for a spark using a spark tester, removing the plug, re-attaching the HT
lead and placing the plug on the engine body (on bare metal). Pull the recoil cord
and observe the spark on the plug. It’s best to do this in a darkened room or at
night. You should see a bright blue spark. If there is a yellow or weak spark,
change the spark plug.
Fuel
The engine should have been stored without fuel in the tank or carburetor.
Use only ethanol free fuel for your engine. Ethanol will clog up ports in your
carburetor and rot out rubber and plastic seals and hoses.
Carburetor
Check the choke butterfly is operating correctly. Apply a light coat of WD40 to
ensure free movement.If you stored your engine with ethanol based fuel in it, you may
need to strip
down the carburetor and thoroughly clean it. Use a commercial Carburetor Cleaner.
Linkages
There are numerous springs and rods connected to the carburetor and throttle
lever. These will vary from each sized engine, so it is a good idea to take a photo
of these as a reference, then check them every season for loss or damage. Take
the filter cover off to get a better view of these parts.
Dirty linkages can cause problems, so keep them as clean as possible. One way
to remove dirt and light oil is to spray with electrical contact cleaner. It’s worth changing the
plug every season.
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