Engine Maintenance - Craftsman 247.28886 Operator's Manual

ENGINE
MAINTENANCE
Checking the Engine Oil
Onlyuse high qualitydetergentoil ratedwith APIserviceclassification
SF,SG,SH, or SJ, Selectthe oil's SAEviscositygradeaccordingto
the expectedoperatingtemperature. F ollowthe chart below.
Althoughmulti-viscosity oils (5W20,10W30,etc.)improvestarting
in coldweather,they will result in increasedoil consumption when
usedabove32°E Checkyour engineoil levelmorefrequentlyto avoid
possibleenginedamagefrom runninglowon oil.
('_older _ 32°F _War me'_r
Oil Viscosity Chart
Tocheckthe engineoil, proceedas follows:
• Ensurethat the tractoris on a levelsurface.
• Cleantheoil fill area of anydebris.
1. Removethedipstickand wipe with a clean cloth.
2. Insertand tightendipstick.
3. Removethedipstickand checkthe oil level.It shouldbe at the
Fullmark on the dipstick.See Figure9.
f
Dipstick-_
Oil Drain
Valve
Oil Drain
Sleeve
J
Figure9
If low,add oil slowlyintothe engineoil fill. Do notoverfill.After
addingoil, wait one minuteand then recheckthe oil level.
Donotoverfill.Overfillingwith oil maycausethe engine to not start,
hard starting,or engine smoking.If overthe FULLmark on the
dipstick,drain oil to reduceoil levelto FULL markon dipstick.
5. Replaceandtightendipstick.
Changing Engine Oil
The engineoil shouldbe changedin the first 5 hoursand thenevery
50 hoursor once a season.Tochangethe engineoil, proceedas
follows:
1. Withengine OFFbutstillwarm,disconnect sparkplugwireandkeepit
awayfromsparkplug.
2. Remove theoilfillcap/dipstick f romtheoilfilltube.SeeFigure 9.
3. Turnthesteering wheel a llthewaytothe righttobetter expose thedrain
plug.
4. Cliptheoildrainsleeve (packed withthismanual) o ntotheoildrainport.
Route theopposite endofthesleeve intoanappropriate o ilcollection
container w itha capacity greatenough tocollect t heusedoil.
5. Remove theoildrainplug,Theoil willbegintodrainoutoftheengine.
6. Aftertheoilhasfinished draining, replace theoil drainplugandtighten.
Becareful n ottoovertighten.
7. Remove theoildrainsleeve andstoreforlateruse.
8. Refill t heengine withnewmotor oil until t heoil level o nthedipstick
readsFULL.Replace theoil fillcap/dipstick.
Usedoil is a hazardouswasteproduct.Disposeof usedoil properly.
Do notdiscardwith householdwaste.Checkwith your localauthori-
ties or or contact 1-800-4-MY-HOME for a list of safe disposal/
recyclingfacilities.
Changing the Oil Filter
1. Drainthe oil fromthe engineas describedabove.
2. Removethe oil filter and disposeof properly.See Figure10.
Figure10
3. Beforeyou install the newoil filter, lightly lubricate the oil filter
gasketwith fresh,cleanoil.
4. Installthe oil filter byhand untilthe gasketcontactstheoil filter
adapter,then tightenthe oil filter 1/2to 3/4 turns.
5. Add oil as describedabove.
6. Startand runthe engine.Asthe enginewarmsup,checkfor oil
leaks.
7. Stoptheengineand checkthe oil level.It shouldbe at the FULL
markon the dipstick.
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