Craftsman 917.372470 Owner's Manual page 18

Your lawn mower and engineshouldbe prepared
for' off-seasonstorage as follows:
LAWN MOWER
o Clean underside of lawn mower housing_ (See
"Cleaning" in maintenance section of manual.)
o Inspect and replace/sharpen blade, if required
(See "BtadelBlade Adapter Care" in
maintenance section of manual).
° Hose grass catcher off with water and let dry
before storing.
o Lubricate as shown in Service Recommendation
chart on page lg of manual,
HANDLE
o You can fold your lawn mower handle for storage
as shown in Fig_ 19.
o To fold, squeeze the bottom ends of the lower'
handle toward each other until the lower handle
clears the handle bracket, then move handle for-
ward (See Fig. 20).
IMPORTANT: WHEN FOLDING THE HANDLE FOR
STORAGE OR TRANSPORTATION,
BE SURE TO FOLD THE HANDLE AS
SHOWN IN FIG, 19. IF YOU FOLD
THE UPPER HANDLE SECTION THE
WRONG WAY, YOU MAY DAMAGE
THE CONTROL CABLES.
ENGINE
LOWER k NDLE
FIG. 19
LOWER HANDLE
HANDLE BRACKET
HAIRPIN COTTER
o
°
empty.
IMPORTANT:
Change oil (See "To Change Oil" in maintenance
section of manual)_
Drain Fuel and Run Engine until fuel system is
IT IS IMPORTANT TO PREVENT
GUM DEPOSITS FROM FORMING
IN ESSENTIAL FUEL SYSTEM PARTS
SUCH AS THE CARBURETOR, FUEL
FILTER, FUEL HOSE, OR TANK DUR-
ING STORAGE. ALSO, EXPER-
IENCE INDICATES THAT ALCOHOL
BLENDED FUELS (CALLED GASO-
HOL OR USING ETHANOL OR
METHANOL) CAN ATTRACT MOIS-
TURE WHICH LEADS TO SEPARA-
TION AND FORMATION OF ACIDS
DURING STORAGE. ACIDIC GAS
CAN DAMAGE THE FUEL SYSTEM
OF AN ENGINE WHILE IN
STORAGE.
FIG. 20
OTHER
o Do not store gasoline
from one
season to another.
o Replace your gasoline can if your can starts to
rust. Rust and/or dirt in your' gasoline can cause
problems°
o Do not store your lawn mower under any plastic
cover'. Plastic cannot breathe which allows con-
densation to form and can cause your' lawn
mower to rust.
o When setting up your handle from the storage
position, the lower handle will automatically lock
into the mowing position.
18