Snow blower Oil 30 wait or 5w30?
This snow blower needs a oil change very badly. So I will be doing it. I have been told to use SAE 30 for the oil. Because it sits inside our garage all year so the oil will be warmer then if it were outside. Also when my dad went to buy the snow blower they said use 30 because it was inside. But EVERYONE that I have talked to says use 5w30 because it is thinner and "The oil will get to were it needs to go faster with the thinner viscosity." So I need help on what to use I think that there is 30 in it now and it has run fine for the past 4 or so winters (No one changed the oil... oops) So any opinions, criticism or scalding would help. Thank you!
I lost the Manuel.
Sitting inside or not! This is irrelevant, you will be operating this blower outside in cold temp. Now listen to this Sae 30 has a high resistance to flow because of its viscosity,(thickness) when the engine is warm at normal operating temp it thin out so as to flow faster to the top of the engine valve guides, and circulate faster around the crankshaft and cam shat to prevent the engine to burn out.
Now if you happen to be going in the house for a reason or another the engine cools of fast, and then trying to start it will be more difficult because of the thickness of the oil, got that.
Now 5w30 is formulated to have hardly any resistance to flow when cold because the oil is thin and will flow to the parts mentioned up above and not cause any damage to the engine parts. As the engine warms up this is where the 30 factor come in to play because of the thickness and resistance to flow out of its normal operating sources.
and save the engine from wearing out.
The owners manual is there to read and understand the operation and the maintenance of the overhaul machine. So, read it and understand the terms and their values and you will keep it in good shape for years to come, I should say winters to come. This includes on how to summarize it as to prevent gas fowling up in hot weather with gas preservative
You can go to a lawn & garden store like sears and get snowthrower oil- i think its 5w30 or a similar blend. It’s made to stay thinner in the cold weather that you’ll be operating it in.
Stick with the factory recommended grade – those engineers get paid alot of $$$ to decide whats best for that specific motor.
And change the oil as recommended if you want it to last another 4 or more yrs (unless you just have $$$ to burn).
Good luck