TubeNet

Is it worth it to try to flush a Briggs and Stratton engine ?

I have a riding lawn mower with a 13HP Briggs and Stratton engine that is 14 years old . Because the cover for the air filter broke off 4 years I couldn’t use a air filter . I was keeping a oil soak rag over the air intake to filter . Sketchy as frig ! I finally bought the replacement part and now have a proper filter in place .
I wanted to flush the engine by filling it oil,running it, drain oil and repeat . Will this do any good ? I’ve do it 3 times already and collected the oil each time to compare and it didn’t seem to be getting any better . It came out really grundgy all 3 times. As bad as the year old oil I first drained out.
Am I wasting my time and money ?

bloke wrote:

oldbandnerd wrote:Is it worth it to try to flush a Briggs and Stratton engine ?

I have a riding lawn mower with a 13HP Briggs and Stratton engine that is 14 years old . Because the cover for the air filter broke off 4 years I couldn’t use a air filter . I was keeping a oil soak rag over the air intake to filter . Sketchy as frig ! I finally bought the replacement part and now have a proper filter in place .
I wanted to flush the engine by filling it oil,running it, drain oil and repeat . Will this do any good ? I’ve do it 3 times already and collected the oil each time to compare and it didn’t seem to be getting any better . It came out really grundgy all 3 times. As bad as the year old oil I first drained out.
Am I wasting my time and money ?

Can you check the piston compression?
Is there a way to flood the crankcase with solvent, turn the engine over for about a minute with the spark plug removed (so it doesn't fire) and then drain out the solvent?

+1

Engine oil by itself is not a good solvent, no matter how hot you get it. If you can remove the cylinder head (not necessary, but more thorough) you can pour solvent directly into the cylinder bore, and clean any carbon build-up out of the combustion chamber inside the head. Otherwise, remove the spark plug (as bloke recommended), pour your solvent in through the hole, and turn the crankshaft for a few minutes.

https://www.briggsandstratton.com/na/en ... ildup.html" target="_blank