Although summers seem to be becoming longer, winters are not getting any shorter. Although fall is shorter, the evenings are drawing in at the same pace, which means that the weather will inevitably cool down.
Slower grass growth and less frequent grooming of hedges and trees mean less time spent outside and, fortunately, less effort required to keep up with garden upkeep.
Effective Winter Routine
It’s the season to store away your outdoor machinery like lawnmowers, trimmers, chainsaws, and other equipment. However, before tucking them away, it’s crucial to ensure that their engines are functioning perfectly.
Despite common knowledge about the importance of cleaning blades and checking for rust-inducing elements, often the protection of the engine’s internal parts is neglected.
Some gasoline sold in the US now contains ethanol, and the Briggs fuel stabilizer protects drivers from this potentially dangerous ingredient.
Ethanol: Benefits and Drawbacks
Ethanol’s appeal stems from its ability to act as an efficient fuel additive, sourced from renewable materials. This helps in reducing our dependence on non-renewable fossil fuels while preserving the effectiveness of the fuel.
However, over time, ethanol can have detrimental effects on the engine’s performance. Although modern power tools are engineered to mitigate some of these impacts, ethanol, if left unchecked, may corrode metal, plastic, and rubber parts.
More water is pulled in due to ethanol’s hygroscopic (water-attracting) impact in all circumstances; this is particularly true in the winter when there is typically extra moisture in the air, raising the danger of rust, and ethanol’s inherent corrosiveness may keep doing harm.
To make matters even worse, fuels that are blended with ethanol deteriorate more rapidly, which leads to wasted gasoline and deposits in the engine that need to be cleaned in order to achieve ideal performance.
Resolving the Issue
Make sure to apply an ethanol protection to your machines before storing them for the winter. These additives protect the gasoline from spoilage, neutralize the ethanol’s corrosive effects, and inhibit the hygroscopic activity that would otherwise expose your engine to additional water.
To ensure that your power equipment retains its peak performance upon restart, it is important to use the appropriate quantity for each engine.
If any damage has already happened when you start, you may replace the damaged part by finding the correct one in Briggs and Stratton parts catalog. Then, you can treat the remaining gasoline with your ethanol shield.