Best practices for cold start
 

Hi,
I have a 1250 with the QA42A, so it is going to be running ever winter on some of the coldest days. I already changed the oil to 5w-30, I just took apart the starter and cleaned it (mostly because in the cold it would make a screech sound sometimes) and changed all the gas in the engine. Is there anything else that should be done?
Also, what is the best way to warm up these old Kohlers and hydros when its really cold before using them.
Thank you

Pooch, the manual does not recommend the use of 5W30 oil. (I was surprised too). It says to use SAE 30 in summer and SAE10 for use in winter. I bought my 149 from the original owner and he said the same thing. Since the engine runs great and uses no oil, I want to stick with that same strategy.

Hi, I looked at the kohler k301 service manual when I picked the oil choice. Looking at the cub operators manual it does say between 32 and 0 degrees to use SAE 10 and 5w-20 SAE 5 for below 0.

Keep in mind that oil has improved a lot in the past 35 years since that manual was written. 5W-20 is fine, 10W-30 is fine, I use 15W-40 in my year-round tractors so I don't have to waste so much oil, as each tractor in my fleet gets used less than 8 hours per year. Just don't run a thin multi-weight in the summer...the engine will use it like crazy. For me, the 15W-40 is a nice balance because it isn't consumed very rapidly during the summer, and it doesn't get too thick when the tractor is in the garage in the winter; it rarely gets below 20 degrees in the garage where the winter-use tractors are kept.

Not to mention you may have a really hard time finding SAE10 oil anymore.

powerpooch-

Keep the tractor inside a garage if possible. Really cold starts are capable of doing the equivalent of a couple hours of wear on an engine. I usually start mine, back them out of the garage, then let them warm up at 1/4 throttle until the hydro quiets down. 5 minutes or so.

i run a little sea foam in the gas tank every so often, especially in the winter. and i agree with matt on letting them warm up for about five minutes or so. when she is really cold i run a milkhouse heater under her with a blanket on it for a half hour or more before starting her up.(10 degrees and below zero)

Unfortunately I don't have access to a garage right now, I was thinking of building a little shed for it but that still won't be any warmer than outside. I was thinking of a product like this but I never checked to see if this would stay on the pan.
Glad to know that when I have been starting it I did what you said otherwise. About 1/4 throttle for a few mins.
Are there any other ways to keep the tractor warm for the winter?

One of the things I do for below 32° weather, is I have found that running high octane fuel (92+) makes a difference as well as the things mentioned prior.

powerpooch-

Those magnetic heaters are a great idea. Get one for the rearend, and stick it on the jack point underneath. If your engine has a cast iron oil pan, it might not be a bad idea to get one for the engine, too.

To go along with what Roland is saying, if you can somehow find gas without ethanol, that'll help too.

a half or 3/4 cap of STP fuel enhancer will help too. always does for me. Seafoam works great too

Magnetic heater won't work on the oil pan, a magnet I had laying around wouldn't stick to it so I'm use the heater wouldn't either. Possibly might just have to get a 60 watt bulb and a large blanket to heat the engine I guess. As far as gas without ethanol I'm sure there is no such thing in this area.