7 HP Tecumseh with auto throttle/idle-down, 1-gallon tank. I've burned up that gallon in as little as an hour splitting hard, stringy Red Elm... and it's run all day on a gallon splitting straight-grained ash... just depends on the wood.
How much fuel does your splitter use?
- Thread starter wdchuck
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Good timing on this thread. Started the day and didn't top off the the gas but was about full (maybe 1/2 gal) in a Honda GX160 (5HP.)
Really wanted to finish the big pile so I split for about 2 hours, break, 45 mins, lunch, 45 mins and she ran out of gas. So 3.5 hours.
I was impressed.
Really wanted to finish the big pile so I split for about 2 hours, break, 45 mins, lunch, 45 mins and she ran out of gas. So 3.5 hours.
I was impressed.
russhd1997
Innocent By Stander
I have a 12hp Kohler on my splitter and it uses about a gallon of gas per cord of wood.
outdoorsman0490
ArboristSite Operative
I agree with cnice_37, I have that honda on my cub cadet splitter, you can end up using only about a gallon a day. I'm always amazed at how much gas is left in the can at the end of the day or days splitting.
J.W Younger
ass kissing impaired
I usually split as I unload so its rare to split more than a half cord in one session. my splitter does'nt have a fuel shut off and may be leaking past the float valve. I'm thinking a cord or more per gallon on average but its hard to say cause the tanks allways dry if its set more than a few days
mybowtie
ArboristSite Operative
Tw-1 w a 5hp honda, and after a hr or 2, im hoping the dam thing runs out soon....Split some 22" dead elm last yr and she sucked some fuel then. Had a customer that had several Cherry(16") come down in a ice storm, and I thought the thing would never run out.
Using a 6.5 hp Harbor Freight...
... Honda knockoff engine. This little beast only uses about half a gallon of gas (one tank)every four hours, and I usually only run about half throttle. Plenty of power and good on gas. No complaints here. Two-stage pump is the secret.
I might be using only 3 Hp running at that speed, so that probably explains the fuel economy.
... Honda knockoff engine. This little beast only uses about half a gallon of gas (one tank)every four hours, and I usually only run about half throttle. Plenty of power and good on gas. No complaints here. Two-stage pump is the secret.
I might be using only 3 Hp running at that speed, so that probably explains the fuel economy.
Air cooled engines are designed to run at full throttle (or more correctly, maximum RPM’S), especially while under a load. Because air cooled engines (usually) use a fan on the flywheel and some sort of shrouding to direct the air, running your small engine at half throttle causes it to run hotter because of the reduced air flow, causing it to wear faster… much faster. Also, running at half throttle can starve the engine of lube… a “splash” type will not be properly lubed under load at half throttle, and if it’s a “pressure” lube type the oil pressure will be low at half throttle. As far as fuel usage… A small air-cooled engine under load will use more fuel at half throttle to accomplish the same amount of work because it doesn’t have the benefit of RPM and torque. So if you put all this together… running a small air-cooled engine at half throttle causes the engine to run at a higher temperature, with less lube, using more fuel, for a longer period of time, at a higher wear rate, to accomplish the same amount of work. Contrary to the belief of many, running small engines at something less than full throttle is many times harder on them than running wide-open… it will reduce their useful life dramatically… it seriously makes no sense.
Running your splitter at half throttle also can cause problems with the hydraulics. At less than rated RPM the pump can never develop maximum pressure or rate of flow… that causes the pump to work longer for any given amount of work, causes the oil to be under load longer for any given amount of work and with the reduced rate of flow the oil will not be cooled as efficiently.
buildmyown
ArboristSite Operative
Old Honda 5HP GX140 I think on an SS I think the tank is about a 1/2 gallon or so. Can easily run 4+ hrs on a tank.
cutfast
ArboristSite Operative
After reading this I'm not sure how my Speedco 25 ton with 8hp B&s engine is still running.
My dad has been splitting our wood with it for about 15 years.
He splits about 5 cords of elm and oak a year.
Friends split another 2-4 cords a year.
None of them rarely operate it at more 1/2 throttle.
Only thing ever done to splitter is oil changes.
So cutfast, your splitter splits about 12-cord a year… and if we figure two hours per cord, well, that engine runs 24 hours a year. To be generous, let’s say your splitter engine runs 30 hours a year (I doubt it’s that much, but…). So, 30 hours a year for 15 years… that’s 450 hours.
Now let’s compare that to the engine on my lawn tractor, the one I mow with. It takes me between 5 and 6 hours to mow the lawn, on average I mow 5 times a month from the middle of April until the middle of October. So, (5.5 hours) x (5 times a month) x (6 months) = 165 hrs a year, and that’s just the mowing time… I can conservatively say that engine runs 200 hrs a year. That tractor is a 1992 model, so that engine has run at least 4000 hours at full throttle (probably a lot more than that).
Basically, what we’re talking about here is that I run that mower engine more in one month than your splitter engine runs in a year. It isn’t a matter of how many years it will take to “wear out” your splitter engine, rather how many generations, even at half throttle. But “catastrophic failure” is another animal… it can happen to any engine at any time. Premature “catastrophic failure” is much more likely to happen with a small air-cooled engine that is continuously run at half throttle because of the added heat, lack of lube and associated extra wear. If my mower “blew-up” tomorrow I’d consider that about par given its hard life over the last 20 years… If your splitter “blew-up” tomorrow I’d consider that about 50-years premature.
Now let’s compare that to the engine on my lawn tractor, the one I mow with. It takes me between 5 and 6 hours to mow the lawn, on average I mow 5 times a month from the middle of April until the middle of October. So, (5.5 hours) x (5 times a month) x (6 months) = 165 hrs a year, and that’s just the mowing time… I can conservatively say that engine runs 200 hrs a year. That tractor is a 1992 model, so that engine has run at least 4000 hours at full throttle (probably a lot more than that).
Basically, what we’re talking about here is that I run that mower engine more in one month than your splitter engine runs in a year. It isn’t a matter of how many years it will take to “wear out” your splitter engine, rather how many generations, even at half throttle. But “catastrophic failure” is another animal… it can happen to any engine at any time. Premature “catastrophic failure” is much more likely to happen with a small air-cooled engine that is continuously run at half throttle because of the added heat, lack of lube and associated extra wear. If my mower “blew-up” tomorrow I’d consider that about par given its hard life over the last 20 years… If your splitter “blew-up” tomorrow I’d consider that about 50-years premature.
redheadwoodshed
Freebird
Why would you want to run your engine at half throttle.The faster the engine runs, the faster your pump turns, the faster your cycle time is on your splitter.Do you just like splitting slower?
Anyway, Whitespider is correct, these engines are designed to run wide open under a load.
Farmall Guy
ArboristSite Operative
I've never really paid much attention to how much fuel we burn running the splitter but I'd bet its around 3-4gal per hour... but we run our splitter off the remotes on our 856 intrnational, 100hp trator drinks fuel no matter what it dose but she sure sounds good doing it (3" straight pipe will do that.... can anyone say muffler mod :hmm3grin2orange: )
I split alot by hand and dad runs the splitter on the real nasty stuff so its not like we split everything with it. Its probably the most inefficent method of splitting out there but using the remotes means 1 less engine and hyd system to maintain. Not to mention it gives the tractor something to do during the summer, in the winter it becomes our snow plow.
I split alot by hand and dad runs the splitter on the real nasty stuff so its not like we split everything with it. Its probably the most inefficent method of splitting out there but using the remotes means 1 less engine and hyd system to maintain. Not to mention it gives the tractor something to do during the summer, in the winter it becomes our snow plow.
Well, first of all, to say full-throttle or half-throttle is incorrect. You do not set the "throttle" on a small four-cycle engine, you set the governor spring tension. At full-throttle, or wide-open-throttle a small engine would come unglued in a very short time.
And no... there isn't any misinformation. Any small engine manufacturer recommends running their engine at full rated RPM under load... just read the book. Now that's not to say that certain "special purpose" engines don't exist, but that's not what we're talking about, is it? Why do you suppose near anything made with the intent of coupling to a small engine is rated at the same, exact RPM? My generator is designed to run at 3600 RPM and the manual specifically states that running at a lesser RPM will damage the generator, and of course the engine it's coupled to runs at a rated 3600 RPM... and there isn't any way of changing the throttle, it-is-what-it-is, continuous full-throttle.
If it's better to run the engine at half throttle, why not just build splitter pumps that develop maximum flow and pressure at 2300 RPM? The pumps would be cheaper, longer lasting and more reliable... well, the answer is because it is hard on the engine, that's why. Now don't say it has anything to do with horse-power, because horse-power doesn't do the work... torque does. Most small engines develop maximum torque at something far less than rated RPM... the reason for that is another discussion in motor mechanics.
And no... there isn't any misinformation. Any small engine manufacturer recommends running their engine at full rated RPM under load... just read the book. Now that's not to say that certain "special purpose" engines don't exist, but that's not what we're talking about, is it? Why do you suppose near anything made with the intent of coupling to a small engine is rated at the same, exact RPM? My generator is designed to run at 3600 RPM and the manual specifically states that running at a lesser RPM will damage the generator, and of course the engine it's coupled to runs at a rated 3600 RPM... and there isn't any way of changing the throttle, it-is-what-it-is, continuous full-throttle.
If it's better to run the engine at half throttle, why not just build splitter pumps that develop maximum flow and pressure at 2300 RPM? The pumps would be cheaper, longer lasting and more reliable... well, the answer is because it is hard on the engine, that's why. Now don't say it has anything to do with horse-power, because horse-power doesn't do the work... torque does. Most small engines develop maximum torque at something far less than rated RPM... the reason for that is another discussion in motor mechanics.
Iron man
ArboristSite Operative
Ill use almost a tank or about 1 gallon to split a cord.10hp 4 year old briggs I run a tad under full throttle because its quieter and vibrates the machine less which is less annoying.
SierraWoodsman
ArboristSite Guru
Splitter Full VS. Half Throttle & Fuel useage.
I am Really Glad I stumbled accross this thread. Appearently, I am not the only guy out there that thought that
he was doing his engine a favor running it at half throttle. I have a 13HP Honda GX390 coupled to a 22GPM Haldex pump on my splitter.
So far this year I have Split approx 3-Cords Pine, and have used about 1 Full Gallon. I Split almost everything using a 4-way wedge, Which
really helps with volume split per stroke. The Primary Reason that I kept it at half throttle is that I can't keep up with this machine at full, at least not for very long.
The last thing I want to do is cause the engine to "wear-out" prematurly.
Guess I better bring up the RPM's a bit.
I am Really Glad I stumbled accross this thread. Appearently, I am not the only guy out there that thought that
he was doing his engine a favor running it at half throttle. I have a 13HP Honda GX390 coupled to a 22GPM Haldex pump on my splitter.
So far this year I have Split approx 3-Cords Pine, and have used about 1 Full Gallon. I Split almost everything using a 4-way wedge, Which
really helps with volume split per stroke. The Primary Reason that I kept it at half throttle is that I can't keep up with this machine at full, at least not for very long.
The last thing I want to do is cause the engine to "wear-out" prematurly.
Guess I better bring up the RPM's a bit.
Your logic is almost laughable. At 75 hours a year for 21 years, that’s less than 1600 hours, that’s nothing. Even at 100 hours a year you barely break 2000 hours; I would hope it’s still running strong or I’d be mad as a hornet. When do you suppose that oil pump develops the most oil pressure? When do you suppose the cooling fan moves the most air over the engine? What happens to oil as it heats up? What happens to oil pressure as that oil heats up? Over time, what happens to an engine that constantly runs hotter, and with lower oil pressure? And finally, why do you suppose B&S recommends running that engine a rated RPM under load?
Actually Del, your splitter is a classic example of why it’s a bad idea to grossly overpower something with a small air-cooled gasoline engine.
wdchuck
Addicted to ArboristSite
The gallons per hour feedback was helpful, thanks guys.
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