Small Engines and Oil

[reaperman]

I think the most important thing to do is run the new engine for a couple of hours and change the oil. Some recommend the following:
1.) using the cheapest 10W30 conventional oil and STP oil treatment, use about 4 oz of oil treatment for a 1/2 qt of oil. Add less than a 1/2 gallon of gas. Run engine for about an hour, vary throttle but never wide open. The STP helps oil to cling, and gather shavings. Drain the oil after first run.
2.) Change conventional oil and another 4oz of STP. Run for about half hour and then 2 minutes wide-open. Change oil again, noting if there are any shavings.
I realize that generators dont have adjustable throttles but the above will aid in getting any loose shavings out. I have the 13hp honda gx and the oil capacity is about one quart. I'd imagine your engine is very similar in specs. A couple of bucks for a quart of break-in oil is nothing.

Your generator shouldn't have any trouble powering your home. I have a Gen Tran box installed on my home for generator use if the power goes out. On the box is two meters that indicate the watts currently being used by each side of the breaker box. With everything running at once that is powered by the box, including my well, the meters show only about 1200 watts being used by each side of the panel. So that would be around 2400 watts total, leaving plenty of watts to spare. Keeping in mind I dont have everything in my home wired to the Gen Tran breaker box. Mainly all of the lights, the major outlets, furnace, wood furnace, fridge and freezer, and most important, the well. Being without water is worse than not having lights.

 

[Sagetown]

reaperman ~ I have a Gen Tran box installed on my home for generator use if the power goes out.

Small world. I have the very same Gen Tran set-up wired to my Breaker Box . A all weather Box Receptacle outside the house receives pwr from the generator when the Transfer Switch is flipped to Generator, cutting off all pwr to and from utility line. Great little device.

 

[bejay]

Yeah, I've done a bit of research.
I'm goin' with conventional petroleum based oil, like I run in everything else out here. The guy that loaded it for me told me he would only use synthetic in it... But what does he know? I run 5w-30 in everything, year-round, even in my pickup. Why would I keep something else just for one small engine?

I wouldnt run synthetic either, but thats my preference, if you maintain the engine its probably going to last just as long running convential oil as it does synthetic.

 

[Whitespider]

I see a lot of references to 10w30 in this thread, which is what I used to run in everything. A few years ago I was talking with an engineer from Ford Motor Company and he told me that today's 5w30 gives better protection than yesterday's 10w30, or even yesterdays 10w40. He told me I could switch to 5w30 year-round (gas engines), get easier starts in cold weather with less wear on the starting system and engine, and not give-up anything in hot weather. (He even said that 5w20 would probably be just fine but wasn't gonna' go that far, yet) I switched to 5w30 year-round and have not had a single problem with anything, from 8-cylinder engines to single-cylinder lawn mowers. (not endorsing anything here... I'm just sayin")