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Re: Kohler engine question

To: "Martin Sukey" <mjsukey@eriecoast.com>,
Subject: Re: Kohler engine question
From: "Arvid Jedlicka" <arvidj@visi.com>
Date: Sun, 10 Apr 2005 21:19:40 -0500
My 18hp Briggs horizontal twin cylinder has similar hoses. There are two of
them. They go from the metal heat shroud that is around each cylinder to
the bottom of the air cleaner housing, entering on the "outside air" side
of the air filter, not on the "filtered air" side.

A brief look thru the engine overhaul manual suggest:

(a) There is a crankcase breather. It is a simple valve that allows air [but not
oil] to escape from the crankcase and does not allow air [or dirt] to enter
the crankcase. Its goal in life is to insure that the crankcase runs in a slight
vacuum.

(b) This breather "exhausts" someplace under the sheet metal shrouds. The
tubes are to insure that the "crankcase fumes" that are expelled by the breather
get recycled thru the engine rather than directly into the air.

So maybe the reason it is blowing a lot of oil that the breather has gone
walkabout.

If you are simply trying to not burn the crankcase fumes, I would assume you
could simply route the tube someplace else - put the oil directly on the lawn
rather than in the air thru the engines exhaust ;-}

I have no real experience working on the crankcase, so speculation on what
might really be wrong is based on the notes in my engine manual. It could be
the breather has failed and is simply letting the oil out. Or it could be that 
the
breather is overwhelmed with oil because you've over filled the crankcase.
Or it could be overwhelmed by the crankcase pressure from blow-by from
the rings, etc. Which seems to cover a fairly broad spectrum of ailments.

Anyway, that's what the Briggs manual suggests.

Arvid


> I have a 30 year old Ford LT lawn tractor with a Kohler 14 hp engine (model
> K321AQS if that makes any difference). There is a piece of hose that comes
> out into the air cleaner housing from inside the block that has been blowing
> out quite a bit of oil residue.  Im pretty good at playing with Little
> British Car engines but I am afraid I have never dove into the lawn more
> engine world. So, before I start trying to freshen this thing up does
> anybody have any suggestions as to what I will be getting into as I try to
> stop fogging for bugs as I cut the grass with this thing from it pumping oil
> back into the carb through the air filter housing?

> Thanks,
>
> Marty






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