To help you keep your equipment running better and last longer, here are some important tips for everyday use and maintenance.

• Treat gas as you would milk - don't use if thirty days old without a stabilizer.
• Newer engines really don't like dirt. A few decades ago, people would bring mowers in with grass clippings in the gas tank, and the unit would still run! But now, a speck of dirt will sometimes keep it from running.
• If you have a riding mower with a removable gas cap and no tether, set the cap on the seat when you're filling up. That way you can't get back on it without putting the cap back on.
• How does dirt get in the gas tank?

             - One way is, they let the debris on the cap fall in as they take the cap on and off.

             - Your equipment's carburetor

             - Sometimes it's not your fault.. For example, Briggs once made a engine that, when they tested it, the atmospheric vent was on the side, but when it got mounted, it ended up at the front. So if you had a shady lawn, dust and debris got blown out the front. Then, as the machine went through the cloud,debris got sucked into the carb and after awhile it build-up and caused problems.

             - Also the guy at the gas station checks his tank with a long pole and then lays it on the ground, the next time he puts it in the tank the dirt goes in the tank. They are suppose to have filters but how often do they change them?

• When running the newer two-cycles like a chain saw come off the throttle every now and then. An example would be cutting a large log. Don't try to get thru it without letting off the trigger. This will allow the saw or trimmer the ability to put lube back on the bearings because at higher speeds the bearings have a tendency to throw the lube off.
• Be sure to use 89 Octane gas.