Put Wrong Oil Type Into Troy Bilt Pony 17.5hp

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I own a 2012 series Troy Bilt Pony Model 13WN77KS011. This year before changing my oil, I read somewhere on the internet, that the best type of oil for my mower was 15W50. So, I went to Autozone but they didn't have any 15W50, so I thought I would get the next best thing, which was 20W50. I thought since the numbers 15W50 and 20W50 were close numbers to each other, it would be okay to put in 20W50. So, I put in 2 quarts of 20W50 (as the owners manual said to do). I didn't think it necessary to have to read the dipstick to see if there was going to be enough oil. So, I went ahead and started mowing with it. This is for residential use only, not commercial use. I cut my grass about once a week and it takes me about 20-30 mins to finish cutting my grass. The temperature where I live, recently has been running between 80-95 degrees past few weeks. Since, I put the 20W50 in my mower- I ran the mower about 3 times with no problem. However, (yesterday) the 4th time I ran it just as I was about to finish, all of a sudden it started blowing out HEAVY BLACK SMOKE! I stopped it, examined mower for oil leaks, etc. no leaks but when checking dipstick it appeared that the oil level was ABOVE THE LINE (meaning too much oil), so I emptied it out. Did some research on the internet, that is when I found out that my model number takes ONLY 44 OUNCES OF OIL, NOT 48 OUNCES OF OIL. My concern is whether or not, I have done any damage to the engine IF THE PROBLEM WAS EITHER CAUSED BY TOO MUCH OIL OR WRONG OIL TYPE??? I'm no expert with Riding Mowers. Feel free to give me your thoughts, suggestions, advice. Thanks.
 
Black smoke is usually fuel, not oil. Oil would be blue or heavy white smoke. I doubt over filling that engine by 4 ounces would cause that, I've seen engines overfilled more than that without doing that.

20w50 is a bit thick but with that temperature shouldn't cause any issues. If it still smokes, I would look into the fuel system as the tractor may be flooding.
 
I doubt any damage was done and I doubt the oil matters except maybe there was too much. My brother used to turn the lawnmower sideways for a bit and then run it to make a smoke show. He never bothered to add oil or change it and that thing lasted years.
 
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I thought oil burning was white or blueish smoke? Black smoke means unburnt fuel I think?
A slight overfill is probably not going to cause that. Fire that bad boy up again and see what happens.

First post and you're already ignoring recommendations and using thicker oil! You will fit in well here.
 
So let me get this straight..

you read randomly on the internet to use a certain grade of oil 15w50 instead of the recommended 5w30/straight 30wt.. then bought an even thicker grade...

then filled it without checking the level.. then mowed 4x.

the whole decision process there seems abit suspect. were alcohol or drugs involved?

Also 2 quarts is 64oz of oil not 48.. it was severely overfilled. Could be anything from no damage to popping a Headgasket etc.
 
20W50 instead of 15W50 - at your temperatures - there is no difference. Since you have removed the excess oil, in your place I would run it and see what happens. Likely no damage.
 
Probably no harm done. But your first mistake was believing what's on the interwebs. A quick google got me your OWNERS MANUAL, and in it it specifically refers your to the ENGINE MANUAL for oil type, weight, and quantity.
2 engines on that model according to the MANUAL, Briggs and Kohler, neither of which would take 15w50.
So drain the oil you have in it, refer to the MANUAL, and get what's listed in it. From artwork, and hints in the MANUAL, it looks like pressure lube systems on both engines, so should be no harm done to the engine. If there is a filter, did you change it as well? If not, a new filter, a couple quarts of what recommended in the book, and get back to mowing.


Have in hinted enough in the reply that your manual is the source for info?
 
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Black smoke usually comes from too much gas like running with the choke on or a plugged up air filter. If the smoke was whitesh or bluesh that would be a sign of burning oil. I don't think 4 oz over full of oil will cause any problem.
 
2 quarts is 64 ounces, not 48.

Sorry, Rand, just noticed you already pointed that out...
 
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Black smoke - fuel issues. Nothing to do with oil.

The 20W-50 did not hurt a thing. The overfull, maybe a bit of power loss. If it wasn't smoking (blue) and it wasn't puking oil out the breather, it was OK - not good, but OK.

Change the oil again to something with a 30 in it (SAE 30, 15W-30, 10W-30, etc.) and get into the fuel system.

My bet is there is/was some debris in the tank that migrated to the float bowl and stuck the needle open so it flooded the intake... You need to install an in-line fuel filter and clean the carb.
 
Better to have trolled and lost than not have been trolled at all?
You almost have to answer the OP ? just on the fact their might be someone that actually got into the situation presented.
If trolled, at least some alien being will see this on a digital chip captured from space and think "dang those humans were a strange and silly lot..."
 
Originally Posted By: beanoil
Probably no harm done. But your first mistake was believing what's on the interwebs. A quick google got me your OWNERS MANUAL, and in it it specifically refers your to the ENGINE MANUAL for oil type, weight, and quantity.
2 engines on that model according to the MANUAL, Briggs and Kohler, neither of which would take 15w50.
So drain the oil you have in it, refer to the MANUAL, and get what's listed in it. From artwork, and hints in the MANUAL, it looks like pressure lube systems on both engines, so should be no harm done to the engine. If there is a filter, did you change it as well? If not, a new filter, a couple quarts of what recommended in the book, and get back to mowing.


Have in hinted enough in the reply that your manual is the source for info?


Pretty condescending, especially if the OP has a Briggs engine in which case your condescending post is wrong. Every word of it. Briggs has recommended 15W50 synthetic for a few years now for commercial use engines, or engines that run for hours on end.
 
To the OP, assuming he comes back, 20W50 would be beneficial if your mower ran for hours and hours on end. If you are only mowing for 30 min at a time, your oil is still heating up and is approaching operating temp, right at about 30 mins. For your climate and usage, you do not need anything but SAE30 or 10W30.

20W50 is overkill. It will be fine, but it is overkill.

If you really want a thicker oil, 15W40 oil is what you want.

As to the smoking, drain the oil, refill with the proper amount of SAE30, and it should be fine. If not, look at a carb rebuild or a fuel shutoff valve added to the fuel line.
 
Originally Posted By: bubbatime
Originally Posted By: beanoil
Probably no harm done. But your first mistake was believing what's on the interwebs. A quick google got me your OWNERS MANUAL, and in it it specifically refers your to the ENGINE MANUAL for oil type, weight, and quantity.
2 engines on that model according to the MANUAL, Briggs and Kohler, neither of which would take 15w50.
So drain the oil you have in it, refer to the MANUAL, and get what's listed in it. From artwork, and hints in the MANUAL, it looks like pressure lube systems on both engines, so should be no harm done to the engine. If there is a filter, did you change it as well? If not, a new filter, a couple quarts of what recommended in the book, and get back to mowing.

Have in hinted enough in the reply that your manual is the source for info?


Pretty condescending, especially if the OP has a Briggs engine in which case your condescending post is wrong. Every word of it. Briggs has recommended 15W50 synthetic for a few years now for commercial use engines, or engines that run for hours on end.


This isnt a commercial engine.. its a $999 lawn "tractor" at lowes

And I use the word tractor loosely.

also being first post.. I am suspicious of trolling myself.

Also the most important clue I'm seeing half the people here missing is 2 quarts is 64oz not 48

therefore it was overfilled by 45%

IIRC These also use a gravity feed gas tank that frequently leaks into the oil raising it even higher.
 
It does seem that you seriously overfilled the oil, using 64 ounces instead of 44. That being said, one would think that had that been the problem it would have shown up earlier, right?

Briggs and Stratton has recently changed their oil recommendation to 15w50, and there is really no difference between that and a 20w50 in your application. In other words, I wouldn't worry about the oil viscosity. Fire her up again and see what happens. If the black smoke persists, you have a fuel problem.
 
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