Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

Having had  a chance to use my new Ariens ST24E  with a Subaru sx21 engine I have been most pleased thus far but am now getting to the point of the initial oil change.

I reviewed the manuals and they gave conflicting instructions regarding the oil change requirements.

The Ariens Manual said to change the oil after the first two hours of use while the Subaru manual said to change the oil after twenty hours.  Now thats a large difference

The hours used between subsequent oil changes was also slightly confusing as the Subaru manual said to change it every fifty (100) hours of use.  Yes, that is correct, they gave one number in words and then double that amount in numerical form.


So I come to you to ask you opinions as to when the heck I should change the oil on this machine, both initially and then  on a regular schedule.

Thanks for any advice.