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

So far the 221 has performed fantastic!! I am so glad I bought it now. The weather is to warm up and no snow for at least a week. Today I ran the Toro till it died, reprimed and tried to start it. Now is the carb empty now and if not how do I drain it? Does it have a little screw on it like my Honda mower does? I presume the shroud comes off first.

While I am no authority, I think the answer is no.
If you go to this thread, post #34 discusses the lack of a float bowl drain on a Toro and post #51 discusses adding one.

Edit: I can't add the link so you will need to copy and paste this address.
http://www.abbysguide.com/ope/discussions/55273-26-1.html

kellyinkc wrote:
Is winter finished in your area?  If not, why do you want to completely drain the machine?   Was there a problem with Toro 221 carbs?  

I have a new 221 and no fuel leaking issues with it. 

If winter isn't over, and you plan on using the machine within the next couple of months, leave it as is. 

borat wrote:
Winter is not over by a long shot....
the next 2 weeks looks dry and warm like maybe 60! Then old man winter returns.
No issues as far as I can tell. i am using Echo Power Blend with stabilizer. I just want to prevent any issues.

You won't have any issues as long as  the fuel isn't contaminated. 

I don't drain my equipment until the first week of May.  Winter is usually done with us by then.  I just transfer the two cycle fuel into my trimmers and mowers etc.

Now if only I could get rid of the alky in the gas.......

Do you own an automobile or any other machinery that has gasoline with ethanol in it?   If so, do you drain them when not in use?  

I've pulled numerous carburetors apart.  Some of them close to 40 years old.   Other than varnish from fuel being left in them for years at a time, I've observed very little oxidation cause by ethanol.  

E10 fuel has not caused me any issues whatsoever.  Can't say what E15 or higher will be like but the pump gas we get here has had ethanol in it for years.  In present concentrations, it doesn't appear to be as detrimental as the all the hype would lead us to believe.  At least, that's my experience. 

Thats what I hear about alky it is bad for small engines. I do not drain my car tank. Although the alky does give less gas mileage given it less BTU"s vs. pure gas.
IIRC the OPE companies are suing over the E15. Its legal moonshine.

CharlesW wrote:
Interesting that Toro doesn't supply an easy way to drain the carb because their "guaranteed to start" warranty is voided if you fail to drain the fuel system prior to any period of non-use over three months. 

Paul7 wrote:
Sounds like a perfect way of avoiding a warranty!  "what? you didn't drain the gas?...sorry dude, that GTS is null and void!"  And it saved them $3 by not having to install the shutoff and drain valve.

The owners manual for my 421QE shows a carburetor drain bolt to be used to drain the fuel in the carburetor prior to storage.
It is mentioned on page 18, Item #6.
The drain bolt is shown on page 15, Figure 36.
Doesn't sound as easy as a thumb screw, but it does appear it is provided for.

I looked at an on-line owners manual for the 221 and I did not see any reference to a way to drain the carburetor.
It does tell you about running the machine out of gas before storage on page 18.
It would seem that following the procedures in the manual should have you covered for any warranty requirements.

Carb bowl drains are going away -- victim of the enviromentalists. You can thank them for the ridiculous "vapor recovery" fuel cans too.

At the end of the season, I run OPE dry and drain the bowl, or on newer carbs, remove the bowl and wipe it dry. 

samdog wrote:
Yes, those new plastic gas cans balloon up real nice in hot weather.  Once they stretch, they keep their shape too.  

aa335 wrote:
Just wait until you try to use one without first relieving the pressure in it...

Shryp wrote:
Yeah, I'm actually a little worried everytime I try to relieve the pressure.  There's a lot of vapors escaping at once with great pressure.  One spark and you got a nice roman candle.

aa335 wrote:

Funny thing is mine are all the reverse as they are sucked in rather than pushed out. Damn Kalifornia making laws for the rest of the US.

Steve_Cebu wrote:
Yes, Kalifornia is a really "progressive" stage.  So progressive that they are pro-active in enforcing issues problems that other states don't have.  And the governor drives a gas guzzling Hummer.  Yeah!

aa335 wrote:

That's just it, it's Kalifornia that has those problems, not the rest of us. They should keep their laws to themselves and leave the rest of us alone.

Ah well no snow for a while now, so I have a lot of gas already to go for the next storm, if we have one.

Steve_Cebu wrote:
We're in a big thaw now for the next 5 days.  It may be in the 50's and I can wash and wax the snowblower.  All the snow should melt to make room for new one.  That's good. 

aa335 wrote:
Was 48 Sunday and 50 Monday this week.  Looking at the extended forcast and winter might be over for us this year.  Maybe I should take my snowblower apart and paint it.

Shryp wrote:

Well here it's -7F with the windchill during the day. No snow predicted but they say Thursday it could get up to 40F. That would be unusual for us in Feb. Hopefully it won't get too warm, as we are going to a winter RallyX on the 27th. Hard to race on snow with no snow.