Generator Maintenance - Oil Change - Rambling with Phil

[@tylerfoss3346]

Great job, Phil! I love the use of the modified (trash) empty washer fluid bottle to catch your oil. 👍👍

[@RamblingWithPhil]

Thank you and thanks for watching!

[@MariaRodriguez-sp7wo]

Thanks!!! I don't have an idea to how to change the oil of my generator... And now I can do perfectly!! Thank you!!

[@RamblingWithPhil]

You’re welcome! Thanks for watching!

[@rosarioporalmasdelpurgatorio]

Great video. Please tell us what the correct way to read the dipstick is when you can. Thank you

[@Honestandtruth007]

Very Smart man to do this with improvised

[@RamblingWithPhil]

Thank you for your comment and thank you for watching!

[@indigophoenix108]

Thank you. Great video

[@RamblingWithPhil]

You’re welcome! Hope you found it helpful

[@warren7957]

I have the same Generac 5500 in Florida too. The book suggests straight weight 30 for our temperature range. Also, I've had to clean the carburetor a couple of times. Even though I add Startron and run it monthly!

[@RamblingWithPhil]

Good to know. Thanks for watching!

[@luisolan1369]

Thank you my friend

[@RamblingWithPhil]

You're welcome! Thanks for watching!

[@Dylan33ish]

When checking the oil level, do you screw the dip stick all the way in?

[@RamblingWithPhil]

I think that’s a good idea to do it that way. Thanks for watching!

[@BadfingerFan]

It depends on the motor. If it is a Honda or various other Asian imports, you should not screw it in. If it is a Briggs & Stratton engine, you should screw the dip stick in. I recommend finding the owners manual for your specific motor.

[@vanlifeonthego6684]

Nice video. Obviously there's not much to changing the oil in this, but afterwards I have a small oil leak coming from the underneath side of where the drain plug is located. It's more to the rear of that flat section but for the life of me I can't figure out what would have created it. The angle of the hole to fill the oil is a bit wonky so I was hoping I spilt some and it's still working its way out of the nooks and cranny's but it's still getting a paper towel wet. Any ideas by chance?

[@RamblingWithPhil]

The only thing I can think of is possibly unscrew the plug a bit and then retighten. Otherwise you might need to remove completely & check for a good seal but that means potentially draining the oil you just put in … or you could just wait and see if it stops. It might be oil that spilled somewhere else when draining & just hasn’t dripped off yet. Good luck!

[@vanlifeonthego6684]

@@RamblingWithPhil Thanks for your response. Much to my surprise, I believe it was simply the type of oil. I knew in our area it called for SAE30 for the most part, but it seemed to me 10w-30 would be ok too. Evidently that's not the case although it's odd to me how it could leak just due to that fact alone. It would leak some for several days after running but after replacing it with SAE30 I can't see any leaks so far after running some this morning. Just weird to me but hopefully that's all it was. Take care

[@RamblingWithPhil]

I think that is weird also but interesting. Thanks for sharing that bit of information!

[@williamrice4608]

Mine has to work pretty hard so I use Valvoline VR1 Racing Oil. 10w30 Nov. to May and 20w50 May to Nov. Never had a problem. Marvel Mystery Oil in the gas.

[@RamblingWithPhil]

Thanks for your oil experience and for watching!

[@benrobles752]

Mobil 5w-30 full synthetic is the way to go. the engine will smoke less.

[@RamblingWithPhil]

Thanks for the tip! (and for watching!)

[@projet2907]

5w-30 can be used even in summer months?

[@rogwarrior7688]

I use the 5w-30 blend and works like a charm, no smoke.

[@CoryFalde175]

Is there an oil filter?

[@RamblingWithPhil]

no there isn't. Thanks for watching!

[@PapiFrancisco78]

How often should I change the oil??

[@RamblingWithPhil]

I believe generac recommends an oil change after the first 20-30 hours & then every 100 hours after that … Thanks for watching!

[@minaengineer1003]

My manual oil capacity 1.2L but oil level low of minimum

[@marcoluoma3770]

Thanks. I stole your idea of the cut-down bottle. (Even though I only start the generator every 2-3 months, and have only used it for its intended purpose maybe eight hours, the oil was very dirty.)

[@RamblingWithPhil]

Glad you liked my cut-down bottle idea! Thanks for watching!

[@anybodysguess960]

Wait, there isn’t an oil filter? I have the generac 7500

[@RamblingWithPhil]

As far as I know, there isn't. Thanks for watching.

[@michaelbyrd2611]

I WOULD HAVE ADDED CLEAN OIL IN FILL TO CLEAN ALL OLD OIL OUT