Washing paper filter in kerosene?

I have allot of dead spots, pine needles, etc. in my yard and especially when mulching leaves in the fall generates quite a bit of dust.

Here is what my old Snapper's filter looked like after mulching leaves one fall. I can't understand how the engine did suffocate:



This would probably be what a filter on my car would look like after 100,000 miles. You know if I ran it that long.

Used to I'd just take the sock off the paper filter, rinse it out in kerosene then blow the paper filter element with compressed air. Usually about halfway through the season then at the start of the next season. Or maybe even in the middle of fall.

Awhile back I decided to see what would happen if I actually washed the paper element in kerosene. I let it out and It didn't fall apart. Mower runs just the same.

What were the pros and cons of the old oil bath filters and the foam rubber filters prior to paper filters?

I know foam rubber will eventually disintegrate. What about washing a paper element in kerosene?

Considering how much dust I generate, to me these paper style elements just clog up way too fast.

I looked to see if K&N made a filter for my lawnmower (21hp Intek B&S) but they do not. Not to say I couldn't make my own using some RTV, wire mesh and cotton gauze.

Anybody have the same problem?

The "right" thing to do is to buy several outer foam covers .
Wash them in hair shampoo , squeeze out excess water between flat sheets of paper , don't scrunch them up.
Then let them dry fully in shade.
Swap them every 2nd or 3rd mow which is why you have a couple.
Toss the dirty ones in the shower and wash them when you are having a tub yourself.

Never ever blow compressed air through a paper filter.
The same tiny water droplets that bugger you spray painting get blasted right through the filter paper.
Washing paper filters is a no no.
It weakens the fibre and you run the big risk of it getting sucked into the engine.

Oil baths work really well I could not recommend them enough.
They are just messy and in your case will require very regular cleaning.

Oiled foam filters are a mixed bag.
We tried several different ones in our desiel delivery vans because the paper ones were over $ 100 and needed replacement 3 times a year.
One was too high flow and we could not enrichen the pump enough till I blanked off 2/3 of it and not suprising it was found not to be filtering the air enough
We went through 4 different ones till we found one a system that worked but it was a huge 4 stage unit and required almost weekly servicing.

OTOH I run foam filters on my motorcycles and have no problems .
Again I have 3 of each size so there is always a nice clean one ready to be fitted.

Back to your situation, you really need to fit a snorkel to get the mower breathing in cleaner air rather than trying to work inside a dust cloud.
Also you should be removing the blower housing and cleaning off the engine cooling fins regularly if that is what your air filters look like.

The reason your filter looks like that is you are running your engine without an air filter cover. Second if you look closely, you will see that the filter is damaged and should not even be put in use. I don't care what kind of conditions you are in, operating an engine with a damaged filter and no cover is abuse, plain and simple. I service engines with operate around concrete dust and grain dust, which is a lot finer and will clog filters faster than leaves and dirt, and have not seen anything close to that. You should not be allowed to operate an engine if that is how you take care of them. If you want to wash your paper filter with kerosene, go ahead, that engine isn't going to be around very long the way it is pictured anyway.

Why try to save a few$$$ ? Its going to cost you 10 times more than you think your saving right now. Its not worth it .

Isn't that the cover sitting lop left in the picture and he dust is flat at the edges where it has been in contact with the inner surface of the cover.
I can see where the wrap has pulled away from the paper on the upper left but don't see obvious damage what am I missing ?

Where do people come up with this crap?
And I agree why no cover?
I wash my pre filter once a week with dish soap. I replace the paper filter once a month. But never blow it out with compressed air. That's worse then it being dirty.

Carscw said:

Where do people come up with this crap?
And I agree why no cover?
I wash my pre filter once a week with dish soap. I replace the paper filter once a month. But never blow it out with compressed air. That's worse then it being dirty.

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So what is the triangular thing sitting on top of the finger guard on the blower housing ?

bertsmobile1 said:

So what is the triangular thing sitting on top of the finger guard on the blower housing ?

Click to expand...

Yeah, that's the filter cover. I run filter covers on all my mowers. This was after I mulched leaves one fall on a Snapper I used to own.

Bertsmobile1, you mention you run a foam air filter on your motorbikes. My idea was to use one of those foam filters made by a company like a Pipercross. That way I could wash it out every few times after I get done mowing (or inspect it) and stick it back on and 2 weeks later will be ready to mow again.





I'm sure they don't make air filters specifically to fit for small engines but they make that will fit the snout on my carburetor (like 1 to 1.5"). Maybe a crankcase breather filter.

I've heard these stories that K&N filters don't really filter air all that well. Or at least they don't flow any bettter than a paper filter.

I have thought of the idea of using a snorkel. Mainly to be able to inspect the filter more often. You might think from the filter that I don't maintain my mowers but I do. I check the oil before mowing, check the tire pressure, change it and the filter every 50 hours. I also take my leaf blower and blow all the grass out from on top of the deck, through the screen on the engine, actually the entire mower while blowing my driveway off. This may not be a good idea but I also take a pressure washer to it once a year. Just like a dirty car, I don't like riding a dirty mower!

This problem mainly occurs under two conditions. One where we have a dry spell, yet the yard still needs to be mowed (weeds knocked down) and fall when I mulch leaves. When the grass is not dried out, I usually don't kick up that much dust. But there are still areas around my garage I cann't get grass to grow no matter what and creates a dust cloud.

Go to an aftermarket motorcycle shop and have a wander around.
Mower engines and motorcycle engines are around the same capacities and usually have similar choke sizes.
I ran Ducatti 750 filters ( K & N ) on the SR 500's we used for work and Unit filters on most of my BSA pill box filters..
The trick is getting the air induction away from where the dust & debris is getting stirred up.
The biggest push mower company down here ( 70% of the market ) used to fit snorkels to all their mowers including the B & S Sprints, Hondas & Tecumsehs.
I service some of them that are 20+ years old still with the original air filter, still is good condition.
Most of the ones that get replaced is because the damp air has got to them and they have collapsed or the spiders have made so many webs in the housing , the webs are blocking off the air inlets.

bertsmobile1 said:

Go to an aftermarket motorcycle shop and have a wander around.
Mower engines and motorcycle engines are around the same capacities and usually have similar choke sizes.
I ran Ducatti 750 filters ( K & N ) on the SR 500's we used for work and Unit filters on most of my BSA pill box filters..
The trick is getting the air induction away from where the dust & debris is getting stirred up.
The biggest push mower company down here ( 70% of the market ) used to fit snorkels to all their mowers including the B & S Sprints, Hondas & Tecumsehs.
I service some of them that are 20+ years old still with the original air filter, still is good condition.
Most of the ones that get replaced is because the damp air has got to them and they have collapsed or the spiders have made so many webs in the housing , the webs are blocking off the air inlets.

Click to expand...

I don't understand how a snorkel is going to help reduce clogging the filter when mowing through a dust bowel that goes ten feet up in the air. But I'd like to see what your talking about.

When I mulch leaves, the dust stirred up is so bad, I actually wear one of those disposable dust masks. Otherwise I'm blowing dirt out of my sinuses or coughing when I lay down at bedtime.

I didn't want to sound cheap but like your diesel truck fleet, I'd rather find a filter I could wash out instead of having to replace at $15 to $20 a pop a couple of times a year. Actually I probably should change it more often than that.

The old foam rubber filters I remember from when I was a kid, that were cleaned in soapy water, soaked in motor oil then squeezed out seemed to work pretty well. They appeared restrictive though but seemed to do the job. Eventually they would rot and need to be replaced.

What was the reason companies went away from using them? More money to be made selling people over priced paper filters? Less restrictive? More convenient? Appealing to people who do not want to get their hands greasy/dirty? As if changing the oil does not make an awful mess.

Now here is what I'm talking about. I just bought a Citroen 2CV and it has a foam element in it but looks like it needs to be replaced.