OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions on Other Engines Lectron Generator blowing smoke

Sounds to me like the oil might have separated out and/or you have water under the oil at the bottom of the crank case.

I don’t know anything about these specific machines. However, with any engine with an oil sump you can get temperature fluctuations with different amounts of moisture in the air. Then, the warm damp air can cause condensation inside the crank case when the temperature falls overnight. This water then runs down and collects under the oil in the bottom and is effectively sealed in under the oil. Over time you can get quite a build up.

When you start up the engine regularly this small amount of condensate gets invisibly evaporated by the heat. However, if you leave it long enough you’ll have enough water to blow white smoke when the engine gets up to temperature.

Also, there are some oils with a limited shelf life. I used to buy engine and hydraulic oil in bulk in drums keeping an eye out for discounts. The agent told us to watch the dates because sometimes older drums can have been sitting around and they lose some of the important properties through degradation over time.

Regardless as to what your specific problem is it’s best to completely drain the oil every now and again and replace it with fresh new stuff of the correct grade specified by the manufacturer of the engine. I do it every couple of years with the things that don’t get regularly used. Degraded oil and water aren’t much good as engine lubricants.