DANGER
Fuelisextremelyammableandexplosive.A
reorexplosionfromfuelcanburnyouand
others.
•Topreventastaticchargefromignitingthe
fuel,placethecontainerand/ormachineon
thegroundbeforelling,notinavehicle
oronanobject.
•Fillthetankoutdoorswhentheengineis
cold.Wipeupspills.
•Donothandlefuelwhensmokingor
aroundanopenameorsparks.
•Storefuelinanapprovedfuelcontainer,
outofthereachofchildren.
•Donottipthemachineeitherforward
orbackwardwithfuelinthefueltank;
otherwise,fuelmayleakoutofthe
machine.
FillingtheFuelTank
•Forbestresults,useonlyclean,fresh(lessthan
30daysold),unleadedgasolinewithanoctane
ratingof87orhigher((R+M)/2ratingmethod).
•Oxygenatedfuelwithupto10%ethanolor15%
MTBEbyvolumeisacceptable.
•Donotuseethanolblendsofgasoline(such
asE15orE85)withmorethan10%ethanolby
volume.Performanceproblemsand/orengine
damagemayresultwhichmaynotbecovered
underwarranty.
•Donotusegasolinecontainingmethanol.
•Donotstorefueleitherinthefueltankorfuel
containersoverthewinterunlessyouuseafuel
stabilizer.
•Donotaddoiltogasoline.
Donotllabovethebottomofthefueltankneck
(Figure15).
g216203
Figure15
Note:Forbestresults,purchaseonlythequantity
offuelthatyouexpecttousein30days.Otherwise,
youmayaddfuelstabilizertonewlypurchasedfuelto
keepitfreshforupto6months.
DuringOperation
DuringOperationSafety
•Shutofftheenginebeforeuncloggingthe
machineandalwaysuseastickorthe
snow-cleanouttool(ifprovided).
•Arotatingaugercaninjurehandsorfeet.Stay
behindthehandlesandawayfromthedischarge
openingwhileoperatingthemachine.Keepyour
face,hands,feet,andanyotherpartofyour
bodyorclothingawayfrommovingorrotating
parts.
•Neverdirectthedischargetowardpeopleorareas
wherepropertydamagecanoccur.
•Exercisecautiontoavoidslippingorfalling.
Alwaysbesureofyourfooting,andkeeparm
holdonthehandles.Walk;neverrun.
•Exerciseextremecautionwhenoperatingon
slopes.
•Neveroperatethemachinewithoutgoodvisibility
orlight.
•Donotoperatethemachinewhileill,tired,or
undertheinuenceofalcoholordrugs.
•Lookbehindandusecarewhenbackingupwith
themachine.
•Whennotactivelyclearingsnow,disengagepower
totheauger.
•Exerciseextremecautionwhenoperatingonor
crossinggraveldrives,walks,orroads.Stayalert
forhiddenhazardsortrafc.
•Neverattempttomakeanyadjustmentswhilethe
engineisrunning.
•Afterstrikingaforeignobject,shutofftheengine,
removetheignitionkey(electric-startmodels
only),thoroughlyinspectthemachineforany
damage,andrepairthedamagebeforestarting
andoperatingthemachine.
•Ifthemachineshouldstarttovibrateabnormally,
shutofftheengineandcheckforthecause.
•Donotruntheengineindoorsunlessthereis
adequateventilation(e.g.,leavinganoutsidedoor
open);exhaustfumesaredangerous.
•Donotoverloadthemachinecapacityby
attemptingtoclearsnowattoofastarate.
•Nevertouchahotengineormufer.
StartingtheEngine
1.Checktheengine-oillevel.RefertoChecking
theEngine-OilLevel(page17).
2.Turnthefuel-shutoffvalve1/4turn
counterclockwisetoopenit(Figure16).
9