You did good. But that filter needs to be checked often. It's going to stop a lot more dirt and dust with the oil on it. Your engine instructions should tell you how to clean it when it looks like it needs it.

I found the same thing with my JD/Kohler Command. JD never mentions oiling the pre-filter, but the Kohler manual for that specific engine does. Cleaning is simple. Just pull the foam pre-filter off, wash it out with water, and a little soap, or even just water. Let it dry and pour a very small amount of any engine oil on teh foam - a couple of tablespoons at most. Then work the oil into the foam by just kneading the foam strip in a ball with your hands. Once it is all wet with oil, I soak all the excess back out with paper towels - again kneading it with my hands with towels. You want very little actual oil left, just a slightly moist foam pad. As noted above, the moist foam does catch a lot of fine dirt so it should be pulled and washed fairly often. Since it only takes a few minutes, it really is no bother. Upside is that it probably lenghtens the life of both the paper air filter and the engine itself.

"You want very little actual oil left, just a slightly moist foam pad."

The foam pre-filter would do little good without this.

Walt Conner

Hey guys what gives, just bought an X300 and the prefilter has absolutely no oil on it . Also if you oil the foam even slightly doesn't it eventually transfer to the paper filter and reduce its breathability?

>> Also if you oil the foam even slightly doesn't it eventually transfer to the paper filter and reduce its breathability?

Jaws, I thought the same thing, or at least that it might wick oil away from the foam but I think the KEY is that it has to be wrung out well... I pulled the new paper filter out after a few minutes past reinstallation and there had been no transfer of oil to it.

Plus, the mesh on the backside of the prefilter probably acts as a bit of a spacer...

But like yours, my original foam prefilter had no oil on it...

Brigg's manual is for this particular engine for all its uses. JD evidently doesn't think it is necessary to oil the prefilter when used on a mower, but in different uses it may be necessary, so Brigg's says to do it. Kind of like how cars used to say to change the oil at 3,000 miles and then it changed to 5,000 then to... It depends on the use. I would say be safe and oil it, but don't worry if you have used your tractor sans the oil in the prefilter.

My John Deere Service Department said to absolutely not oil the pre-filter. I think the reason is that some of the oil will eventually be drawn into the paper main filter, and reduce the air flow through it, even though it still looks clean. I started seeing some black soot on the inside of the front wheel where the exhaust leaves the engine. The air filters looked good, but I replaced both of them, and the problem went away. This was on a JD325 with an 18hp Air Cooled Kawasaki engine. Charles Ranheim

I have found exactly the same thing with Wheel Horse tractors.

Some WH manuals do not even mention a pre-filter. Those that do, do not mention oil.

In my experience the pre-filter does stop a lot of bigger stuff (grass clipping) that might clog the filter if there was no pre-filter.

Just cleaned and re-oiled the flat foam pre-filter on my John Deere EZTrak w/ 23-HP Briggs engine. It was covered with lots of oily dirt on the bottom (intake) side. Amazing how it could even breathe, and that was with only 11-hours of operation on it. The pre-filter was oiled from the factory. I know this because I was there when they took it out of the shipping crate at the dealers, and they let me set it up there (with their tools) according to the factory instructions, so I know there was no dealer involvement.

wankel I know for a fact it will wick but it takes time, a couple of months. also it depends how much wicking. If it's suppose to be oiled it would be from the factory also the only time I've seen pre filters oiled is when the have some kind of mesh or barrier to stop the oil transfer. But to be 100% sure Im asking the board to convince me. By the way this is on a 17hp twin cylinder kawasaki.

We have the same 17hp Kawa twin in out LX277AWS. It is going on 7 years since we got it new, and it came with the prefilter oiled (lightly). I bought a few extra prefilters so I can have them ready to change if I get into some really dirty areas. Like has been mentioned, I do the oil, squeeze out routine, but then will also do a quick sqeeze out inside a paper towel, which seems to leave just the right amount of oil in the prefilter. We are approaching 300hrs on the tractor, and the regular air filter has never been changed, or needed changing. With the right amount of oil on the prefilter, very, very little gets through to the paper filter. We have also not had any problems with oil seeping onto the paper element, as it has the metal screen to isolate it, and we don't over oil.

Over history, lawn equipment has gone from only an oiled foam filter, to paper only, and now to both, in the stuff I have owned. I have to assume they added the oiled prefilter back in to address the very frequent replacements needed if you just run a paper element that can't be cleaned. They kept the paper element to maintain the better filtration it gives. In our case, the system is working very well.

booster pretty much summed it up in that the OILED foam pre-filter extends the useful life of the paper element. Anyone that is concerned about oil wicking over to the paper element should go to an automotive parts store and purchase a spray can of "K&N Foam Filter Oil". This will oil your foam but is lacking other properties of "premium quality" engine oils that could tend to "wax" the paper if wicking or draft transfer occurs.

If you have a 2 stroke engine that uses a gas/oil mixture , you have a simple solution for your pre filter.
Just wash your pre filter with the gas/oil mix.
The gas cleanes the filter and after it dries it leaves a fine film of oil.

>> If you have a 2 stroke engine that uses a gas/oil mixture , you have a simple solution for your pre filter.
Just wash your pre filter with the gas/oil mix. The gas cleanes the filter and after it dries it leaves a fine film of oil. Now THATS a good idea! : ) I have some in the garage...

"My John Deere Service Department said to absolutely not oil the pre-filter. I think the reason is that some of the oil will eventually be drawn into the paper main filter, and reduce the air flow through it, even though it still looks clean."

A properly oiled pre-filter will not wick into the paper element. Since B&S says to do it, I suspect they might be more informed than the tractor mfg. Now what Kawa does, I have not idea but it makes absolutely no sense to put on a pre-filter with out oiling or coating it with filter coating unless you only expect to stop corn cobs or pine cones.

Walt Conner

"My John Deere Service Department said to absolutely not oil the pre-filter

Here is a copy/paste from a JD325 instrucion manual for 18hp Kawasaki powered 325. It is from the JD site.

M96015

5. If precleaner (C) is dirty, remove it from paper element (E).

6. If paper element is excessively dirty, remove wing nut (D) and element (E). Replace it with a new element.

IMPORTANT: Avoid damage! Dirt and debris can enter the engine through a damaged filter element:

· Do not wash paper element.

· Do not attempt to clean paper element by tapping against another object.

· Do not use pressurized air to clean element.

· Replace element only if it is very dirty, damaged or the seal is cracked.

7. If precleaner is dirty, clean it as follows:

· Wash it in a solution of warm water and liquid detergent. DO NOT wash paper element.

· Rinse precleaner.

· Squeeze excess water from precleaner.

· Allow precleaner to air dry.

· Add approximately 30 ml (1 oz.) of clean engine oil to precleaner.

· Squeeze precleaner to distribute oil evenly.

8. Install precleaner on paper element.

9. Install air cleaner cover and secure both cover latches.

10. Install hood.

Charles must have a different version, or something else has changed since then.

booster
I'm sure I have the same information from when I purchased my 325 9 years ago. I had been oiling the filter for the last 7 years, with what I believed was the best thing to do. However, when I had the soot on the inside of the front wheel problem, I called the dealer without making the soot problem an issue. I just asked if the pre-filter should be oiled. This was the service manager I spoke with. I am not trying to argue what is correct. I am only stating what my dealer strongly recommends, right or wrong. Personally, I would rather have a light coating of oil on the pre-filter to trap some of the small particles before they get to the main filter. I can only assume the dealer got his information either from their support people, of from his experience. It is possible people were putting too much oil on the pre-filter, causing an air flow problem, and the easiest path to take was to recommend not oiling the pre-filter. Thanks for your input. Charles Ranheim

I'm going to try dynamike59's approach - seems like a good one to me.

I'm not sure if it is best to oil or not. In fact, we seem to be instructed differently depending on the engine.

I have a brand new Simplicity with the 22HP Briggs ELS engine. The engine operator's manual says in huge-a$$ letters:

*CAUTION* DO NOT OIL the foam sleeve (pre-cleaner) or the cartridge, this will damage the cartridge. If there is oil or heavy debris on the cartridge, replace immediately.

For warranty sake......I ain't oilin' my pre-filter.

My 18 hp ELS engine has a pre-filter that is marked "Do Not Oil". It came equipped that way. It says in the manual that it can be washed with soap and water, but makes no mention of oiling.

Wetting the pre-filter with a 2-cycle/oil & gas mix sounds like a good compromise. The only problem I can see is the possibility that this mix would not be compatible with the foam filter material, and might cause it to break down. That would be a long shot, but it is just one of my considerations. Thanks for your input. At least I know I am not the only one who heard it was incorrect to oil the pre-filter. Charles Ranheim

I think Charles is correct in that there have been too many folks overoiling the prefilters and causing more problems than the oiling is worth. There is really no penalty to the manufacturers from not oiling, the paper filter is still the one that does the removal of the finist particles, so the engine is not hurt. It probably is good for business, as they will get to sell lots more of the paper filters because they will get plugged up much quicker. The other possibility is that the new foam filters have some sort of electrostatic charge on them to take the place of the oil, anybody heard anything like that?

So the key is IF you oil, don't OVERoil...

I can see where some folks would get carried away.