Symptoms changed with synthetic oil

[earlfor]

my opinion on white smoke is an extreme lean condiditon. i was working on a leaf blower the other day, it would run for about 5 seconds at full throttle than clouds of white smoke would come out and it would cut out than die. i realized it was not getting enough fuel. i than took apart the carburetor cleaned it out. bunch of grime inside. reassembled it and it ran fine, absolutely no smoke at all. this was a briggs and stratton v-twin 4 stroke.

blue smoke, think of a 2 stroke engine, it burns oil.

black, yes, rich

At risk of starting something LOL All I can say is it appears that what some of us call blue smoke, others call white smoke. Too much oil in the mix in my chainsaw produces white smoke. (possibly a bluish white :-), but it definitely is white. Too much fuel gives black smoke. Put some oil in the gas tank on your lawnmower or too much oil in the chainsaw gas tank and see what you get. I guarantee you it will be white smoke.

Earl

[Tarbash 27]

how about this, when you first start your car on a cold day. white smoke comes out. is that from running lean which the engine is at cold, condensation, oil or what?

[Nessism]

Yup, blue smoke is oil. Synthetic oils usually have more detergent additives because the oil is expected to hold up with extended usage. The high detergent package can loosen gunk around leak paths thus leading to some weapage. Maybe this also holds true for internal leaks as well - such as past your guide seals. Sounds like a plausable theory to me.

[Boondocks]

I have been riding and working on bikes for twenty five years, the last ten years I have worked with in the motor industry, including in an engine reconditioners. I have also been a member here reading and contributing to these forums' for over seven years.

I didn't know that this type of experience would have any effect on the color of exhaust smoke.:-D

White smoke is oil smoke!!
Is the bike showing any signs of oil consumption??
Is fuel usuage up??
Believe it or not I do have a sense of humour ( no matter how twisted )

Dink

BTW steam is clear.

I won't give an opinion, but instead will post links from three sources that should know what they are talking about:

My Car Smokes From the Exhaust Pipe. What Does This Mean?
Color of Smoke
What if I see smoke coming from my exhaust?

Strangely, they all agree -

White smoke is water or condensation in the exhaust.
Black smoke is caused by an over rich unburned fuel mixture.
Blue smoke (actually pale bluish-white smoke) is caused by oil consumption.

[earlfor]

[QUOTE=Boondocks -

White smoke is water or condensation in the exhaust.
Black smoke is caused by an over rich unburned fuel mixture.
Blue smoke (actually pale bluish-white smoke) is caused by oil consumption.[/QUOTE]

I still contend that due to religious preferences and personal interpretations, the same smoke will be called blue by some people and white by others. What I see is a bluish tinted white. If you have an air cooled engine, anything other than black or brown is oil. :-)

Its simple enough to determine by observation. Everyone here probably has a gas powered weed wacker or chainsaw that uses premix. Go heavy on the mix and start it up. Tell me what color of white you see. :-)

Earl

[chef1366]

I'm used to being wrong. Sometimes I don't think things through. I use 20/50 because I live in a hot area and I knew it was thicker. Just a brain fart.

[49er]

Shades of blue?
My experience with 2 stroke bike and mower engines comfirm that when oil is burnt through a combustion engine the smoke appears to be blue. A really high mixing ratio of say 15-1 fuel to mineral oil produces a rather dark blue smoke. Bring the oil down to 50-1 and the smoke is a much lighter blue. Synthetic oils don't appear to produce as clear a distinction in the shading of blue. I contend it is still blue but a lot lighter.
Black smoke indicates an over rich condition. The blacker the smoke, the richer the engine. A flooded engine will run really rough and produce heaps of black smoke when it first starts. As the fuel to air ratio improves, the smoke gradually disappears and the engine runs evenly.
White smoke is usually associated with water vapour.
That's my 2 cents worth.

[rustybronco]

White smoke- condensation or coolant
white w/ blue tinge- oil
blue 'ish- lotta oil
black or brown 'ish-fuel
is this a poll?

[rustybronco]

In answer to the origional question, it was probably there before or the problem with it burning oil started very close to the time you changed your oil.

[mixongw]

how about this, when you first start your car on a cold day. white smoke comes out. is that from running lean which the engine is at cold, condensation, oil or what?

I don't see white smoke coming out. I see water vapor. One of the biggest products of combustion is water. When all the metal is cold, this water gets condensed on the surfaces of the metal. As the metal heats up the water is turned back into water vapor and comes out the pipe. That's why it's always a good idea to make sure your engine gets up to a temperature high enough to boil off this condensation before shutting it down.

[Boondocks]

I still contend that due to religious preferences and personal interpretations, the same smoke will be called blue by some people and white by others. What I see is a bluish tinted white. If you have an air cooled engine, anything other than black or brown is oil. :-)

I didn't know that you were a Smokologist, in which case your vision of smoke colors may be seen differently than those unaffiliated with that religion.:-D

Yes, there are personal interpretations, but there is always a blue tinted white smoke color with light oil consumption to a darker blue color with heavier oil consumption. It's a matter of degree.

Air cooled engines can have condensation in the engine and exhaust system, which burns off and results in white smoke (steam) on cold startup. This is especially noticeable in colder climates.

[49er]

Amen brothers and sisters, Amen.
Have another beer.

[rustybronco]

Have another beer.

check, YEP... garage is full and fridge is full, good to go!

[beby99]

check, YEP... garage is full and fridge is full, good to go!

Full of what....blue or white? :-D

[rustybronco]

Light to dark brown