Guys I have a Craftsman rider about 2 years old and use it almost everyday around the house. Went to start it yesterday and think I heard an internal backfire. Meaning not loud, but internal. It would not turnover after that. I turned engine by hand and it would only go so far and wouldn't go past that point. I thought about pistons rods bending or valves being stuck and took out the plug and it turns over like normal. Put plug back in and same issue. Do I have a bent rod or which way should I go? Have pretty good knowledge, but not expert

Hi all.. I saw [URL="http://www.doityourself.com/forum/electrical-ac-dc/560117-generator-starting-problems.html"]This Thread[/URL] and it got me thinking about my own generator... I bought a Troy Bilt generator with a briggs & stratton engine in 2014. Its a long story, but after an issue with a snowblower leaking gas all over my attached garage, I decided to keep all my engines dry. A mechanic friend told me that I should keep fuel in the generator, tho. He says the gaskets will all dry out. Truth of the matter is that I am averaging test running it once every six months or so. I know I should be doing it once a month, but I havent been able to. My question is this: is it better to keep regular (with ethanol) gas with Stabil in the tank or is it better to keep it dry? If I were to do a better job at putting fresh fuel in, and running it to dry once a month, would that make a difference?