Can smoke fluid go bad?

[Anonymous]

I have some smoke fluid that is about 10 years old. I put it in my new UP Big Boy and it doesnt smoke at all. I had made sure that the switch was on the on position for the smoke unit. Do you think that this fluid went bed and no longer works or is it somethign else?

[ben10ben]

Nope. It's just mineral oil, so, other than some possible evaporation, it can't go bad. It's possible that you flooded it(put too much fluid in), or the resistor is burnt out.

[Anonymous]

I agree with Ben. It does not go bad over time.

The Lionel units are somewhat sensitive to flooding. You might try JT's Megasteam. I just got smoke out of my Lionel 779 Berkshire with this stuff an and it would never smoke before (at least not that you could really notice it).

You might also check out the OGR forum for threads on "Normalizing" the Lionel Smoke units. This involves modification of the smoke unit as described by Norm Charboneau. I have not tried it yet, but many have stated that it helps.

[Anonymous]

If it is flooded what can you do to clean it out?

[ben10ben]

I usually put a transfer pipette down the stack and draw off as much fluid as I can, and then add the correct amount of fluid depending on the unit(4-6 for a piston-type, 10-15 for a fan driven). If you don't have acess to any transfer pipettes, turn it upside down on a paper towel doubled up a couple of times, and let it sit that way overnight.

[ben10ben]

One other thought that I just had. If it's a fan driven smoke unit, you can sometimes get a bubble in the stack which will prevent any smoke from coming out. Try lightly blowing down the stack, and see if that helps any.

[spankybird]

if it is a fan driven smoke unit, is the fan working?

[Anonymous]

It is a fan unit. How can I tell if the fan is working?

[ben10ben]

You should be able to hear it. It will make a faint whirring sound whenever the engine is powered up.

[Anonymous]

I had been getting bubbles quite oftern until I started doing this.
I got an ear wax bulb, the big one, and everytime I put in fluid, I stick the tip of the bulb in the stack and give it a couple of puffs [of air. Sure beats taking the loco off the track and blowing in it.
Anytime it stops smoking before you think it is out of fluid, give it an air blast 1st. dave.

[Anonymous]

Hey my Lionmaster Big Boy started smoking! I think I had too much smoke fluid in it. I had added 15 drops in each stack. This is double then what it needs. I read the instructions and it said to just add 10 to 15 drops in one stack. It is only smoking a little bit right now but its a start. Over time I think it will start smoking more. I didnt try turning it upside down yet to let it all drain. Maybe I will do that tongiht. Thanks for all your help.