Winter storage tips

T

texas2sweetie

New member
Any want to share their favorites?

One I heard of is to keep your tires off of the cement or at least place a board or carboard between the tire and the floor. Keeps em from drying out.

Obviously I'm aiming this thread more at the NE or NW crowd cause of the temperature issues.
 
I've also heard a lot of discussion about fuel stabilizer, both for and against. Will be interesting to see what my dealer says when I go up there.
 
Tires off the ground. Battery tender and the occassional start-up. No fuel stabilizer. On the R6, I turn off the fuel petcock and run it out of gas so no gas sits in the carbs, but that's not necessary on fuel injected bikes, and anyway, since I only run the R6 at the track, I run it out of gas every time I come back from the track, not just for the winter.
 
Rather than stabilizing the fuel, I run the bikes every few weeks, so I don't see a need. I keep the bikes registered and insured all winter. There's always a few 60 degree days during the winter, (with global warming, it seems, more and more!), so rather than use a fuel additive, I take all the bikes on the occassional wam day, run them low on fuel, and top them off with fresh gas. Works fine and I've never had any problem with old gas gumming up the carbs or fuel injectors.
 
I don't ride mine during the winter on the nicer days (mainly due to my storage restriction) but I keep it insured and registered all year as well.. I don't use fuel additive either, I do however run the bike once every 2-3 weeks for 30-40 minutes at a time, as I had issues running it any less then that my plugs fouling out... (not on the ducati)
 
It's gonna be well in the negatives by the time my bike arrives, so there is absolutely no way I'm taking that shit outside.

I have a heated garage which stays around 85 degrees, so I planned on starting it about twice a week and relocating it in my garage, which will keep flat spots from forming in the tires and keep the fluids circulated. What do you guys think?
 
Jules,

I believe in the manual it said no additives (not sure which page), but I was wondering about the stabilizer myself. I did a search for "winterizing" on this forum and found few topics where they said it was OK to add it... If/when you do talk to your mechanic, please let us know whey he/they have to say.

Mrinflux's statement, "There's always a few 60 degree days during the winter" does not fly with me mainly due to salt on the road and there's no way in hell I'm taking my bikes out when they salt the crap out of the roads.

However, his suggestion regarding turning off the fuel petcock and run it out of gas so no gas sits in the carbs, is exactly what I do to my cruiser + add the stabilizer.


My plan and what I have been doing with my cruiser:Clean/wash the bikeAdd stabilizerTop off fuel (no corrosion)Turn petcock off and run it out of gasRemove the battery and hook it to the tenderJack the bike off the groundStore the bike in the "bubble" (this thing is awesome!)With the stabilizer added, the first time you start the bike in Spring, a huge black cloud will come out of your exhaust and this is normal/OK. Also, if you put around 2,000 miles since the last oil change, I personally would not change oil before you store it (some put fresh oil when winterizing, but you'll have to change the oil in the Spring again).

As for my Duc, I did just put brand new oil in her (damn this shit is expensive!), but that's b/c I put over 3,000 miles since last time I've changed oil. Kind of sucks since it's $80 down the drain, but it is what it is. I'm also planning to buy new tires in Spring so I'm only putting the rear on the stand.

Depending on your mechanics advice (I still might add stabilizer):Wash herAdd stabilizer (most likely)Top off gasTake out battery and hook it up to the tenderCover with $20 cover from Target (lol)With new tires -- I suggest you put them on either piece of wood (doubt it will get moist over winter) or put the bike on stands -- you'll be good to go.
 
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