storage for awhile

[70orangeboy]

k guys. i'm leaving home for 2 years on a mission for my church, in the meantime, gotta store the truck. one of my dads buds will lemme leave it in his giant garage. someone will be starting it regularly, (I hope) but i need a few pointers on what to do to make sure the least amount of wear/rust/whatever doesn't occur to my baby. there is a bit of rust on the back left side of the bed. don't know if it matters. advice is appreciated buds.

[meathead95]

crawl underneath it and make sur it is clean. especially dirt and mud, and clean out the inside of the cab corners and fender cups

[69-350]

I agree. Dirt is a murderer...for metal. Wash everything off, clean everything out/off, make sure it's cleaner than .... whatever something that's really clean is... top and bottom, inside out, outside in, front and back, side to side, doin a boogie, all around. And also it would help to cover it. Have a car cover? Maybe some really big blankets might even work. Just clean it really good, and cover it really good.

Also, for the non-body parts, like the engine and tranny and stuff, you should start it and run it TO NORMAL RUNNING TEMPERATURE, for best results. Also, it helps to move EVERYTHING else, with the motor, like the tranny, rear end, blah blah. So for the best results, have them start it up for at least 10 minutes, maybe run it around the block on a dry, clean day, maybe wash it every once in a while, stuff like that. I know it's a pain, and your truck doesn't sound like a museum piece, but even extra measures like that help.

Oh yeah, and if running it alot like that sounds like a pain, runnin it maybe once a week or so for a couple minutes would help, and running it long and driving it around the block once a month would really help keep the motor in good shape. Also, it would help to disconnect the battery each time. That's just my two cents (more like two quarters, but oh well) on storage.

[72MARIO]

Get it sprayed with crown or oil under coating of any type.

[Brad]

Do not use WD-40 on the engine!!!!!! You'll come back to find it rusty! Don't ask how I know.
If you wash it beforehand, make sure it completely dries before you store it or you'll find rust.

[Longhorn Man]

2 years is long enough to get flat spots on the tires if it doesn't move. I'd have it up on jack stands myself.
Fill the tank up, and dump in a double dose of Sta-Bill. It's a fuel sabilizer that'll keep your gas from going bad. Good stuff.

[xam]

Moth balls to keep small furry unwanted guests out will help also. They build nests and destroy vehicles.

[Green Machine]

Put out some mouse poision (if no pets will eat it) too. I usually add a quart of 2 stroke oil (and stabil too) to a tank of gas and get that circulated through the motor to lube everthing. Fresh oil and filter, and try not to store on gravel or dirt floor, concrete is best. If no concrete put a truck sized piece of plastic shhet under the truck to help slow condensation, don't apply the parking brake as the shoes can rust to the drums.

[krue]

If you're gonna use jack stands might as well place them under the frame so the suspension is unloaded.

[Longhorn Man]

I've always been told that leaving the suspention unloaded is a bad idea. You could possably reduce the weight on the springs by supporting the frame and then jacking the suspention up 1/2 way and placing jack stands there too, but I don't think that leaving the suspention loaded is an issue honestly.
Placinf duct tape over the tail pipe is a good idea, ensure the air filter is on...a stock style one would be best, and basicly try to seal off what ever you can to prevent any kind of creature from nesting in it.

[boundstaffpress]

If you don't like the smell of moth balls, you can use cedar balls instead. It keeps insects out, and the rat poison will keep the kritters out. Sta-bill is a must.

I saw something a while that claimed that it would keep rustfrom growing by circulating an electrical current through the sheet-metal. Has anyone used one of these or heard how well they work?

My (farm) truck wasn't cleaned before storage, and rust ate clean through the bed as well as some of the cab floor.

[70orangeboy]

Originally Posted by boundstaffpress

My (farm) truck wasn't cleaned before storage, and rust ate clean through the bed as well as some of the cab floor.

dude that sucks. my sypmathies