winter storage

[harold64]

just wondering, is it really nessasary to take off the wheels when you store your ride for 6 months? besides stabil, what else should you do? just wonderring.

[onequickchevy]

Man, it's questions like this that make me glad that I live in Florida! We look forward to winter so we can drive and not sweat! I would just put the truck up on jackstands, under the a arms, and under the rear axle. That way the suspension is not free hanging, and you alleviate the possibility of flat spots on your tires. Just my opinion though, i'm sure has some real world experience on this.

[Clyde65]

I think the only reason you would take the wheels/tires off would be to put them somewhere that will be a close constant temp about say the freezing mark at all times. I agree with onequick, i am glad I dont have to deal with that, however, I do not drive my truck much when it is below say 40 degrees, just because ya know? It stays in the garage.

[aerotruk63]

Disconnect the battery, stabilize the fuel, fog the engine. Place a 10ml poly plastic sheet under the truck to prevent humidity from the floor from rising to the metal surfaces. Get the wheels off the ground and lower the air pressure in the tires. A light layer of tire protectent is optional. Spray all electrical connections with a protective layer of silicone. Check for any hole in the floor larger than a 1/4" to prevent the mice from crawling in. Close your foot vent doors. Place an old blanket over your seat after treating the material to preserve the subtleness of the fabric. Do not place a plastic cover over the seat material as it will trap humidity beneath the plastic and rot the material. Leave the windows cracked open to allow the humidity in the cab to escape. Block the windows in your storage space top prevent sun bleaching the paint on that side of the truck. Place a truck cover to prevent the dust from accumulating on the paint finish. You might consider giving all surfaces a good waxing before covering. Apply a coating of wood UV clear water seal to your bed wood. Leave the oil changes in the differential and transmission till the spring as to remove the humidity that has accumulated over the winter.

Or park it, deal with everything in the spring.

[61_FL_Apache]

Come to FL for the winter. No issues here

[markeb01]

I also run an A/C extension cord from inside the cab through a firewall grommet to under the passenger side radiator air deflector. During the winter months I leave a small space heater in the cab set to “frost watch”. It’s relatively inexpensive and eliminates moisture and corrosion in the cab. Popping the hood to connect the power also reminds me to disconnect the cord before driving the truck.

[geezer#99]

A few more learned from experience. Cover your truck with a good breathable cover. Don't use a tarp. Put mothballs in the heater inlet and under the seat. Mice hate that smell. Put your truck on wide wood blocks to support the frame. Jackstands can be tippy. I learned the hard way. One block under the front crossmember and 2 on the rear frame. Let the suspension and tires hang.
If you store your tires set them down flat in a stack. Change your oil. You don't want to leave old acidic oil in there. Start it up a few times over the winter. Keep your battery inside the house and warm. Charge with a trickle charger after you run it. Never charge a cold battery.

[61_FL_Apache]

Originally Posted by geezer#99

A few more learned from experience. Cover your truck with a good breathable cover. Don't use a tarp. Put mothballs in the heater inlet and under the seat. Mice hate that smell. Put your truck on wide wood blocks to support the frame. Jackstands can be tippy. I learned the hard way. One block under the front crossmember and 2 on the rear frame. Let the suspension and tires hang.
If you store your tires set them down flat in a stack. Change your oil. You don't want to leave old acidic oil in there. Start it up a few times over the winter. Keep your battery inside the house and warm. Charge with a trickle charger after you run it. Never charge a cold battery.

That sure sounds like a lot of work. Why not heat the garage some?

[geezer#99]

Garage. To be so lucky!!! Under a carport mostly. The wife's car and my DD sat in the garage.

[forestb]

I love LA. Except for sweating through the seats in the summer.

[Turkey]

Make sure you change the air in your tires first. Old air will swell up and explode in the cold weather.

[lakeroadster]

This is one of those questions where you will get a hundred answers and some of them are questionable / arguable.

IMHO, No, you don't need to take the tires off or jack up the car. I am 49, have always stored my cars in an enclosed building with a concrete floor and have never removed the tires for starage and have never had a problem with the tires, ever.

I just add some Stabil to the fuel and then change the oil, hook up a trickle charger, throw a couple dryer sheets in the vehicle, one under the hood and a couple underneath it and then throw on the car cover. On my Model T hot rod that has 4-ply firestone tires (non-radial) I will pump up the air to about 40 psi, but on my other cars that have radials I don't do anything to them. My cars are all stored in our attach garage, that isn't heated, but typically stays above freezing. The only thing I do is check the trickle chargers occasionally to make sure the batteries are ok.

I used to live in Ohio and I would use a "Carbag". It is a big zippered bag that you put the car in, place desicant contianers in the car, and then zip it up. It worked great.

[harold64]

hey aerotruck63, what is fogging the engine? one guy said to put chrome cleaner on the engine and dont wipe it off. is that it?

[Jimmyg 65]

A good coat of wax will protect the paint. And making sure antifreeze mix is 50/50 and clean. treating the fuel system is very inportant now with E-10 gas. The gas will go stale after 2 weeks if not treated. The Guys at NAPA told me of a new product they have for treating gas it is ET100. The stuff is to protect the gas and also control the moisture issue or phase seperation if water is already in the system.

[62 Longbed]

Besides all of the good ideas listed above that I usually do .. I also take a couple of shoe boxes and fill them with charcoal briquit .. this will help absorb moisture and keep it from smelling musty .. I also have a hose / block heater installed on my engine .. Good Luck ..

[protrash64]

Originally Posted by harold64

hey aerotruck63, what is fogging the engine? one guy said to put chrome cleaner on the engine and dont wipe it off. is that it?

I believe aero is refering to a lubricant spray that maintains the cylinder/combustion chamber from rusting while stored. You spray it in prior to shutting down the engine, I believe.

[MARTYZ]

A trick I haved learned with my RV, a bunch of BOUNCE DRYER sheets work well for mice control and smell alot better than moth balls, Fuel stabilizer, remove battery.

[CRGRS 66]

Originally Posted by Turkey

Make sure you change the air in your tires first. Old air will swell up and explode in the cold weather.

Oh absolutely! We change the air in our tires once a month up here in the north just to be safe... air contracts in the cold dumb dumb

Sorry Turkey, couldn't help myself, all in good fun

[C-10cutty]

Lube the muffler bearings so they won't sieze up.

[jjzepplin]

I keep mine on jackstands 12 months out of the year! HAHA! No flat spots here and it's easy to see all the mice too!

[tincan1966]

Ok I am the oddball here. I DRIVE mine! I don't go to all the work and expense for an occassional use vehicle.No I don't go out in 2' snow drifts, but if it's not a blizzard, I'll drive it.

if I was to store it, tho, the above suggestions are all really good ones....well, except for the changing the air in tires part. LOL!

[CRGRS 66]

Originally Posted by C-10cutty

Lube the muffler bearings so they won't sieze up.

Excellent advice!

[oem4me]

Winter? ...uh, what's that? Yeah, I know. Whenever we have wicked cold snap and daytime temps plummet into the mid fifties, I'll put on a flannel cover to keep the paint cozy. .. Dang, you poor guys..

[MARTYZ]

,,

Originally Posted by CRGRS 66

Oh absolutely! We change the air in our tires once a month up here in the north just to be safe... air contracts in the cold dumb dumb

Sorry Turkey, couldn't help myself, all in good fun

CRGRS behave yourself, funny thing it is 85 in the shade today and some people think we have snow year round up here
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[taclem]

just be sure not to mix the old air with new air.