Winter storage

[Jake]

For you folks who have to put there car away for the winter, like me here in Boston, how often do you start up your car and for how long?

Ive always started it for 10-20 minutes every 2-4 weeks.

Im also forced to run it for a short time because its stuffed into the back of my garage where theres no ventilation at all.
I'd like to get some exhaust hosing so i could run it longer but those are surprisingly expensive.

I feel like we may have gone over this before but do any of you guys use a less expensive method for exhaust hoses so you can run the car in your garage, you know, without killing yourself?

[RexJohnson]

Unless you bring it completely up to temp it might be doing more harm than good. I have a couple of vehicles that sit for long periods of time and they are ok. I would just do some kind of battery tender to keep the battery charged. The battery in a warm place would probably be good also.

[Gasman63]

I was going to say just what he did.
Use a battery tender if you have power out in the garage/shed/storage. Or pull the battery and store it in a warmer area.

I too deal with the cold where Im at. But when it snows up here it melts off in a few days and we get sun so roads dry out. So I still get to drive my Vair every couple weeks. But I still use a battery tender.
I keep my vair in my garage right next to the wifes car. And you know her car isnt going to be somewhere it cant be started in a heart beat so she can leave.

Now my every day driver sits out in the cold and weather but I put a remote starter on it.

Ive heard of "Fogging an engine" if your going to put it away for many months but Ive never done it.

[66vairguy]

When young I'd start up my "Winter storage car" every week for 15-50 minutes. By the next summer the exhaust system was full of rust, mufflers in sad shape. I also had moisture in the oil (brown foam). A fellow who had experience said "It is best to take a car for a 20 minute drive, or JUST LET IT SIT until you are ready to drive it. I've had engines sit for over a year, and I usually pull the distributor and run the oil pump before starting the engine, and never had a problem.

The new fuels tend to evaporate in a week (maybe longer if very cold) so you have to prime the carburetors, and don't crank the starter for long or it will get HOT.

A compromise is to start the engine once a month (prime the carburetors first, easy with an electric fuel pump) and let it fast idle for about 20 - 30 minutes until the thermostat doors open and the mufflers are HOT! That will minimize the moisture in the engine and exhaust system.

Just my No proof it is the best suggestion, but my mufflers last and there is no indication of moisture in the oil after storage.

BTW short engine runs can foul the motor oil fast. Always change the oil after storage if you do short engine runs.

[joelsplace]

My cars sit for 3-4 months often and all I do is keep a Battery Minder on them. It is hard to remember to drive all of them often enough. No down months here in Texas. Just a couple of weeks when they decide to salt the roads. Convertables often sit 3 months in the summer and 2 in the winter.

[Dennis66]

Last Monday I just started mine for the first time since May. It still has a temporary, 2 quart gravity feed fuel tank which I had to add a little fuel to, but it cranked right up (no pre-lubing) and after clattering for a little, all the lifters pumped right up.

[Jake]

I always removed the battery and fogged the engines on my other non air cooled cars for the winter.

My Corvair’s a lot nicer than those ones ever were.

I think starting it once every 3 weeks or so and letting it get up to temp will halt any moisture issues, I leek to keep stuff moving in the engine, I just really need to get some exhaust system
Though letting in run in my garage is one way to get rid of any unwanted critters in there I bet.

[jimbrandberg]

One treatise on oil states that a lot of engine wear occurs when you first start the engine. The oil is thick to flow in the crankshaft bearings and a rich mixture with raw gas washes protective oil from the cylinder walls and causes carbon to form.
I've seen no point to start them up without going anywhere but then that's just like my opinion man.

[Jake]

Ok, thanks for the input.

I’ll rethink my position.

[Jake]

Ok, thanks for the input.

I’ll rethink my position.

I do remember starting my old 66 barracuda after it sat for 4 months and I’d fogged the engines w/Marvel Mystery Oil.

My next door neighbors were having a bday party in their backyard and my barracuda let out about 50,000 sq feet of thick smoke till the oil burned off.

Their party suddenly looked like the storming of the beach at Normandy.
I had to go over and apologize profusely
And get a piece of cake.

[66vairguy]

Ok, thanks for the input.

I’ll rethink my position.

I do remember starting my old 66 barracuda after it sat for 4 months and I’d fogged the engines w/Marvel Mystery Oil.

My next door neighbors were having a bday party in their backyard and my barracuda let out about 50,000 sq feet of thick smoke till the oil burned off.

Their party suddenly looked like the storming of the beach at Normandy.
I had to go over and apologize profusely
And get a piece of cake.

If you remove the battery, DO NOT LET IT SIT ON A CEMENT FLOOR! A quality battery only needs to be charged once a month if disconnected from the cars electrical system. Some of the battery tenders are good, but I've read of a few instances of them catching on fire so I never leave one plugged in unattended. Just me ----

[Jake]

I don’t have electricity in my garage so batt tenders are out anyway.

The batt will go on a shelf in my basement

[joelsplace]

The concrete floor thing is an old wives tale. I keep my spare batteries on the floor with no issues. If concrete could harm a battery through the plastic case a metal battery box would do worse.
Battery Minders are designed to stay plugged in all the time. Anything electrical that stays plugged in has a chance of catching on fire but I don't unplug everything. I do try not to leave Lithium Ion batteries on charge for extended periods since they tend to have a higher fire risk. If you buy cheap junk it probably increases the risk.
I had a computer shoot flames out the side once but it was on. Compaq 100Mb network card. A computer power supply did the same thing and last summer I had a power strip do it. All it had plugged into it was a 1A output Battery Minder. The Battery Minder still works fine. I've had about 6 Battery Minders go bad but none caught on fire.

[Aaron65]

Here in Michigan, I put some Stabil in the tank, some DampRid in the interior, vacuum the carpet and let it sit for 4-5 months. I might unhook the negative terminal of the battery, might not.

In the spring, I hook up the battery if I pulled the ground cable, fire it up and drive all spring, summer, and fall. I've been doing it that way for the 30 years that I've been driving old cars. None of my cars are in heated storage and my batteries last on average for 8-10 years without ever seeing a trickle charger.

Everyone has their own way of doing things, but it's easy to overthink it.

[Gasman63]

I've always wondered about the battery on a concrete floor thing. I don't know the science behind it but I've always put batteries on a wooden block just encase.

I use a Battery Tender because I want to start my car and go for a drive if the weather turns good. If you don't plan on driving it at all I'm thinking storing the battery in a temp controlled area for a few months without a tender would be fine. Just plan on giving the battery a little boost when you hook it up. Nothing wrong with that.

[jimbrandberg]

If intent on doing something I might turn the engine with a 3/4" wrench once in a while so things aren't in the same place for a long time. I tend to turn clockwise so the bolt doesn't loosen up.