Winter Storage - thinking of a heated crate

[buckwheat_imp]

Summer has barely begun and I am already thinking of winter storage. I move at my own pace, lol Actually I've been thinking about it since I took the CB out of my climate controlled storage unit last winter. I need that space for other items this year.

The Plan - I have a pole barn with concrete floor but it is not heated or insulated. My thought is to build a crate and insulate it just like a house, and use a retail electric forced air, space heater, that has a thermostat.

I would be interested on thoughts or stories of ppl that have tried or done this. Also similar stories of ppl who have used electric heat on a garden shed either insulated or not. I would also be interested in hearing about winter storage tips and also stories from ppl that store in cold climates without heat. I live in central Illinois so the weather gets to freezing and below.

 

[PowerDubs_imp]

The bike doesn't care about 'climate controlled'.

Once it is sheltered out of the rain and sun the only other thing I would care about is #1- protection from mice and #2- a battery tender.

 

[aschem_imp]

Do folks still spray fogging oil into the cylinders through the spark plug holes for winter storage?

 

[LongRanger_imp]

I can't comment on your specific situation, but my garage gets into the low-40's during the winter. I've not experienced any issues with winter storage, though I do usually suffer from an acute case of PMS (Parked Motorcycle Syndrome). I use battery tenders and Stabil religiously and the bikes fire right up in the spring. I've never used fogging oil.

 

[suhawk305]

IMHO, your bike does not need fogging for winter storage in a heated or unheated garage. I reserve fogging to my 2-cycle Mercury outboard motor which I store outside under a cover.
The most important thing is to store the bike with "pure gas" (E0) no ethanol, because ethanol (E10) gasoline absorbs water and has a very short shelf life. Of course, use Stabil or equivalent during storage.

 

[Django]

If you wanted to store your motorcycle during wintertime, cold storage is better than warm. Chemical reaction depends on temperature: low temperature --> low chemical reaction (rust).

That's why you put your food in a fridge.

Just get the battery out and store it at a warm place.

 

[Wisedrum]

Or keep your bike outside covered with breathable tarpauline, oil it here and there with Balistol and ride it from time to time, if the weather is good enough to do so without any salt on the streets. That's the way I do. The bike takes care of itself by beeing riden, especially this makes the battery function well over many years better than anything else will do. On drier days take off the tarpauline to free the bike from moisture. Keep the Honda clean after trips, which isn't easy in low temperatures. For both the ride and the cleaning the rider must be toughened.....not everyones business I guess.

Wisedrum

 

[Stichill]

The issue we have around here with non-heated spaces is extreme water condensation with changes in ambient temperature and humidity. Metal gets cold and then the ambient air suddenly warms up and brings in a load of high humidity, which condenses on anything that is colder than the dew point. The only solution is to have a heat source that keeps the bike warmer than the dew point.

With a bike stored in a confined crate, I don't think forced air is necessary. Simply having, for example, a 100W incandescent lamp or two inside would be enough to keep the air temperature inside the crate higher than whatever the ambient air temperature is outside the crate, thus preventing any chance of condensation.

 

[LongRanger_imp]

Very interesting points. I'd press the "like" button if there was one. It's very arid in my part of the country -- I've not had the condensation issue here.

 

[buckwheat_imp]

The issue we have around here with non-heated spaces is extreme water condensation with changes in ambient temperature and humidity. Metal gets cold and then the ambient air suddenly warms up and brings in a load of high humidity, which condenses on anything that is colder than the dew point. The only solution is to have a heat source that keeps the bike warmer than the dew point.

With a bike stored in a confined crate, I don't think forced air is necessary. Simply having, for example, a 100W incandescent lamp or two inside would be enough to keep the air temperature inside the crate higher than whatever the ambient air temperature is outside the crate, thus preventing any chance of condensation.

Yes, temperature changes causing moisture is my concern, you explained it nicely. I have thought about an incandescent light but I like moving air idea more. In Illinois we can get extreme temperature swings, from below freezing at night to we'll above 32 in the day.

 

[Stichill]

Since the goal is simply to keep the bike's temperature above the dew point, it's not strictly necessarily to move (possibly wet) air around unless forced convection is the only way to distribute the heat. Lamp(s) at the bottom of the crate would create air circulation as the warmed air rises, cools, and falls.

Whether or not heat dispersal takes 1500W / 5000 BTU from a 120V / 12.5A forced-air residential space heater operating in a confined crate is really the open question. It may become more of a concern about the risk of initiating an electrical fire.

 

[buckwheat_imp]

I don't think I would put the heater in the crate but instead run a duct from heater to crate. However electrical fire is still a concern.

 

[kennyw]

I don't think I would put the heater in the crate but instead run a duct from heater to crate. However electrical fire is still a concern.

Ducting in cold external air and heating it will take far more energy than sealing the crate and using one 100w lightbulb.

 

[Elipten_imp]

Small vents to prevent moisture buildup. I think a small heater better than light bulbs. The ones used for gun safes are perfect but too small for this project.


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[stateboy_imp]

I learned long ago with a variety of metal objects like tool boxes and a motorcycle in the garage that these should not sit on bare cement in a cold environment like Illinois. I live north of you in Michigan and have even greater swings of temperature due to the Great Lakes influence.

I solved the problem by parking my motorcycle on cardboard or wood if it's going to be on a cement floor. Otherwise, like others who have chimed in from the colder climates or experience, gas stabilizers and attention to the battery are important. I also fill my tank to cover the interior walls of the tank to prevent rusting from our friend condensation.