What to do when letting bike sit for three months?

[SpeedoJosh]

I'm going to be going out of town for three months, leaving the bike behind. I've heard letting a bike sit can be bad for it. What do you guys recommend doing to the bike?

I've heard putting a fuel stabilizer is a must, anything else?

Bike is a 2006 620.

[Slide Panda]

Run a search for the term 'winterize' that should help.

But a short version is.
Sta-bil or other fuel stabilizer.
Change the oil
Put the battery on a tender. Some folks suggest removing the battery from the bike during the winter if the bike will be in a cold storage area.
Fog the cylinders
Properly inflate the tires - if you have stands put it up on the stands.
Some people like a good polish n wax of boy panels.

[Kev M]

Run a search for the term 'winterize' that should help.

But a short version is.
Sta-bil or other fuel stabilizer.
Change the oil
Put the battery on a tender. Some folks suggest removing the battery from the bike during the winter if the bike will be in a cold storage area.
Fog the cylinders
Properly inflate the tires - if you have stands put it up on the stands.
Some people like a good polish n wax of boy panels.

I know I should be more diplomatic, but CHANGE THE OIL and FOG THE CYLINDERS? Are you mad?

Stabilize the fuel and put the battery on a tender and you'll be fine...

Oil does not have to be changed unless it's going to be at LEAST a year old when it goes back into service, and even then I'd probably leave it and change it after the first ride.

Fogging cylinders is for LONG term storage - AT LEAST 6 months, or more like a year (or longer).

[WhiteStripe]

+1 stabilizer and battery tender are great.  Would probably be fine without either.

Up here where it snows, three months is a short layoff.

[Slide Panda]

Meh, I was just tossing out the most common items. Not like fogging takes more than a couple minutes... no biggy there. The oil, yeah could probably skip that. But if your bike is coming due for a change, might be a good excuse.

[Langanobob]

I have bikes that sometimes don't get ridden for a few months and a battery tender and fuel stabilizer are all I do.   I read somewhere (on teh interwebs) that due to some sort of catalytic action fuel goes bad faster in plastic tanks than  in metal tanks and my experience seems to bear this out. 

If you're going to cover it they say to use a breathable cover to prevent condensation buildup and possible rust.

Of course the other standard answer is to just leave it with me and I'll ride it a lot.   

[ducatiz]

If you have a plastic tank, you should drain it.  The more that fuel sits in contact with the surface of the tank (esp in a humid environment as many garages can be) the more it's going to swell.  Stabil might or might not slow it down, but it will not prevent it from happening and it doesn't prevent ethanol from absorbing ambient moisture.

[Kev M]

If you have a plastic tank, you should drain it.  The more that fuel sits in contact with the surface of the tank (esp in a humid environment as many garages can be) the more it's going to swell.  Stabil might or might not slow it down, but it will not prevent it from happening and it doesn't prevent ethanol from absorbing ambient moisture.

It's a good point.

Time was when the marine and motorcycle industries used to recommend topping off the fuel tanks so that would leave less room for air and the associated moisture it carries.

However, with the proliferation of Ethanol it is now generally recommended that you instead drain the tanks completely.


Now that is for LONG term storage, and I don't consider a few months to be long term. So if it were me I'd probably just add Star-Tron (since it is also formulated to make sure the ethanol and moisture it absorbs doesn't phase separate). BUT half of my bikes still have metal tanks, and considering the recent history Ducati has had with plastic tanks, I might consider draining it instead, even for a 3 month layover.


If not, I would for sure use an additive like Star-Tron.

[ducatiz]

If not, I would for sure use an additive like Star-Tron.

Stabil is isopropanol.  StarTron is naphthalene.  Both are still problematic with Nylon, but isopropanol does attack nylon.  Nylon will absorb naphthalene but slowly, and naphthalene is not hygroscopic like ethanol and isopropanol.

You get some advantage using Stabil or StarTron, but at a cost if you use it for long.

[Langanobob]

Good points.  Not having a plastic tank bike, I was thinking of the possible negative effect of the plastic on the fuel.  The effect of the fuel on the plastic is of course the over-riding concern.

The only vehicle I have with a plastic tank is a quad and although gasohol and possibly Stabil have wreaked havoc on whatever potmetal-like material the fuel shutoff valve is made of, the tank so far has not been distorted.  But then, it's hard to tell since it is dull and has  sort of a bedliner texture finish.

[ducatiz]

Good points.  Not having a plastic tank bike, I was thinking of the possible negative effect of the plastic on the fuel.  The effect of the fuel on the plastic is of course the over-riding concern.

The only vehicle I have with a plastic tank is a quad and although gasohol and possibly Stabil have wreaked havoc on whatever potmetal-like material the fuel shutoff valve is made of, the tank so far has not been distorted.  But then, it's hard to tell since it is dull and has  sort of a bedliner texture finish.

it's probably HDPE which does expand and contract but is otherwise impervious to ethanol, gas, etc

[SpeedoJosh]

My buddy said to use the marine stabil, said it's works better on motorcycles. Any thought on that?

[ducatiz]

My buddy said to use the marine stabil, said it's works better on motorcycles. Any thought on that?

it's fine

they are all the same thing.  request the MSDS sheets.  95% naphtha

[booger]

Agree with ducatiz, drain the tank totally and remove the fuel pump assembly from underneath. You don't want any quantity of fuel at all in there, and you certainly don't want a small quantity sitting down at the bottom of that tank, whether it's a nylon tank or metal. Draining the tank is easy.

The previous owner of the bike I recently sold let it sit with fuel in the tank as he was a diplomat. What happened as a result is the tank sides got all wavy like cellulite, and the fuel pump mating surface underneath the tank - the part of the tank that the fuel pump assembly bolts up to - deformed considerably as a result of this and could not maintain a tight seal. I wish there were a way for me to take some good photos of what happened as I still have that tank.

Long story short, I found out about this when my bike started smoking on a ride one day. Hot motor + dripping fuel= could have been a fireball. Dealer at the time had never seen any such thing before and warranty on the bike had just elapsed so I felt I had no other choice but replace the tank at my own expense. And it was expensive.

I say again, people do not let any quantity of fuel sit idle in your tank for very long simply because you are too lazy to drain it properly. You will regret it, and there is no additive that prevents the deformation, Startron or whatever the latest gimmick is included. The only thing that would prevent ethanol damage to nylon fuel tanks would be the complete absence of ethanol.

[SpeedoJosh]

Dang plastic tanks.
Any word on the lawsuit?