hibernation

[rossi46]

Hi, With the UK in the grip of an unusually prolonged spell of snow and ice the bike has'nt been used in afew weeks- it does'nt look like any change soon either! so how long is it ok to leave the bike without starting? I have ridden year round(almost) for many years so in the past has been no problem however a change of job means I no longer need to use a bike regularly, I have a battery charger but was concerned about the bores being 'dry' after a long lay up! cheers

[gstallons]

The only thing I would recommend is to take paper towels saturated with a spray lubricant and fill the opening of the (both) exhaust.

[The Monkey]

The engine wont have to be run if you have taken minimal storage precautions

 

1 Bike in a dry location

2 Fluids all changed at end of season

3 Fuel stabilizer in tank, run bike long enough to get stabilizer throughout fuel system

4 Disconnect battery (trickle charge to full once a month)

 

Running an engine briefly in a cold environment will result in moisture accumulating on the internal surfaces due to condensation. Same as only ever doing short trips- that moisture shows up as a gooey opaque build up under the rocker covers. Also as steam billowing out the exhaust from water accumulation there. Once an engine is fired up the whole should be operated at full temperature for a decent period of time to avoid this, a little engine like our bikes have, would have to be ridden about an hour at least as the transmission and final drive also are subject to this. So unless you plan on a decent ride in the cold, leave her shut down.

 

As an aside I remember a partner in the fleet pulling the heads off the main engine as he figured the gasket had gone on him. (The crankcase had a lot of water in it). Turns out the cause was a heater installed on one side of the engine room and an open vent spilling cold air into the other side of the ER. 3 months of cold weather, that was all it took.

 

Hope that helps

[gavo]

Pull the plugs and squirt about 10ml of engine oil in an turn it over by hand 2/3 times(back wheel in gear works) replace plugs, drain fuel or stabilizer especialy if it contains ethanol, plug exhaust outlet with a bung or rag( to keep nesting vermin out), put bike up on stand ,blocks, what have u to get weight off suspension also to avoid flat spots on tyres, remove battery and put on trickle charger, put dust cover on bike, kiss goodnight and turn out the light

[pete roper]

Good grief! How long are you talking? Three or four weeks? Three or four YEARS and yes, a bit of care might be needed but for this length of time just pull the battery, take it inside and hook it up to a tender or, if you have a garage, just hook it up to the tender out there.

 

Yes, in places like the USA where they may well leave their bikes for up to five months without riding them a few simple precautions are worth taking but for a few weeks in the UK??? Please!!!!

 

Pete

[kglm]

Dry place +5 C or more, new oils, battery disconnected (charging every second month)..waiting...waiting....and after six (6) month waiting winter is over !!

[rossi46]

thanks for the ideas guys-I know I'm being paraniod but I do have mild guzzichrondria ! anyways a bamy 7 degrees on the weekend(minus 9 today!) thats ridin' weather