storage question
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 12,230
Likes: 7,807
From: Along the shoreline in SW FL
I just keep the tank full....limits the moisture that accumulates in the tank. No "winterizing" stuff in there....IMO don't need that anymore, the gas from the pump for the past couple of decades is filled with stabilizers 'n tons of preservative additives already. All my engines start up just fine come spring.
Every 4 or 6 weeks I'll put the old fashioned trickle charger on it for a weekend.
While I agree with "flat spots" on the tires...if I haven't run mine for 2 months (rare)..I'll roll it forward a foot or two. And I think it takes much more than a few months to get a flat spot on tires. Tend to have to move the bike in the garage anyways over the winter to re-arrange something...like get the generator out, or shift something for the snowblower...so the bike gets moved anyways. Plus I usually ride throughout the winter...sometimes might go 6 weeks without a ride if it's super bad.
As to tires on concrete....I think that's an old myth. Or it may stem from the true fact...don't keep tires on asphalt for long period of time, can absorb the oils in old fashioned asphalt. None of that in concrete. Unless you spill lots of oil on your garage floor.
Every 4 or 6 weeks I'll put the old fashioned trickle charger on it for a weekend.
While I agree with "flat spots" on the tires...if I haven't run mine for 2 months (rare)..I'll roll it forward a foot or two. And I think it takes much more than a few months to get a flat spot on tires. Tend to have to move the bike in the garage anyways over the winter to re-arrange something...like get the generator out, or shift something for the snowblower...so the bike gets moved anyways. Plus I usually ride throughout the winter...sometimes might go 6 weeks without a ride if it's super bad.
As to tires on concrete....I think that's an old myth. Or it may stem from the true fact...don't keep tires on asphalt for long period of time, can absorb the oils in old fashioned asphalt. None of that in concrete. Unless you spill lots of oil on your garage floor.
Last edited by YeOldeStonecat; Nov 3, 2014 at 06:48 AM.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 9,238
Likes: 5,784
From: On the Big Blue marble
Ditto
Couldnt have said it better myself.. But I do add Stabil and put plastic bags over my exhaust and intake - just incase of critters..
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 3,520
Likes: 270
From: Wellsboro, PA
I'm with everybody else! Here's a pic of my winter storage place --- a foyer of a barn. Obviously not heated, cement floor, kickstand on a hockey puck, StaBil in the tank, battery tender plugged in, covered up for the winter, and cardboard under the tires. (I remember somebody once telling me to put cardboard under the tires. I don't know/remember why, but I do it anyway!) Have stored bikes here for the winter, for 10 years now. Never had a problem.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 3,328
Likes: 15
From: Pacific Northwest
Who's right?
Neither will make any difference whatsoever.
Park it in the garage, maybe add some fuel stabilizer and a battery tender. You don't even really need to cover up the bike - it'll get just as dusty under the cover as without.
Neither will make any difference whatsoever.
Park it in the garage, maybe add some fuel stabilizer and a battery tender. You don't even really need to cover up the bike - it'll get just as dusty under the cover as without.
Road Warrior
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 1,979
Likes: 2
From: Northern Colorado
Tires are pretty resilient, they kinda have to be! The best thing you can do is to keep them properly inflated and out of the sun... although it definitely wouldn't hurt to add a little extra air for winter storage.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 3,498
Likes: 128
All I've ever done is plug in the tender. I roll it around every couple weeks to have the tire floor contact point in a different area, but I don't really think I need to. It just makes me feel better. Been doing it that way for 47+ years and never have had any spring time issues yet. I did have one bike I stored on a lift but that was for ease of moving it around in a crowded space.
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
7 Times Harley-Davidson Chucked Tradition Out the Window
Verdad Gallardo
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Verdad Gallardo
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 4,214
Likes: 661
From: Prior Lake, MN
Parked my ricer on it's center stand on my concrete garage floor thru 8 Minnesota winters. Back tire up, front tire still on ground. Stabil in the gas, tender on the battery. Didn't have any problems with tires, started right up every spring.
This being my first winter with the Limited, I have the J&S- I'll use it for storage, mostly to make more room in the garage as well as it being much easier to move if I have to. Will put stabil in the gas (though not sure how necessary it is, but I have it on hand anyway), and battery on the tender all winter. Plus whatever the service manual recommends for storage that makes sense to me. Haven't read thru it yet, still in denial over end of season, and hoping for at least one or two more rides before I end it for the year.
This being my first winter with the Limited, I have the J&S- I'll use it for storage, mostly to make more room in the garage as well as it being much easier to move if I have to. Will put stabil in the gas (though not sure how necessary it is, but I have it on hand anyway), and battery on the tender all winter. Plus whatever the service manual recommends for storage that makes sense to me. Haven't read thru it yet, still in denial over end of season, and hoping for at least one or two more rides before I end it for the year.