Winter Storage

[crazbs]

Hi,
I am about to store my class B camper(1999 Dodge Xplorer)for the winter in Wisconsin. This will be my 3rd winter doing this but the previous 2 winters I have been home. I have stored it covered in my driveway plugged into power and have gone out once a month to start it up, run the generator and move it so the tires can rotate a little. This winter I will be gone for 6 months so I will not be able to do that and it will just be sitting there the whole time. Does anyone have any words of wisdom on the best things to do to prepare for that?

I have already removed everything I can from the camper, drained the water and run antifreeze through the lines, filled the gas tank, added SeaFoam, put mouse deterrent packets around inside, placed mothball cakes in the engine compartment and will be parking it on wood panels so the tires(which will be covered)are not on concrete. Should I remove the batteries (house and engine)? Should I leave it plugged into my house power? Anything extra I should do to the generator (Onan gas generator)? Any help will be appreciated as I am really nervous about leaving it unchecked and untouched over the winter.
Thank you,
Carolyn

[Grit_dog]

I'm curious to hear any other benefits of storing with a full tank that overall are a better solution than low or empty tank.

[Grit_dog]

No science here either.
That's what I was always told as a kid. Fill the tank to keep the moisture out. And then in high school I worked as a mechanic at a landscape nursery with alot of seasonal equipment, large and small, gas and diesel. And that stuff never got parked with full tanks (intentionally anyway) or stabilized fuel.
I got on that kick the first winter at my job at the ripe age of 15 when my boss asked what I was doing that day and I was like "need to fill up all the mowers for winter storage" and he was like " The F you will. You're not spending $100 to make 50 gallons of bad gas next spring!"

Also seemed carb problems only happened to things that didn't get run out of gas or gas shut off to the carb. (Not scientific, but when you have a dozen commercial mowers to prep for the season, you kind of learn what doesn't work) And fresh gas helps start an old engine vs some cheap gas station fuel that sat for 6-8 months in effectively open to atmosphere (vented) and sometimes plastic tanks. Plastic and air are major contributors to fuel quality degradation. Part of the reason those little overpriced quart cans of happy homeowner chainsaw gas last so long.
I don't doubt that an empty tank does get some condensation under the right conditions (humidity and dew point). But thinking back, most/all fuel tanks on anything were metal and gasoline didn't contain any alcohol (unless you added it).
Metal tanks and moisture = potential/likely rust. Moisture = doesn't mix with gasoline = water in fuel system, engine dies from a slug of water or fuel line freezes.

What did they do back then for moisture in gas, add some alcohol (Heet). Either methanol or isopropyl. Yellow or red, right? And that little teeny bit of alcohol would make the water "disappear", or more accurately mix with the fuel so that it would burn and not freeze either.
Unless buying non ethanol, gas comes pre=loaded with a 1000% bigger dose of Heet than back in the day.

So the ethanol takes care of 10x the condensation as a can of Heet would theoretically.
Plus newer vehicles' fuel systems are much better sealed from atmospheric conditions, with ventless tanks.

And in the last 30 years, metal gas tanks have largely been phased out of, everything. So no rust concern either. If your rig still has a metal gas tank, filling it may be more appropriate as you should do anything you can to keep that antique gas tank in good enough condition to not have to replace it.
But even then, I just had a rusted out gas tank on the 86 GMC. It rusted out from the outside though, mud and debris trapped moisture against it. pretty sure I powerwashed dirt out of there that was at least of legal drinking age! Inside of tanks had very little to no rust in them and I guarantee the truck didn't sit with full tanks for the last 34 years. Well almost guarantee...lol Heck, it sat for at least a couple years with one tank almost empty. The PO used one tank (the bad one, it didn't leak until the pressure washer got into it) for "cheap" gas to drive around with and (said) he used a little race gas or AV gas in the other saddle tank to "run through" it before parking it for extended periods.


That's why it's largely a wives tale to "fill your tanks" before storage anymore.

Best way to maximize shelf life of gasoline is sealed from the environment in a metal container.
As that is not practical in most situations, having a small amount of "old" fuel diluted with fresh, possibly better fuel than needed IMO is better to burn than 100% "old" fuel.

And poor fuel, low octane, is tolerated better in low performance 4 stroke engines (your basic vehicles and generators). May or will get some detonation but the bad effects are not as severe as 2 stroke and high performance engines. And I'm not going to save a buck on a $3000 engine in a $7000 bike! But I can treat it the best for FREE by not having schitty gas to ever run through it.

[dedmiston]

Grit dog wrote:
To what dedmiston said, I'd consider running the generator out of gas. I haven't examined our Onan yet, but starting the generator and then unplugging power to the genny's fuel pump, or just draining the carb bowl would be preferred.

The best way to ensure a carb doesn't get gummed up is to remove the fuel from it if it won't be run for an extended period. IMO

That's interesting, Grit.

I do the opposite, but I have no science to back me up. I also live in a climate where heat is a bigger booger than cold or precipitation.

I fill up the tanks in my gen and all of my toys to get rid of any air gaps where condensation could get in.

I also waste gas that way, because when the kids all come home and want their dirt bikes ready for the next trip, the first thing I have to do is drain the tanks and the bowls and add fresh fuel.

My side yard is full of two-liter bottles of bad gas that are slowly evaporating. Sometimes I'll put the caps back on and use the bad gas as fire-starters.

Grit's technique is safer than mine and probably better thought out. But my fires are awesome.

And maybe I'm subconsciously thinking about my Texaco and Chevron shares.

Opinions are like belly-buttons, as this forum proves every day.

[Grit_dog]

To what dedmiston said, I'd consider running the generator out of gas. I haven't examined our Onan yet, but starting the generator and then unplugging power to the genny's fuel pump, or just draining the carb bowl would be preferred.

The best way to ensure a carb doesn't get gummed up is to remove the fuel from it if it won't be run for an extended period. IMO

[dedmiston]

I'd be more worried about leaving it sitting for months in the heat than in the cold. Your fuel shouldn't go bad in low temps. Did you add any Sta-Bil to it? If not, add some now and run the gen to flow it into the lines. Who knows if it works or not, but it's an affordable placebo and I've never had problems.

Or just like Grit says, your gen will explode and the space/time continuum will implode on itself and we're all goners.

[Grit_dog]

OMG, your generator will die a horrible early death if you don’t run each month! I’m kidding but that’s what the message is in the recent generator thread, lol.
Don’t just leave the house battery cooking off of the converter while plugged in, unless you know it’s a smart charger. Even then, I’d probably yank the batteries, charge them fully and leave them inside.
I also would have run the fuel down real low and treated what was left in the tank so could top it off with fresh fuel. I’m not a proponent of intentionally burning old gasoline in my vehicles and toys. Too many years of hi perf engines to get on board with burning bad gasoline I suppose.
If your worried about a little condensation and that’s why you filled it up, the ethanol content in standard E10 or whatever fuel will eat up some moisture like it was never there.

[PartyOf_Five]

We stored ours in the southwest 2 winters ago - and they got more snow than they had in 20 years. Then Covid hit and there was no traveling, so our 3 month plan became 6 months of storage. No tire covers, no seafoam, no wood under tires, just parked in a secure lot under a cover. The only adverse impact was to the house battery, but it was a couple years old already. For $150 we were back to 100% functional - a small price to pay for no worries. Sounds like you're far better prepared.

[way2roll]

Provided you winterized it properly, it will be fine without starting the gen or moving the tires. I wouldn't risk leaving it plugged in and the power go out or you overcharge the batts. I would remove the batteries and put them in your garage.