Winter storage

mackemmark · Nov 8, 2024

As a complete newbie with a 1973 early bay camper, I'd be grateful for any tips on winter storage. It's parked off road but on the driveway as there is no garage. The van is kept covered but would be grateful for any advice on the most 'at risk' areas in winter and whether...

- it's best to take the van 1-2 times a week to keep it ticking over?
- should internal thermal blinds be left up?
- Chassis waxoil treatment?
- if it gets very cold/damp for a long period, is it worth asking around for temporary garaging?

Tips on any other areas would also be appreciated. Thank you!

andrewblackwell · Nov 8, 2024

If you can find a garage it will fit into that would be my main focus. Not many rentable ones are big enough for a Bay we found.
Ours barely squeezes into the garage we got which is the common seventies council built size. We purposely have a tin top because more likely to get in a garage without the campers folding roof. Have to back ours in as the up/over door only just clears the windscreen, but will not clear the steeper rear end. I have to get in/out via sliding door/walkthrough as too narrow for cab doors to open wide enough.
I had to lift the doorframe as much as possible and if bus was stock height it would not have fitted, so you might struggle to get a garage big enough.

Mine did ok last winter in a cold but very dry storage unit near me where a few guys keep classics & projects without costing those mental classic car storage prices. Worth looking for indoor storage providers rather than classics/garages.

Wasn’t started between Oct & late Jan. Battery was disconnected during that time to preserve charge, but still needed a hand with a NoCo booster when run up in late Jan just because carb bowls were empty and took long to fill. I now squirt a bit of fuel or starter spray in the carbs to kick it over faster.

This winter I’ll run it up more often anytime it’s dry outside, but not run it on salted roads in the depths of winter.

If your stuck with storing outside it’s not the end of the world. Our 1963 beetle was outdoors all year and our daily driver from 1997>2002. Cavities were internally waxoyled, but I used to coat all the outside edges, gutters and panel bottom edges with any oily spray like wd40, then clean it off once weather improved in spring. Looked awful while being driven but came up lovely after a wash, and defo kept off the worst of the rust.

Is your mackemmark name anything to do with Wearside?

Clem · Nov 9, 2024

Make the last fuel fill of the year Super Unleaded E5 petrol, remove as much soft furnishings or curtains as you can and chuck out any perishables in cool boxes etc. Maybe get some of those dehumidifier boxes to absorb moisture?
Give a wax polish before you put it away and yes, any underside or cavity waxing is a good idea.

redgaz54 · Nov 9, 2024

mackemmark said:
As a complete newbie with a 1973 early bay camper, I'd be grateful for any tips on winter storage. It's parked off road but on the driveway as there is no garage. The van is kept covered but would be grateful for any advice on the most 'at risk' areas in winter and whether...

- it's best to take the van 1-2 times a week to keep it ticking over?
- should internal thermal blinds be left up?
- Chassis waxoil treatment?
- if it gets very cold/damp for a long period, is it worth asking around for temporary garaging?

Tips on any other areas would also be appreciated. Thank you!

Get yourself a Maypole breathable cover, and as has been said, thorough cavity & underside rust prevention. I found the Bilt Hamper products very good and easier to apply than most other stuff I've used.
Keep fuel tank full, plenty of additives out there to keep fuel fresh.

garytype2 · Nov 9, 2024

Anyone in the Bournemouth area I have indoor storage available £150 p/m
£60 p/m outside
Coolcampers 07979 726763

mackemmark · Nov 10, 2024

andrewblackwell said:
If you can find a garage it will fit into that would be my main focus. Not many rentable ones are big enough for a Bay we found.
Ours barely squeezes into the garage we got which is the common seventies council built size. We purposely have a tin top because more likely to get in a garage without the campers folding roof. Have to back ours in as the up/over door only just clears the windscreen, but will not clear the steeper rear end. I have to get in/out via sliding door/walkthrough as too narrow for cab doors to open wide enough.
I had to lift the doorframe as much as possible and if bus was stock height it would not have fitted, so you might struggle to get a garage big enough.

Mine did ok last winter in a cold but very dry storage unit near me where a few guys keep classics & projects without costing those mental classic car storage prices. Worth looking for indoor storage providers rather than classics/garages.

Wasn’t started between Oct & late Jan. Battery was disconnected during that time to preserve charge, but still needed a hand with a NoCo booster when run up in late Jan just because carb bowls were empty and took long to fill. I now squirt a bit of fuel or starter spray in the carbs to kick it over faster.

This winter I’ll run it up more often anytime it’s dry outside, but not run it on salted roads in the depths of winter.

If your stuck with storing outside it’s not the end of the world. Our 1963 beetle was outdoors all year and our daily driver from 1997>2002. Cavities were internally waxoyled, but I used to coat all the outside edges, gutters and panel bottom edges with any oily spray like wd40, then clean it off once weather improved in spring. Looked awful while being driven but came up lovely after a wash, and defo kept off the worst of the rust.

Is your mackemmark name anything to do with Wearside?

Thanks very much for the advice - very helpful. Re. my name, ine side of my family is from Sunderland and I have the (most of the time) agony of supporting the football club...

andrewblackwell · Nov 10, 2024

Is it better to have the fullest tank of E5 fuel possible left in the tank over winter, with ethanol treatment added, or to run the treated fuel right down so you have an almost empty tank, and less fuel to go bad/ attract moisture?

james_stan · Nov 11, 2024

andrewblackwell said:
Is it better to have the fullest tank of E5 fuel possible left in the tank over winter, with ethanol treatment added, or to run the treated fuel right down so you have an almost empty tank, and less fuel to go bad/ attract moisture?

E5 full - additives are mostly snake oil, empty tank will encourage condensation unless you have a heated garage but you won't have unless you're a) Nick Mason or Jamiroquai b) American

andrewblackwell · Nov 11, 2024

I always run on E5 anyhow, & add the Lucas Safeguard each time which i'd read was the only one to be given any credit against ethanol.
I understand that submerging the steel tanks inner surface with fuel of minimal ethanol content protects it to some extent from moisture.
But then i considered more fuel in there = more potential for it to attract moisture as it stands & separates, as well as more fuel to spoil if unused over winter.
Expensive experiment with a 60 litre tank of Superunleaded costing about £100 presently.

wklail · Nov 11, 2024

Super unleaded is expensive there! That would discourage much driving. My 2013 Chevy Suburban holds 39 gallons (147.5 liters). Filling from empty would be painful indeed!

james_stan · Nov 11, 2024

andrewblackwell said:
I always run on E5 anyhow, & add the Lucas Safeguard each time which i'd read was the only one to be given any credit against ethanol.
I understand that submerging the steel tanks inner surface with fuel of minimal ethanol content protects it to some extent from moisture.
But then i considered more fuel in there = more potential for it to attract moisture as it stands & separates, as well as more fuel to spoil if unused over winter.
Expensive experiment with a 60 litre tank of Superunleaded costing about £100 presently.

It won't spoil over winter - no way. Too much hate-speech for ethanol fuel and 'stale' petrol in general - someone tell me they've genuinely been affected, stating the timescales involved and not something they heard down teh pub (or more likley social media).

andrewblackwell · Nov 11, 2024

I think i worry too much about all the "what-ifs". In the first year of winter storage i wondered if i would flat spot my tyres from having it stood too long in one place. Didn't happen.
When something does actually go wrong, its rarely the things you spent time worrying about anyhow.

Clem · Nov 12, 2024

Yeah, it’s only a few months. It’s unlikely they’ll be any disasters in that time really. Protect as much as you can, ‘air’ as much as you can, good check over before driving after a lay up and take it steady first time.

creationblue · Nov 12, 2024

I put mine in storage whilst I had an extension built a few years ago, it was stood on chippings in a huge marquee type structure with many other cars for around 2 months. everything that wasn't stainless in the engine bay rusted, I couldn't believe it!

andrewblackwell · Nov 24, 2024

Anybody else has experienced high condensation on their garage stored vans this weekend?

By chance I’d opened the garage to pop some items back into the van and the whole vehicle exterior was soaked in dew from the waistband down. I was horrified that it would sit and rust.

I’m glad I stumbled upon this so I drew the van out, towelled it all off where I could reach while I ran the engine for 10 minutes.

It’s been subzero all week dry with no humidity, but then snowed heavily yesterday morning, which turned to rain and thawed all within 24hrs & was then over 10 degrees. Presume the humidity went off the scale and caused dew to form on any surfaces that remained cold, such as the van. Even it’s tyres were soaking.

Later on I dragged an extension cable out and ran a dog grooming dryer under the van for 15 minutes to drive off any dew on the chassis I couldn’t get to. I worry about what I can’t see going on within the cavities. Will be getting dinitrol cans bought & sprayed anywhere I can over Christmas break.

Until this summer our stripped beetle had been in there 4 years. Possibly this occurs every so often & I’ve never noticed it on the beetle which was mostly coated in WD40 as I was gradually bare metalling it.

Clem · Nov 24, 2024

Big sudden jumps in temperatures do that. Not much you can do about it in practicality unless you have well insulated storage. Better than sitting outside in the rain and snow!

ozziedog · Nov 25, 2024

All that Clem says above ^^^ . It’s just really weird weather right now. One of my favourite things is lots of moisture absorbing crystals like the unibond ones. But if you happen to spot mass condensation as you just did is to use a Karcher cordless window vac and that is an immediate solution . I use those unibond thingies in my modern ish Zafira to keep the moisture levels in check on a day to day basis. I also pop the unibond dooh dah into a plastic sweety container so it can’t fall over which is a godsend when snuggling them around.

Ozziedog,,,,,,,,older vehicles are deffo condesstion traps

andrewblackwell · Nov 25, 2024

I'm just glad i found it when i did, fairly fresh. Checked in again this morning at 7am before work & all still dry thankfully.
Not much i can do as its a rented garage, so no option to modify it. I'll just make sure i regularly check.

Darren2030 · Nov 25, 2024

I’ve always for last 10 years of having my bus kept him outside under a maypole cover they are cheap so normally buy a new one every couple years I’d love a garage or a dry storage unit but to be honest I’ve never had any problems I always check on the bus once a week at least and start him up every couple weeks and if it’s dry take for a run as long as the roads ain’t been salted!

easy · Dec 9, 2024

Mines always been garaged, it does have slight air flow from the gap under the door lol, its keep and a great temperature, mainly due to the battery and invertor is in there for our solar panels, so it never gets cold enough to condensate and stays at a great temp. Huzzah!

Winter storage

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