Outside Storage. Help!!!

[D ABLO]

Hi i have had my 91 GT siting outside for the last 4-5 years. Sits outside behind my garage. I have a 91 notch in the garage and dont have any room for the gt inside. Im really worried about it as the GT is my first car and will be restoring it soon. Untill then i need help with trying to minimize the amount of rust and harm. Has not run in about 4-5 years also. That doesnt bother me im a auto tech and have the mechanical covered. Any and all help and suggestions are welcomed. Thank You.

 

[Project 77]

I hope for the cars sake it's not parked on grass/ground/leaves. get a car cover/tarp on it and get it on solid ground.

 

[DucatiRdr]

x

 

[DucatiRdr]

My 1988 has spent every winter in storage since way back when I bought it in March of that year. These days I invest in heated storage (my Ducati has since claimed my garage), but early on (I was 18 and a poor college student) I had to leave it outside like you, but never over porous earth. Instead I bought a huge blue plastic tarp and laid that down with a 4x4 beam in the middle. The idea there was to put a 'roof peak' in the tarp to encourage any snow/water that collected under the car to drain off to the sides and not puddle up under the car. It also was sort of a vapor barrier against moisture coming up through the ground during thaws, etc.

Make sure to shovel around the car to encourage air flow. When it's not snowing, cold winter air is very dry so not an issue with that. Change the oil and filter. Overinflate the tires. Fogg the cylinders. Lubricate all moving parts. Wax the car if you can. Put a can of Dry-Out or similar desiccant (Home Depot) on the center console and roll up the windows and close the heat vents. Put a knot of steel wool in the tail pipes to keep the mice out. Put a bag of moth balls under the hood to keep the mice out. Cover the car with a soft cover, then over that layer another plastic sheet, arranged so snow/rain rolls off and doesn't soak the cover underneath.

 

[90lxcoupe]

Get a good car cover, that breathes, and is fitted for the car, then put a tarp over that.Get a big one... Like HUGE, i used a 50x50 and what i did was fold it in half so its basically a 25x25 and this is key to keeping moisture out. Then jack the wheels up one by one when the tarp is on the car and stuf the tarp under each wheel, you may have to do this more than once to get the tarp tight, then take the excess of the tarp and stuff it under the car, this will keep most snow/water out from under it and only really heavy winds will blow the tarp out. I did this for years and it worked very well, somtimes it would be a little damp when i uncovered it, but most years when i took the tarp off it was 100% dry under the car even when there was snow right up to the drivers side of the tarp.

 

[LarsD]

Tarp placement is pretty critical, years ago I tarped a 72 Charger that I had.The paint wasn't real great on it, but it wasn't a rust bucket. Well, due to it not being setup right mixed in with windy days so it would move around. After a few months of this, the car looked like it had been hit with sand paper.

 

[90lxcoupe]

Tarp placement is pretty critical, years ago I tarped a 72 Charger that I had.The paint wasn't real great on it, but it wasn't a rust bucket. Well, due to it not being setup right mixed in with windy days so it would move around. After a few months of this, the car looked like it had been hit with sand paper.

this is why you put a car cover before the tarp so the tarp dosent ruin the paint

 

[DucatiRdr]

this is why you put a car cover before the tarp so the tarp dosent ruin the paint

That's how I placed my layers, and never had an issue. Although my method differs from 90lxcoupe's. I worried about the condensation build-up between the car and the covering tarp. If you have the heavy cover wrapping the car like that any moisture that collects under the heavy cover has nowhere to go. I only covered the top of the car with the waterproof cover to keep snow/rain from puddling, but the sides were mostly open (car covered by the soft, quilted, breathable cover) to allow dry air to circulate and prevent condensation. The soft cover was very water resistant and any rain/snow that hit the sides pretty much sheeted off. I did cover the wheels with small tarps to keep the brakes from rusting over.

 

[LarsD]

this is why you put a car cover before the tarp so the tarp dosent ruin the paint

Yeah I didn't know any better at the time.

 

[D ABLO]

Gees I feel worse now. I do have it on dirt I have had it like that for a year now. I tried to put a tarp under it to help with the moisture but all the neighborhood cats would hang out there and removed it. I really should start looking for a storage spot for it. What makes me feel worse is that the notch that just came along recently has had better care and is in the garage. The Gt I have had since 18 and is my fav color Emerald Green and gray. It really needs paint but it was pretty solid other wise. Havent looked under it in over 3 years now hope it close to what i remember it to be.

 

[Project 77]

I had a friend years ago who, and i swear I saw it, shrink wrapped his car. he placed silicone packs inside each wheel and shrink wrapped it top to bottom.

 

[sd331]

also try to keep the car in the sun because if its parked in the shade all day, snow & rain under the car will take longer to evaporate.

 

[Bill Cool]

Dessicant dessicant dessicant (sp)!

I too just took my Fox out of "storage" (a vinyl garage) after 5 years, and it's quite ****ted up. Many days in the summer sun dried up most of the mold inside, but it sat for too many years w/o any new dessicant in it. Moth balls all around the car, and wrap it up as previously said - tarps top and bottom.

 

[stang&2Birds]

If it's behind a garage, then what would be the big deal about putting up a portable garage behind the perm garage? Depending on where you live, the climate, the soil, etc, will effect how you should set up the portable garage. For snow areas, I strongly suggest having a setup with 4-foot spacing between the poles.

BJ's Club (in MA/CT) has a coverit garage with 6ft on center poles they sell for ~$300. For that, I strongly suggest adding bracing in the roof supports. And, maybe some diagonals between the roof and side poles. Yea, by the time you add up the costs, it's likely about the same to just get the better portable garage with the 4 foot support spacing.

Soil, wind, etc, will determine the best way to secure the garage to the land. For New England, and our typical very deep and rich soil, as long as you don't hit one of the many rocks underground , long rebar (4+feet) with a nut welded on top, and a washer works very well.