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how long can an a/c engine sit?

J

jaxbrian

Well-known member
i've heard alot of talk about a/c engines living in florida having some pitting problems. i assume the more you run the engine the less likely this would happen. my question is: how long can you let an a/c engine sit before worrying about corrosion or other problems? thanks!! --brian
 
If it is your engine and you pickle "preserve it properly" before you set it up, it will be good indefinately. However if they are just shut down and drained, I would guess 3-5 years before there are any serious effects. Maybe a bit longer.

Scotty :wink:
 
That really depends if you have chrome cylinders or steel. Steel has a tendency to rust if you don't run them on a regular basis.

Geoff
 
geoff, can you define "regular basis" (i have steel, i think)? are you thinking of running it once every other week or more like once every other month? thanks for the help. --brian
 
If I cant go ride, I like to let mine run once a week or so. Just makes me feel a little bit better I guess.
 
If it is steel I would at least start it up once a week and run it at 1500rpm for about 3 to 5 min.

Geoff
 
There are airplanes that sit out in the weather everyday of the year and are only flown a few times a year. They do not get alot of water on the motor. This will be one of the question that can be answered with " it depends".

If the cyl start to rust, or get pits then you are "SOL" I have seen GPU's that have been rebuilt and and stored in the case in warehouse that look like new 10 yrs later.
I have also seen them rust out in 2 yrs.

If you cover it up and keep it out of the weather you should be fine if you run it every month or two. If you put if up for storage and fog the motor you are good for one yr. But it just depend on where it is sitting. The more you turn it over the better.
 
My O-360 just sat for a biut over a year without being touched, when we fired it up she ran perfectly. read the threads about how long Muddy Marquis engine sat and all Mike Thurman did was repaint it and run it. Its back on Bud's boat running like a champ.

Scotty
 
I don't know the answer to the question, but....
this one sat for I don't know how many mango seasons!
Free'd up the starter.
Got the accelerator pump moving again.
Cleaned off the points, and....
http://www.southernairboat.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/14520

Still needed alot of stuff before it could go to the woods, but still!
 
thanks for the info! i normally run mine every couple of weeks but it will have to sit for a few months without being run and it's bugging me. thanks again. --brian
 
Starting one up & running it for a few min. can be worse than not doping it. The reason is you get a lot of condensation inside the engine from blow by & the oil & the inside get wet & start to corrode. You need to get the oil up to temp for 30 min or more to get the water out. If you are going to run it & not heat up the oil you need to change oil like every 30 to 600 days. Not by how long it has run.
 
How long till the cows come home?
Leave em sittin and they'll still purr like a kitten! :D
http://www.southernairboat.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/14520
 
Moritz said:
Starting one up & running it for a few min. can be worse than not doping it. The reason is you get a lot of condensation inside the engine from blow by & the oil & the inside get wet & start to corrode. You need to get the oil up to temp for 30 min or more to get the water out. If you are going to run it & not heat up the oil you need to change oil like every 30 to 600 days. Not by how long it has run.
Click to expand...

Yup,
When I crank them up, I like to run them till I can see the moisture has dripped out as much as possible. Not just crank them for a few minutes.

When we got Buds motor cranked for the first time, I thought we would get gallons out of it. Didn't see a drop come out.

I like to see the breather hose turn down as soon as possible at the case fitting.
If not, they can make their own water, and you start seeing it on the stick, or under the cap.
 
Honda recommends that when you store a motorcycle over the Winter it's much better to let it sit than to start it periodically, IF you're not
going to run it long enough to get it warm enough to dry out.

They suggest pulling the plugs, squirting in a few drops of Marvel oil, spinning it briefly with the plugs out, putting the plugs back in hand tight,
and disconnecting the battery. That's pretty much it.
olf
 
Olf Art said:
Honda recommends that when you store a motorcycle over the Winter it's much better to let it sit than to start it periodically, IF you're not
going to run it long enough to get it warm enough to dry out.

They suggest pulling the plugs, squirting in a few drops of Marvel oil, spinning it briefly with the plugs out, putting the plugs back in hand tight,
and disconnecting the battery. That's pretty much it.
olf
Click to expand...

Hondas, and really all motorcycle engines, run extremely rich (providing more moisture in the exhaust) and have a long exhaust train with many different goosenecks in the exhaust that store moisture and will allow it to collect in the exhaust pipes throughout the bike, and evaporate back to places it doesn't need to be.

THe similiarities between a AC engine and a motorcycle engine otherwise, are quite close. Carburetion is the main thing that I would e concerned about at anything between 6 months and a year. Depending on the fuel blend, 6 months could mean bad gas and gummy carbs.... (I've actually got a Honda that I let sit for 1 year and didn't run it, as Honda reccommends -- it hasn't been right since).

I've got an AC motor I just pulled out of 10 years worth of Kudzu.... if I could get carburetion right on it, and could afford to have Speedwheelie fix my mags properly, it'd probably run like a charm.
 
Mine sat out in the weather for 7 years before I got and all I had to do was rebuild a mag and some cosmetics. You never know, too many variables to give a straight answer, just start it up once a week and hope for the best.
 
Doc, you're right ..... I forgot to mention draining the carb(s). I have a nearly 30 yr. old GoldWing, but fortunately I live in a place where I can
ride year round so long term storage isn't a problem here.

olf
 
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