Storage: Drive up? or Down?

[Salty Dog - LI]

Cdefreit: The 2nd MM is giving you good advise. The bellows will be stretched with trim up putting stress on the bellows. Trim up will allow water from rain to collect in the exhaust ports and prop exhaust (which may freeze and cause outdrive damage). Outdrive down and straight, but off the ground! Or outdrive off and stored away for the winter, with the ports capped on the hull.

 

[NateRW21]

Are you serious about the flat spots?

Never had a problem with any of my boats...but i just started putting jack stands under the axles in case I do have a flat. I had a hard time deciding were I would place them...for full support through the winter with out doing any damage.

Absolutely serious... some tires are more likely to get flat spots than others, but it is a fact of tires. I have Bridgestone Blizzak LM-22's (high performance winter tire) on my Lincoln LS for the winter and in just a matter of two days I can feel a thump thump thump for the first 10 minutes of driving or so.

Keeping your tires inflated to max inflation when storing with weight on them will help... but you can get jack-stands for about $15/pr at many big department stores (I just bought two new pair of Craftsmen Pro and retired one of my old pairs to outside boat duty); hell, in boat dollars that's pretty much free isn't it??

Also to be noted, when storing tires they should be deflated to about 5lbs (and covered from exposure to light)... why deflate, I don't really know this one for sure... but most of the reputable tire retailers will tell you this (I suspect to reduce the interior oxidation of the rubber).

 

[KayKook]

Storage? Always down. End of story.

 

[jacktm]

I agree with all the reasons for storage down, my problem is I have my boat shrinkwrapped and have to trailer it back from the marina. They also shrinkwrap around the outdrive I assume to protect it.

With the boat sealed and the batteries out how can I store it down?

Jack

 

[skibum]

The 1st MM didn't tell you that they stored them this way simply because it looks good when you drive by a row of boats on display and see all of the outdrives aligned at the same jaunty angle.

Ask them if they store the boats with their antennas horizontal, vertical, or aligned to the same jaunty angle as the outdrives...

Michael

 

[Davey]

Don't worry about advice from salesmen, the salesman who sold me mine didn't even know whether it was 2 or 4 stroke :smt021. The Mercury manual says store the drive down for the sake of the bellows.

To protect the skeg from scratches if I accidentally lower the drive too far onto the ground, I borrowed :lol: a short length of garden hose (just the length of the edge of the skeg) and cut a slot all the way along one side of it. It also helps with the routine - the protector comes off & the bung goes in ready for the water. Hope this helps.

That flat spots thing for tyres doesn't seem to affect all brands. I have an old Jaguar that is on its second set of tyres since it left the production line in 1959. Its current Michelin tyres have been on the car 11 years now, travel 200 miles or so per year, rest of the time it is garaged but has not developed flat spots, might need 1 or 2 pounds in the front left once a year. I suspect the rim may be slightly porous. The tyres on it before that were 38 year old cross plies and had to be replaced in 1997 as they had developed fine hairline cracks in the sidewalls.

 

[charlg]

I agree with all the reasons for storage down, my problem is I have my boat shrinkwrapped and have to trailer it back from the marina. They also shrinkwrap around the outdrive I assume to protect it.

With the boat sealed and the batteries out how can I store it down?

Jack

My boat is also stored the same as jacktm's....outdrive up (in trailer position) and shrink wrapped. Is there anything we should do to 'undo' any effects that storing this way may cause?