Advice for winter storage of mill ?

[mtoo747]

I'm putting my mill in the barn for the winter. It's trailer mounted so i could move it out if we have a warm good weather spell. I'm wondering what i should do to be sure it will be in good shape for spring. Take the band off, drain the coolant tank, clean it off real well. It's a woodland mills trekker. I have the head cover for it...leave it covered or leave it off? Should i spray it down with WD40 maybe?
Thanks for any tips.
mike

[Woodpecker52]

Just drain gas out of engine and cover I use a Walmart gas grill cover.  I will use the silicon spray better than wd.  Just tuck er in for the winter and wake er up in the spring nice and rested.

[mtoo747]

Yes i thought about the gas right after i made the post.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Keep mice out of the engine and any other places where there is wiring.  

Get a big box of dryer fabric softener sheets and put them in any openings, crevices etc.  Having a lot of these sheets around the engine then covering up the engine well with plastic etc.  will keep it full of that aroma which they hate.  

I've also spread red cayenne pepper over mill and truck engine before that works too.  There are other things people use too, peppermint oil is one.  

Probably would work well to open it up every week and take a leaf blower to it but that takes work.  

[Southside]

Put some gas stabilizer in the tank and run it for a bit before you drain everything. Never know if there is a low spot in a line that you miss. Also, drain the carb bowl completely. With todays ethanol gas you don't want to leave any in there for a period of time or you will have issues in the spring. 

[Chuck White]

When I put my mill away for the Winter, I park it in the garage!

The first thing I do is remove all the shields, this keeps the mice at bay!

I also attach the battery maintainer, trickle charges at 1½-2 amps, after a few weeks with the maintainer on, I check the water in the battery and it's usually down just a trifle!

As the Winter goes on, I will do a complete alignment on the mill so it's ready to go in the Spring!

I still have to rebuild the sequence valves that regulate the log-stops and the turner on my mill, just haven't gotten to it yet, but it'll happen before Spring!  I have the parts on hand!

[Mad Professor]

All good advice so far. Especially gas/E10.  If carb has a drain use it.

I like to put equipment up for winter with clean oil.  I run equipment, drain oil/do filter.  Other small things like air/fuel filter if it needs it.  If it has zerks they get greased (trailer wheels?), and shot of lubricating oil where needed.  Clean off all crud.  For a mill a used lumber cover would be cheap and effective in a barn.

Check water and charge battery.  If it's sitting all winter and/or real cold pull battery and put in cellar.  Liquid cooled be sure anti-freeze is good to -30 o0 F

For mice in barns I try to clean them out late fall with "spinning bottle traps".  With several outbuildings I take out 30-60 mice each fall.  I keep up the traps until the catch stops.  These traps have taken 10 mice in a couple of days and then you just dump them out and put in fresh water.  Don't forget to check the traps, fermented mice are a smell to behold.....   Cold weather you can put some used anti-freeze in the bucket if no pets can get at it. 

Squirrels can be worse than mice, red ones chew up almost anything, had one chew through a gas tank on a string trimmer.  For those I use rat traps or DeCon.





 

[GAB]

Mad Professor:
I like your avatar dog's attitude.

If your mill has a blade lube pump I suggest you make sure the last thing through the pump is some RV antifreeze to protect the pump.

GAB

[mtoo747]

For mice in barns I try to clean them out late fall with "spinning bottle traps".  With several outbuildings I take out 30-60 mice each fall.  I keep up the traps until the catch stops.  These traps have taken 10 mice in a couple of days and then you just dump them out and put in fresh water.  Don't forget to check the traps, fermented mice are a smell to behold.....  Cold weather you can put some used anti-freeze in the bucket if no pets can get at it.  

Squirrels can be worse than mice, red ones chew up almost anything, had one chew through a gas tank on a string trimmer.  For those I use rat traps or DeCon.

tell me more about the spinning bottle trap.

[loganworks2]

Just google it. They are very simple to make and can be very effective. Made from a plastic bucket a piece of wire and a soda bottle or can.

[Mad Professor]

For mice in barns I try to clean them out late fall with "spinning bottle traps".  With several outbuildings I take out 30-60 mice each fall.  I keep up the traps until the catch stops.  These traps have taken 10 mice in a couple of days and then you just dump them out and put in fresh water.  Don't forget to check the traps, fermented mice are a smell to behold.....  Cold weather you can put some used anti-freeze in the bucket if no pets can get at it.  

Squirrels can be worse than mice, red ones chew up almost anything, had one chew through a gas tank on a string trimmer.  For those I use rat traps or DeCon.

tell me more about the spinning bottle trap.

Use a 1-L plastic beverage bottle.  Drill holes dead center on the cap and bottom, it needs to spin true. Use a dowel or straight branch to match the holes, I use 1/2" holes, make sure it spin free. Put a couple of notches on the top of a 5-gal bucket to steady the dowel (pic has bottle to side so you can see the vermin).  Add a gallon of water to bucket and place a board as ramp for the mice to get to the top of bucket.  Smear peanut butter on the bottle, put a dab or two on the ramp.  The mice hop on the bottle, it spins, they drown.
Not PETA approved.  If PETA people complain omit the water and relocate the vermin to their residence, where they will be welcome, warm, and well fed.

[mtoo747]

Thanks professor..i will try that out. 8)

[4x4American]

I wouldn't cover it personally if it's inside a barn, because a cover will hold moisture to it

[Southside]

Dug - you would not cover it because it would take time away from sawing / production to remove the cover come spring!!   ;D

[mtoo747]

I wouldn't cover it personally if it's inside a barn, because a cover will hold moisture to it

Yes, that's what i was thinking too. Also easier for the mice to hide inside. I will leave the cover off. 
thanks
mike

[richhiway]

As above already mentioned it is important to change the oil and filter on any equipment before storage. Fresh oil protects from corrosion on engine parts during storage. Likewise you should never run a engine with old oil that has been sitting. Any sludge and solids settle to the bottom of the sump while sitting. Used oil has contaminants and acids the will pit your bearings. Non ethanol gas is available in my area and that is all I run in everything. If you use fuel stabilizer you do not need to drain the fuel. It is a good idea to shut off the gas and run the carb bowl dry. The gas can evaporate form the bowl and leave deposits. Also lube everything and coat anything that can rust.

[sarahduke78]

Just drain gas out of engine and cover I use a Walmart gas grill cover.  I will use the silicon spray better than wd.  Just tuck er in for the winter and wake er up in the spring nice and rested.

Yep, that is exactly how I stored mine this winter. Works fine.

[moodnacreek]

Saw all winter and put the mill away for the summer!

[Magicman]

I agree which is why I try to avoid July & August sawing.  I also agree with Chuck above about removing all of the covers/shields if the sawmill is stored inside or under a shed. 

I have no shed so my sawmill always lives outdoors and with the engine cover on.  I just finished repairing and splicing my strobe light wiring which had been cut by mice.  I hates mice. 

[SawyerTed]

Magicman, my first thought was your mill doesn't sit still long enough for mice to set up shop.  Then I recalled you've have a couple of surgeries.

I hope you are well.

[Magicman]

Yup, I normally would have been sawing instead of being "laid up". 

[mtoo747]

I was a bit surprised to see this post i made in 2018  pop up but pleased to say that all the suggestions were very helpful. The mill did go back into the barn for the 2019-2020 winter but is back out now with a new home! I just recently completed the build of a  dedicated mill shed. While i would love to be able to say i built it myself, given my limited carpentry skills and physical limitations, i had to contract it out. I did the hard part, i wrote the check!



 

I will close in the back wall and probably one end within the next few weeks using pine siding that i recently sawed. May put a couple of windows in the back wall for light and ventilation. Next winter I will see. Tarps or temporary walls for the remaining open walls.

[Chuck White]

Nice looking sawshed! 

[sarahduke78]

Bought this frame for my barn to keep instruments in place.

[Silverfoxfintry]

I like the bottle trap for vermin. However, my wife would object!
We live in an old stone built house (1730 or so) and every year the local Mice came in to overwinter.
Set lots of traps, but when you find droppings in your breakfast cereal it was time to take further action.
We bought a couple of ultrasonic Mice chasers.
They just plug into your power sockets. 
NO MORE MICE!
I also have one that operates with a couple of PP9 batteries that I use in my RV when it's not in use. (Like this year. It's been in storage since last October) 
Our "Jacko" mill lives outside all year. The power head, hydraulic engine and controls are all covered and the main bed is sprayed with oil.
I remove the batteries and keep them on a maintenance charge over the winter.
It was built in 1995 and still earning its keep.

[apm]

I like the bottle trap for vermin. However, my wife would object!
We live in an old stone built house (1730 or so) and every year the local Mice came in to overwinter.
Set lots of traps, but when you find droppings in your breakfast cereal it was time to take further action.
We bought a couple of ultrasonic Mice chasers.
They just plug into your power sockets.
NO MORE MICE!
I also have one that operates with a couple of PP9 batteries that I use in my RV when it's not in use. (Like this year. It's been in storage since last October)
Our "Jacko" mill lives outside all year. The power head, hydraulic engine and controls are all covered and the main bed is sprayed with oil.
I remove the batteries and keep them on a maintenance charge over the winter.
It was built in 1995 and still earning its keep.

which ultrasonic Mice chasers did you buy? We've tried some, but had no luck. 
Greg