Winter Storage in concrete garage

Winter Storage in concrete garage

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haynes

Original Poster:

370 posts

249 months

Friday 6th September 2013
quotequote all
Moved house recently and knocked down the old crumbling single garage and replaced with a new pre-fab double garage. I would have liked a double skin climate controlled workshop but that would have been well beyond budget.

On problem with having a double garage meant that I had space for 2 minis, so I now have 2 minis, a hillclimb 1990 cooper and a 1965 850.

Doesn anyone keep their minis in a concrete garage and what measures do you take to preserve them? My main concern is preserving the bodywork due to damp and condensation.

Options are:
2 x carcoons
Dehumidifier
Ventilate (should i take out the foam in the eves?)
Line walls with insulation
liberally apply wax, grease and wd40
Or, just take the cars out regularly for a good long drive to warm em up.

Carcoons or similar are gonna cost a bit, theres storage of them when not in use, and I dont yet have power in the garage, which also rules out a dehumidifer.

Advise appreciated.







DanGT

753 posts

233 months

Friday 6th September 2013
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Carcoon are very good (never had the money my self). Air flow and oil is the cheaper option but, I have done this and it worked well. Car cover was a thing I regret trying. Ok in a warm dry place but only then.

sprocketman01

99 posts

217 months

Saturday 7th September 2013
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I would say plenty of Air bricks to allow a lot of air flow,plus waxoyl the living hell out of all of them,and when its dry and ideally windy or sunny get them into the open air and leave the garage open whenever you can,non heated garages will always cause issues with damp/corrosion but you can minimise the damage with a little effort

annodomini2

6,907 posts

258 months

Monday 9th September 2013
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Couple of open bags of saw dust, they suck up the moisture in the air.

Orcadian

312 posts

142 months

Monday 9th September 2013
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Hi,
I agree absolutely about the sawdust/shavings to absorb the damp - as long as you give them a chance to dry out before they get to the point where they can't hold any more. Alternatively change them often. Additionally, I have laid 8 by 4 sheets of cheap Sterling board on the floor before putting the cars in - that too stops the damp from striking up from the concrete. Whenever you get a great day in the winter just open everything up and let the breeze do it's job. I avoid starting cars unnecessarily in the Winter if they are not being used as you can never get them thoroughly warm. The best way is always to go for a run but even on dry roads in the winter the salt dust is still there. I live in the beautiful Orkney Isles so we get lots of salt laden winds but the cars are still rust free.

cml24

1,446 posts

154 months

Wednesday 11th September 2013
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I know how the weather is up there! I used to live in Shetland and stored my mini in a garage one winter.

It came out worse than the previous winter when it did 60 miles a day in the snow.

I'd say get it out when the weather is nice and use it is your best bet.