Post Flight Maintenance - Storage (IC Power)

[Paul Raley]

After cleaning some grungy fuel tanks on a couple of models that have not flown for a few years got me thinking that there must a better way to store our IC powered models. My opinion is that as long as the plane will be flown in a week or two no special maintenance is required.  However, on occasion, the one or two weeks turns in one or two years, resulting in a tank full of green slime/rust and a plugged up NVA.  Any suggestions?  Perhaps fill the tank full with fuel, alcohol, etc?  Replace tanks that have sat for over a year?   Spray something through the NVA?  After run oil in the engine?  Fly more (lol)?

[Dan McEntee]

   Windy brought this up in a video years ago, and advocated filling and capping off tanks that are stored for the winter. You could use old fuel, stuff that maybe wasn't running it's best but retired to the shelf. Lantern/stove fuel would be another. It can be flushed out and then a tank full of good fuel run through the engine in the next flying season. You can use after run oil in the engines, or flush them with lighter fluid/naptha to displace any alcohol and nitro residue that may be on any bearings. ATF would do the job also. Just be ready for a lot of smoke and spooge to com out of the exhaust when you do the first run in the spring, and maybe need a new glow plug afterwards. A toot of after run oil/ATF through the spray bar would help there while you are at it.
  Type at you later,
   Dan McEntee

[Dave Rigotti]

75% kerosene 25% light sewing machine oil mix.    Work thoroughly in, especially if castor oil was used. BEST to disassemble engine first (At lease the backplate fellas).  Flush tank with mineral spirits.  It is imperative to get all castor oil residue from engine.  Easier if all synthetic oil is/was used.

[Lauri Malila]

The kerosene/lantern oil, if put to tank, will ruin the silicone tubings.
I use full synthetic, so I do nothing for storage. Just a drop of my favourite spindle oil to front bearing (rear intake engine).
But after a longer storage, especially if you use castor, replacing the fuel tubings and filters is a cheap insurance. And to rinse well the needle valve. L

[realSteveSmith]

...ATF would do the job also. Just be ready for a lot of smoke and spooge to com out of the exhaust when you do the first run in the spring, and maybe need a new glow plug afterwards...

Somewhere I remember reading about certain after run oils being bad for the plug element....but I can't track it down again.  Is this what you're talking about?  Do you know the details and if so, can you elaborate?

Thanks,
-rSS

[Dave Rigotti]

I never said put it in the tank......

The kerosene/lantern oil, if put to tank, will ruin the silicone tubings.
I use full synthetic, so I do nothing for storage. Just a drop of my favourite spindle oil to front bearing (rear intake engine).
But after a longer storage, especially if you use castor, replacing the fuel tubings and filters is a cheap insurance. And to rinse well the needle valve. L

[Paul Raley]

Thanks for all the good advice!

[Lauri Malila]

I never said put it in the tank......

Yes but Dan did. L

[Dan McEntee]

Yes but Dan did. L

   Well, you are going to put new fuel line on for the new season anyway, so no real worry here. That's the "cheap insurance" you mentioned, and most of us do this anyway. The main object is to keep left over fuel and oil from gelling in the tank and displace any air.. You will remove all fuel lines to plug the tank up and seal it also. Old model fuel, Coleman Lantern/stove fuel are both things most of us have already. When ready to fly you will force out whatever you filled the tank with first, then flush with fresh fuel for a full tank ground run. People have been spiking fuel with camp stove fuel to extend a fuel load run time since the glow plug was invented, so you know that anything left behind will get dissolved and run through the engine. I have never had this bother the plugs sealing off the tank, and if worried use anything other kind of tubing that fits. When you are ready to run the engine that you pickled for the winter, 99.9% of us are not going to tear the engine down again, so that first run will be for flushing out the engine also. Most of us put a new plug in anyway, so why not get one more ground run out of the old one before you take it out? It will smoke and spit some spooge out for about a minute, but then clean up and run normal unless you have a crankcase full of oil!! But just flushing with after run oil, lighter fluid, or ATF and then working out any excess should not be a problem later on when starting it for the first time. After run oil, ATF or air tool oil, are all very similar, and are engineered to cling to and coat parts, so you don't need a huge amount.  I have even used the same plug afterwards as long as I thought it was running normally on a sport model. ( I'm CHEAP!) I have never heard anything about oils harming glow plugs. When cold, oil will cling to the coil, and it will be a very small amount,  but as soon as you put the juice to the plug, it will start to burn off. Give it an extra 30 seconds before flipping the prop for that to happen, and again, on a ground run, just pay attention to how it runs and needles and use your best judgement on what to do after that. This is all stuff I have been doing for a long, long time, on my best ball bearing engines and such. It's all worked well for me. Plain bearing (bushed) engines can tolerate a lot of abuse. I've taken frozen up McCoy .35s, crockpotted them, blow off with an air hose afterwards, flush through the exhaust and intake with some fresh fuel, clean out spray bar, mount on an airplane one ground run to clear it's throat and then go fly. You should see the exhaust that comes out of those for the first minute or so!!. Be careful with the next half dozen flights and carry on!
  Type at you later,
   Dan McEntee