Spring is when we get the calls. The bike will not start. It smells like old fuel. Gasoline is leaking out of a place gasoline is not supposed to leak out of. The battery is dead. All of it is preventable, and most of it gets prevented by the same twenty-minute routine in the fall.

Fuel

Drain the float bowls. Top off the tank with E0 if you can find it, or E10 plus Sta-Bil 360 Marine. Run the bike for ten minutes after adding stabilizer so the treated fuel actually makes it into the carbs (without that step you have a treated tank and untreated bowls).

The reason for a full tank is that an empty tank rusts from the vapor space at the top. The reason for stabilizer is that the gas is going to sit for four months. The reason for draining the float bowls is that the float bowl is where varnish forms first, and the bowl gasket is where ethanol does the most damage.

If you remember to do nothing else from this article, drain the float bowls. Turn the petcock off, let the bike idle until it stalls. Five seconds. This single habit eliminates most spring-start problems.

Battery

Put it on a tender. Battery Tender Jr. ($35) or NOCO Genius (similar). Do not disconnect and walk away — modern AGM batteries and old-school lead-acid both want a maintenance charge over a long sit. A tender keeps the battery topped off without overcharging.

If the bike will be in a place where you cannot run an extension cord, pull the battery out and bring it inside. Charge it once a month with a small charger. A neglected battery is the most common spring failure and the cheapest to prevent.

Tires

Roll the bike a quarter turn every few weeks if you can. If you cannot, slide a piece of cardboard or a 2x4 under each tire to keep the rubber off the cold concrete. Concrete leaches heat out of the tire and the spot under the contact patch flats over time.

Flat spots usually round out after a few miles of riding when warm. Not always. The fix is rolling the bike during storage, not believing the tire will "remember." If a customer comes in with a bike that has flat-spotted tires that did not round out, the tires were already worn or aged out before the storage.

Fluids

Change the engine oil before storage, not after. The combustion byproducts in used oil — acids, moisture — are what corrode bearings and journal surfaces over a long sit. Fresh oil sits clean and protects.

Gearbox and primary oil can wait until spring unless they are clearly tired (smell burnt, look dark, have been in for two seasons). Brake fluid does not need a flush every winter — every two years is the rhythm we keep.

Cover

A breathable cotton or motorcycle-specific cover. Not a plastic tarp. A plastic tarp traps moisture against the tank and you will come back to a rusted tank under a "protected" bike.

If the bike is indoors, the cover is mostly dust protection. If the bike is in an unheated garage where humidity swings, the cover plus a dehumidifier is the right combination. Damp Rid containers near the bike work in a pinch.

Where in the garage

As far from the door as possible. Doors leak cold air, doors leak warm air, and the cycle of temperature swings is harder on a bike than steady cold. Concrete floors are colder than insulated walls — a board under the tires helps. Run a dehumidifier if you have one and the space is enclosed.

The thing nobody mentions

Turn the engine over by hand once a month. Pull the spark plugs, fold the kick lever down, and rotate the crank through two or three revolutions. Five seconds. This moves oil onto the cylinder walls, keeps the rings happy, and warns you if anything has seized while you were not looking. It is the single thing that distinguishes a well-stored bike from a stored one.

Spring start is a thirty-second job if you did the fall right.

When spring comes

Plug in the battery (it should already be there). Refill the float bowls by opening the petcock and letting them fill. Two or three kicks. The bike that was right when it went in will start right when it comes out. The bike that was wrong when it went in is going to need a Saturday in March either way.