Colt Case Ingersoll Garden Tractors

Looking for tips and tricks for long term winter storage of my GT's - Once we get a significant accumulation of snow up north I won't be going back to visit until spring thaw...

Now that Grandpa is charging his battery again it's time to kick him out of the house and drag him kicking and screaming to the backwoods for the winter... It's not really that dramatic but it is time to start moving some of my tractors and attachments up north so I can clear up the clutter in the city backyard. Hopefully our city property will be listed / sold before next summer so I'm trying to be a little pro-active and not leave hauling this stuff up there 'til the last minute.

I've got a fabric cover for now, and before the snow really starts to accumulate up there I'm hoping to build some sort of woood structure to protect the tractor(s) from the accumulated snow - last winter there was 2-3 feet of accumulation and it lasted until the end of March.
Depending on time and conditions I'll either make a glorified shipping crate (just big enough to enclose the tractor) or some sort of tiny drive shed, big enough for 2 or 3 tractors and some attachments...

My plan was to give it a good grease job, check oil levels, but leave an oil change 'til spring start up. Fill the gas tank to the top with premium gas and some stabilizer. Install a fuel shut off valve and run the tractor until the carburettor is out of fuel, bring the batteries home and leave them on a trickle charger for the winter, spray the exposed chrome on the cylinders with Crown or Honey Goo. For the attachments - stand the decks up on edge and give the underside of the deck a good scrape and spray some Crown on the cutting edges and exposed pulley grooves. Tiller, box blade, plow etc - spray the shiny parts with Crown, and then put them on some skids and cover them with tarps so they don't disappear into the mud in the spring.

Am I forgetting anything? Don't want to be next spring if I can help it...
Thanks for any and all suggestions /comments

Sounds good to me. I’d be putting moth balls or bounce sheets on and in around the tractors. Have the tires setting on wood. Store battery on wood. Just a couple of thoughts.
I’ll add if I think of any thing else.



Noel

I'm currently working on a tire on my yard vac trailer that sat flat all winter, and then the tire sidewall has a 4" long split right at the point where it folded in half against the dirt. I'm trying to get another season or so out of it, sewing the gash closed with heavy thread, and gluing a rubber patch on both the interior and exterior. Then run it with a tube in it.

But the tire would still be usable (Old and cracked and dried out, but usable) if I hadn't let it sit there on a flat.

So I wish I had put the axle up on blocks so that the tires weren't sitting on the ground.

And you might want to consider that too.

Yes , lube and rust proof the best you can .
Moth balls and bonce sheets under the seat and hood .
No fabric covers , Cause sweating and places to critters to shelter .
A Seacan is the best thing . But if that is not possible , an "A" frame made of 2x4s covered in barn roofing strapped down to the machine from the inside to ankcore down . Done correctly , these can then be separted and will be prefabed shed walls in the spring .
Anything sheeted in wood will sicome to critters looking for shelter .
Good luck , hope this helps .

Great Suggestions!

Mouse deterrence is definitely high up on the list, after the time spent mending all the chewed wires on the 222 this summer I'd rather not repeat that experience next spring

Blocking up the tractors so the tires are off the ground is a good point, all of the rubber is old and I've noticed one of the rear tires on Maxine (222) starting to sag. If there is time in the next few weeks I may shop for some new inner tubes. - Or I'll block it up and deal with the tire issues in the spring.

The Seacan / shipping container idea is an awesome and quick easy solution - I would love to have the $$ to get a second one. The 20' container we have now is starting to fill up with boxes of personal/household stuff. I think might have issues with garden tractors sharing the same space. Especially when the gas tanks start to vent on warm days.

I'll start doing some sketches and watching for good used steel roofing on FB Marketplace. The 4 week plan (weather permitting) is to make one trip a week, moving stuff up there, and the last trip will be to wrap everything up before serious snow accumulates. Then there will still be some time for playing lumberjack after everything is organized. I'll try to take/share some progress photos.

I guess one should never say "never" - after discussing our plans over lunch suggested that maybe getting a 2nd Seacan for Tractors and Truck parts would be a good idea. A quick fix and it will let me concentrate on finishing stuff around the house, rather than add additional distractions of building sheds or making temporary winter storage. That was way too easy...

Do it quick Gerry. Before has a chance to think about what she said and changes mind.


Noel

Yaaaay! Get the 40ft high cube! Part of it will be your shop and tools storage until you build the final one. You'll thank me in 2025!

Edit: ok ok, I'm just pulling your leg. Don't wanna get shot by your

I've been looking at containers myself, but not for storage, rather for an overseas shipment. The prices for a used container are funny, the 40 ft is not double the price of the 20 ft, just a few hundreds more. If I had the room here and if the township allowed, I'd have bought a big one. But alas, that's not the case.

If you ever need to move/reposition one, you'll be much happier fighting with a 20' than a 40'... My loader can just pick up one end of an empty 20'. From there I threw logs under it as rollers. I wouldn't have had enough lift to get anything under a 40' back then. (having a crane now, I could, but that was then, and this is now, and most people don't have a crane)

Eugen wrote: ↑Mon Oct 30, 2023 4:00 pm Yaaaay! Get the 40ft high cube! Part of it will be your shop and tools storage until you build the final one. You'll thank me in 2025!

Edit: ok ok, I'm just pulling your leg. Don't wanna get shot by your

I've been looking at containers myself, but not for storage, rather for an overseas shipment. The prices for a used container are funny, the 40 ft is not double the price of the 20 ft, just a few hundreds more. If I had the room here and if the township allowed, I'd have bought a big one. But alas, that's not the case.

Thanks Eugen, don't worry you are safe from (for now anyway)

20' vs 40' is a no brainer at the moment. don't have enough flat level ground anywhere on the 10 acres to place a 40' container - and like @Toolslinger mentioned, moving a small container is much more doable. Long term plans would be to eventually move them apart and build a roof over the space in between, giving me a covered carport with lockable storage on either side.

RoamingGnome wrote: ↑Tue Oct 31, 2023 8:26 am

Eugen wrote: ↑Mon Oct 30, 2023 4:00 pm Yaaaay! Get the 40ft high cube! Part of it will be your shop and tools storage until you build the final one. You'll thank me in 2025!

Edit: ok ok, I'm just pulling your leg. Don't wanna get shot by your

I've been looking at containers myself, but not for storage, rather for an overseas shipment. The prices for a used container are funny, the 40 ft is not double the price of the 20 ft, just a few hundreds more. If I had the room here and if the township allowed, I'd have bought a big one. But alas, that's not the case.

Thanks Eugen, don't worry you are safe from (for now anyway)

20' vs 40' is a no brainer at the moment. don't have enough flat level ground anywhere on the 10 acres to place a 40' container - and like @Toolslinger mentioned, moving a small container is much more doable. Long term plans would be to eventually move them apart and build a roof over the space in between, giving me a covered carport with lockable storage on either side.

Roof plans and or kits are available in everything from wood stick built , metal frames with vinyl covers , to full metal building tops and quanset hut tops .

Busy weekend up at the 'Roost,

We loaded Grandpa onto the trailer on Tuesday and brought him north with a pile of other stuff - it was late in the day and the weather was nasty, so we just dropped the trailer off and made the 5 hr return trip to the city Then on Friday I returned with a 2nd trailer and more attachments Unloaded Grandpa, used the strap winch to ease him off the trailer - no trailer "wheelies" when it rolls onto the ramp/tailgate He seems happy to be playing in the autumn leaves - nice to finally take a photo of one of my tractors NOT in the city backyard Then on Saturday morning we got our 2nd container dropped off...
Spent a few hours jacking up / blocking alternate corners with the trusty Hi-Lift jack until it was all leveled up.
Then the fun work of shuffling stuff around began - now hiding in the back corner of the "garage" container is 4 sets of car tires, and Case stuff ~ 3 mower decks, rototiller, cultivator, single bottom plow, box blade, and still lots of room up front for Grandpa and possibly one of the other tractors...
Lots of work done, still more to do - but I think my winter storage issues are resolved

@RoamingGnome Glad you got it all sorted out . Curious what did it $$ you for a 20'er dropped onsight . Are they new ones or just real nice used ones ?

Nice job getting settled in up North. Grandpa looks very comfortable in the new digs. Harry

Good move with the second container.

DavidBarkey wrote: ↑Sun Nov 05, 2023 4:12 pm @RoamingGnome Glad you got it all sorted out . Curious what did it $$ you for a 20'er dropped onsight . Are they new ones or just real nice used ones ?

It's kinda crazy shopping for containers these days, so many options, so many scammers out there, and the ones with low priced containers usually more than make up for it with inflated shipping prices. I went with a supplier recommended by a neighbour up there, - our first container for "Household stuff" was a "new" one trip container and it was $4400 +taxes, delivery included, for the second one I had asked for a used container - the price for that was $3000 - he didn't have one of those available on Saturday so suggested a one trip container at a discounted price that had been in the yard for a couple of years and was a little rough around the edges - we are now debating the discounted price because while it's got a great paint job, someone dropped another container on it's roof, so the flaws are worse than a 2 year old paint job...

Glad Those prices don’t sound too bad for ready made storage, probably cost at least that much to build something and it would be more difficult to move it around if needed. Is the roof caved in on the second one? I hope it doesn’t hold water. If it is maybe it could be straightened with a 4x4 post and a jack? I guess as long as it’s water tight it will be fine.
I’m glad you got the winter storage sorted out!

Thanks Gerry, it's nice to know all this. You get all that space, and it's weather tight. Plus you can get a roof and have storage in between the containers, for a lot less than building a shop right now.

Thats a good deal . Forgetting the time saved and having it right now . Compare $4400 to what it would cost to stick build a 8 x 20 shed with floor , metal skin and lockable doors.

DavidBarkey wrote: ↑Mon Nov 06, 2023 4:27 pm Thats a good deal . Forgetting the time saved and having it right now . Compare $4400 to what it would cost to stick build a 8 x 20 shed with floor , metal skin and lockable doors.

Exactly! And when the time comes they could be moved further apart and I could have a covered carport with lockable storage on either side.
Winter is coming, and getting as much stuff as possible stored in the containers now will make make the move a lot easier when our house in the city eventually (spring of 2024?) gets listed and sold...