Motorcycle Storage Woes: Will Your Bike Start After Months of Inactivity?

Sometimes we question it. Like, when we’re busy with work and the motorcycle’s been sitting in the garage for months, the thought pops up: “Is my bike actually safe in there?” Especially for people living in four-season countries—most can only ride during the summer when the weather’s decent. The rest of the year, the bike just sits in storage.

From what I know, as long as your bike’s in a garage or some other safe spot, and you’ve taken out the battery and covered it up, it’ll probably fire right up when you’re ready. Honestly, I’ve seen people pull bikes straight out of storage—sometimes even out of a warehouse—and get them running. Maybe not instantly, but with a little tinkering, no big deal.

I guess that’s because motorcycles are pretty simple machines. As long as nothing’s actually broken, they’ll usually start without too much fuss. Of course, it depends on how long it’s been sitting and what kind of shape it’s in, but it’s rarely a major issue.

After about six months, though, the fuel in the tank might go bad—especially if it’s been sitting in a garage. So you’ll want to drain that and put in fresh gas. The same goes for the oil and other fluids; they might be a bit contaminated. But even then, it’s nothing too serious. Once that’s taken care of, the bike should start up just fine.

The problem is the animals—mice and other critters can get into the motorbike and mess with the parts inside. The most common issue is mice chewing on cables and nesting in the air filter box. Obviously, that’s going to cause damage.

Moisture is another big issue, especially for fuel-injected bikes. Moisture can seep into the electronic components and slowly wreck them. You might not even realize it until something shorts out when the power kicks in. This hasn’t just happened once or twice in my experience. Even though manufacturers usually beef up the electronics to handle stuff like this, the real issue is those tiny animals that sneak in.

I’ve dealt with this a bunch of times—mice or other critters getting into the engine area, chewing wires, and just generally making a mess. You can cover your bike and store it in a decent place, but sometimes that’s not enough. The best defense is using the bike regularly or warming it up from time to time to keep animals away. Some people use traps, poison, or other tricks, but honestly, having a cat around works best for me. The critters tend to stay away from the garage if there’s a cat nearby.

In general, the steps you should take before starting up a motorcycle that’s been sitting idle are pretty straightforward. First, make sure there aren’t any animals hiding in or around the bike. Once that’s clear, hook up the battery and add some fresh gas. It’s also a good idea to spray a bit of starter fluid, even if the bike doesn’t seem like it needs it—it just helps things along. Before actually firing it up, crank the engine a few times to get the oil moving through the system. Once it starts and everything sounds okay, it’s smart to change the oil—especially if the bike’s been sitting for a long time. Old oil usually picks up gunk and contaminants, so fresh oil will help it run better.

But hey, all this isn’t a huge deal if you’re patient. Damaged parts can be replaced, and once that's done, you’re good to ride again. If you’re storing the bike long-term, like over a year, just make sure to drain the gas tank and take out the battery. The battery will go flat, and the fuel can go bad and gunk up the system. That’s pretty standard procedure for long-term storage.