Not flying much lately, and worried about my plane

Rykymus

Rykymus

Line Up and Wait
Joined
Dec 24, 2014
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647
Location
Allen, TX
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Display name:
Rykymus
When I lived in CA, my plane was in a hangar 15 mins away, and I flew at least once per week, if not twice. Lots of short XC to the bay area, Monterey, Sac, and occasionally down to LA/San Diego. But since moving to the DFW area, I've flown only four times in the last four months. (And that was while the plane was 12 mins away on tie-downs.) Now the plane is safely stored in a hangar but an hour away. Between house hunting, work, and exploring the area, I have very little time to fly these days. And when I do, I don't much feel like driving an hour just to go putz around in the pattern. (And I don't really have the time to go on any XCs right now.)

I'm not as worried about my skills, as I am about my aircraft just sitting there. (I'll go up and brush off the dust before I fly anywhere.) I've heard so many horror stories about planes going to crap because they aren't being flown enough, and I'm a bit concerned that I'm putting myself at risk by letting my aircraft's condition deteriorate.

So, how much is enough? How long is too long?

I know that once things settle down again, I'll have the time to fly at least a few times per month. And my wife wants to take some XC flights to explore Texas, so there will be a reason to fly. And eventually I'll get a hangar closer to home. (I'm on every waiting list in Northeast Texas!)
 
FWIW, Blackstone considers an engine to be inactive if its had less than 5 hours put on it within the past month.

If you don’t have time to fly, it would be best to atleast ground run the engine as often as possible to keep things moving.
 
Ryanb said:
FWIW, Blackstone considers an engine to be inactive if its had less than 5 hours put on it within the past month.

If you don’t have time to fly, it would be best to atleast ground run the engine as often as possible to keep things moving.
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And I've been told that ground running the engine does nothing but spread the moisture around.

I have flown hardly at all this winter myself. Much of the time I had no access to the hangar because of snow. I'm somewhat concerned, but not as much as if it were summer since chemical processes like corrosion happen at a much slower rate at the -20C temperatures we've seen most of the time since December.
 
cgrab said:
Make sure it has some Camguard and check all the nooks and crannies for rodents when you do go see it.
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This is not a bad idea - but be aware that there could be rodents in places where you can't see without (or even with) a borescope. And even once the rodents are gone, the damage they've done may be irreparable.
 
azure said:
And I've been told that ground running the engine does nothing but spread the moisture around.

I have flown hardly at all this winter myself. Much of the time I had no access to the hangar because of snow. I'm somewhat concerned, but not as much as if it were summer since chemical processes like corrosion happen at a much slower rate at the -20C temperatures we've seen most of the time since December.
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Agree, don't run it up on the ground. The engine doesn't get hot enough for the moisture to evaporate. Best case, you're doing no good, worst case, you're doing harm.
 
Lowflynjack said:
Agree, don't run it up on the ground. The engine doesn't get hot enough for the moisture to evaporate. Best case, you're doing no good, worst case, you're doing harm.
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:yeahthat:, I've always been told that it takes at least an hour at flight temps to evaporate all the moisture out of our engines.
 
I told ya having the airplane that far would get in the way of flying it.
 
Kenmore Air Harbor, many decades ago, had a customer service..........to where they would ground run customers seaplanes in the parking lot in the winter.

They stopped doing that a few years later after all those engines rusted out.
 
I can’t see how ground running could harm the engine anymore than not running it at all, so long as it’s kept under proper temperatures while doing so.
 
Bobanna said:
In my nsho, you'll be a lot better off to keep the airframe and engine dry and lubricated by finding someone to rent/dry-lease the plane until you have you situation better resolved. Be picky, but I'm sure trustworthy and competent operators are easily available to you. Just watch-out for neanderthals.
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So easy a cave-man can do it!
 
Ryanb said:
I can’t see how ground running could harm the engine anymore than not running it at all, so long as it’s kept under proper temperatures while doing so.
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The problem is you are not getting the engine hot enough. The point of running it is to get it hot enough to remove the moisture from the crankcase and get the oil pumping and coating everything. You are mainly trying to prevent internal rust and corrosion. It really needs to be taken out and flown.

Kind of like the argument whether to pull the prop through every so often if you don't fly. All you are doing is scraping the oil from the cylinder walls and not replacing it. If the engine were running it would recoat the surfaces.
 
Find a pilot that will fly it for you. If your not sure of their skills ,pay for an instructor to give them a checkout.
 
Suck it up, snowball. What do you think VFR pilots do in the middle of Northern winters when the skies are grey for weeks at a time?
 
Take on a few partners. Give them a moderately low buy in so they are legally partial owners but it's still your plane. Then they can pay a usage fee into the common fund for the hours they use. Don't mix the money.

Because they are owners, this is not a rental situation and it doesn't force you into rental rules. It is a partnership...an unequal partnership, but still a partnership.
 
Partners. Not only does it help reduce fixed cost per person, but the plane gets more use. A flying plane is a happy plane.
 
I haven't got experience with Camguard, but I'm told that would have solved, or at least minimized, the issue that sent my Maule to early overhaul.

When I was flying only once a month or so in the summer (instead of just slowing down in the winter when the oil can't run much), the cams rusted due to lack of protection and wore down rapidly when I did fly. Got to where it would run rough at WOT.
 
Bounce dryer sheets are excellent rodent repellent.
 
midwestpa24 said:
The problem is you are not getting the engine hot enough. The point of running it is to get it hot enough to remove the moisture from the crankcase and get the oil pumping and coating everything. You are mainly trying to prevent internal rust and corrosion. It really needs to be taken out and flown.

Kind of like the argument whether to pull the prop through every so often if you don't fly. All you are doing is scraping the oil from the cylinder walls and not replacing it. If the engine were running it would recoat the surfaces.
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I stand corrected. Thank you
 
Ryanb said:
FWIW, Blackstone considers an engine to be inactive if its had less than 5 hours put on it within the past month.

If you don’t have time to fly, it would be best to atleast ground run the engine as often as possible to keep things moving.
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That's not a good idea unless the engine gets hot enough to cook off moisture in the engine.
 
I really wouldn't worry about it, much of the sitting thing is a OWT.

I mean if it were true, based off the age most of the fleet, nearly any plane that doesn't have 10,000+ hours on it should have fallen apart from "sitting".

Your plane is in a hangar, only thing I might do is use some camguard and also leave a trickle charger on it.
 
I'm in the same boat.... I drive past the airport on my way home from work every day,,, and the last time I went flying was Feb 3rd.. between packing up to move, weather, and life, there is just no time to go fly. Camguard it and fly it to dry out the inside, then park it as needed... I worry, but what good does worrying do??.. best to get to flying it.
 
I used Camguard with Phillips X/C in my Lycoming on the RV-4. I used Aeroshell Oil W 100+ in my Continental C-85 on Cub. Both Camguard and both 100+ are good for engines which sit for longer periods of time. When both my planes were 15 minutes away, I averaged flying them each 5 hours/month. Since I had to move my Cub an hour away (by car) I haven't been able to fly it nearly as much. Hoping to have them both back together and close in the next couple of months. Right now, my flying is drive 15 minutes to another nearby airport I moved the RV to, fly the RV down to where the Cub lives (18 minute flight), fly the Cub for at least an hour and then fly RV back home.
 
I flew my airplane once a month for 6 months and it wasnt any worse for the wear. Engine was fine both before and after. My mechanic bought a plane that hadnt flown for 5 years (it did have its prop turned once a month) and its engine was ok (didnt need a rebuild). Dry Colorado probably helped.
 
My airplane got flown 10 hours a year for the 6 years before I owned it. It was just fine. I hope it still is, since its still sitting in the damn avionics shop.:mad::mad::(:mad::mad::(:(:mad:
 
Personally? I'd change the oil and add Phillips Anti Rust oil and fly it once a month. When you get more regular with flying change the oil back to your normal oil. Phillips Anti Rust is a fly-away storage oil. It isn't AD so you're not supposed to fly it more than 10 hours but that's a few months with your schedule, and this way your engine is protected in between flights.

Continental published a service letter for temporary storage, which they define as 30-90 days. That uses preservative oil and adds fogging the cylinders. Under 30 days shouldn't be a problem.
 
Ryanb said:
FWIW, Blackstone considers an engine to be inactive if its had less than 5 hours put on it within the past month.

If you don’t have time to fly, it would be best to atleast ground run the engine as often as possible to keep things moving.
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from what i have read... ground run and taxi around does no good
 
steingar said:
My airplane got flown 10 hours a year for the 6 years before I owned it. It was just fine. I hope it still is, since its still sitting in the damn avionics shop.:mad::mad::(:mad::mad::(:(:mad:
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Good luck Michael! Mine is still sitting... in the hangar, waiting to get into the shop to be jacked up and the gear swung to determine if there is really a problem. :mad: :mad2:
 
Last year I bought a Grumman Tiger that had flown 23 hours in 30 months. I budgeted for issues and virtually nothing was needed.

Get your move done, fly when you can and get back at it when you can. Camguard isn’t a bad idea.

Not to steal a thread, but is it OK to add Camguard 25 hours after an oil change?
 
TheFB said:
Last year I bought a Grumman Tiger that had flown 23 hours in 30 months. I budgeted for issues and virtually nothing was needed.

Get your move done, fly when you can and get back at it when you can. Camguard isn’t a bad idea.

Not to steal a thread, but is it OK to add Camguard 25 hours after an oil change?
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Adding Camguard late in the process isn't going to harm anything. It might not help as much as an oil change but it will have similar effect. Without trying to go into details neutralize the acids and coat exposed surfaces.
 
azure said:
Good luck Michael! Mine is still sitting... in the hangar, waiting to get into the shop to be jacked up and the gear swung to determine if there is really a problem. :mad: :mad2:
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It gets better. After waiting since Thanksgiving it finally has its new avionics, and was just getting its brand new transponder certified. Oops, brand new transponder doesn't work. So now I get to wait for the manufacturer to send a new transponder, and for it to be installed in the airplane. I told the avionics guy that I would take the damn thing uncertified and just stay out of controlled airspace until I could get it done.
 
Stewartb said:
Personally? I'd change the oil and add Phillips Anti Rust oil and fly it once a month. When you get more regular with flying change the oil back to your normal oil. Phillips Anti Rust is a fly-away storage oil. It isn't AD so you're not supposed to fly it more than 10 hours but that's a few months with your schedule, and this way your engine is protected in between flights.

Great idea, moreover, the Aviation Anti-rust Oil is compatible with our other aviation engine oils, and may be used as a “supplement” to those products to enhance rust and corrosion protection when used in infrequently flown aircraft, particularly where high humidity is a concern. When used as a supplement, they recommend replacing up to 10% of the crankcase volume with Aviation Anti-rust Oil in place of the normal operational engine oil.
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I would move the plane closer (12 Min Away) on tie down and fly more. The weather damage is not as bad as engine damage in a hanger 1 hour away and few flying hours.
 
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