Winter Care

Mouse poison carries the risk of collateral damage to raptors:

https://www.audubon.org/magazine/jan...nts-have-safer

On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 2:23:50 PM UTC-8, Ron Gleason wrote:
For many or most of us, winter is here and the gliders are parked for a number of months. I have removed every battery from the cockpit, put mouse poison in the trailer and taken out anything that should not freeze (waxes, plexi-glass cleaners etc).

What is the best way store glider batteries, specifically LiPO4's? Just plug them in the charger? Does it matter if they are in the house or in a cold garage?

What the PDA's and PNA's? Again just keep them on the charger in the warm house?

Any other items folks do to bundle up their gliders?

Ron Gleason

I'd be particularly interested in hearing proven strategies from those who are storing gliders in their trailers in wet climates with no power available at the trailer.

On Sunday, November 29, 2015 at 11:20:05 PM UTC-6, bumper wrote:
Mouse poison carries the risk of collateral damage to raptors:

https://www.audubon.org/magazine/jan...nts-have-safer

Agree on this one. I would much rather use the old snap traps, and throw out the dead ones. Yeah, they are vicious, and mice will eat their own dead.. But, I hear too many stories of hawks, owls, etc, being killed by poisoned mice. Oh, and the poison typically de-hydrates them, and they somehow think that inside your glider, they will find the water they are looking for.. If they dig deep enough.

Sorry, Craig. No advice on storing in damp without power. Get it dry. Grease up the metal parts, and wait for spring!

On Monday, November 30, 2015 at 1:51:49 PM UTC-8, Steve Leonard wrote:
On Sunday, November 29, 2015 at 11:20:05 PM UTC-6, bumper wrote:
Mouse poison carries the risk of collateral damage to raptors:

https://www.audubon.org/magazine/jan...nts-have-safer

Agree on this one. I would much rather use the old snap traps, and throw out the dead ones. Yeah, they are vicious, and mice will eat their own dead. But, I hear too many stories of hawks, owls, etc, being killed by poisoned mice. Oh, and the poison typically de-hydrates them, and they somehow think that inside your glider, they will find the water they are looking for. If they dig deep enough.

Sorry, Craig. No advice on storing in damp without power. Get it dry. Grease up the metal parts, and wait for spring!

Thanks Steve. Mine's nice and dry in a heated workshop for the winter. I'm organizing a local seminar (Seattle WA, USA) though to share best practices for winter storage and maintenance tasks. Hoping to mine some community wisdom from RAS (I know, I'm an optimist).
Craig

On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 5:23:50 PM UTC-5, Ron Gleason wrote:
For many or most of us, winter is here and the gliders are parked for a number of months. I have removed every battery from the cockpit, put mouse poison in the trailer and taken out anything that should not freeze (waxes, plexi-glass cleaners etc).

What is the best way store glider batteries, specifically LiPO4's? Just plug them in the charger? Does it matter if they are in the house or in a cold garage?

What the PDA's and PNA's? Again just keep them on the charger in the warm house?

Any other items folks do to bundle up their gliders?

Ron Gleason

Does anyone use mothballs?

Hard to collect enough moths to make it worthwhile

On Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 8:03:45 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 5:23:50 PM UTC-5, Ron Gleason wrote:
For many or most of us, winter is here and the gliders are parked for a number of months. I have removed every battery from the cockpit, put mouse poison in the trailer and taken out anything that should not freeze (waxes, plexi-glass cleaners etc).

What is the best way store glider batteries, specifically LiPO4's? Just plug them in the charger? Does it matter if they are in the house or in a cold garage?

What the PDA's and PNA's? Again just keep them on the charger in the warm house?

Any other items folks do to bundle up their gliders?

Ron Gleason

Does anyone use mothballs?

Mice seem to hate moth balls and really hate mint.
UH

On Wednesday, December 2, 2015 at 9:05:02 AM UTC-5, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 8:03:45 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 5:23:50 PM UTC-5, Ron Gleason wrote:
For many or most of us, winter is here and the gliders are parked for a number of months. I have removed every battery from the cockpit, put mouse poison in the trailer and taken out anything that should not freeze (waxes, plexi-glass cleaners etc).

What is the best way store glider batteries, specifically LiPO4's? Just plug them in the charger? Does it matter if they are in the house or in a cold garage?

What the PDA's and PNA's? Again just keep them on the charger in the warm house?

Any other items folks do to bundle up their gliders?

Ron Gleason

Does anyone use mothballs?

Mice seem to hate moth balls and really hate mint.
UH

I've had good luck with dryer fabric softener sheets; no critters since I started using them.

....And Bounce dryer sheets are the bomb for removing dried on bugs. Use
a wet Bounce sheet and watch the bugs melt. I learned that from a lot
of cross country on my Harley. Works great on the polycarbonate
windshield but I'd try a discreet area before using it on my canopy.

On 12/2/2015 7:07 AM, Dan Daly wrote:
On Wednesday, December 2, 2015 at 9:05:02 AM UTC-5, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 8:03:45 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 5:23:50 PM UTC-5, Ron Gleason wrote:
For many or most of us, winter is here and the gliders are parked for a number of months. I have removed every battery from the cockpit, put mouse poison in the trailer and taken out anything that should not freeze (waxes, plexi-glass cleaners etc).

What is the best way store glider batteries, specifically LiPO4's? Just plug them in the charger? Does it matter if they are in the house or in a cold garage?

What the PDA's and PNA's? Again just keep them on the charger in the warm house?

Any other items folks do to bundle up their gliders?

Ron Gleason
Does anyone use mothballs?
Mice seem to hate moth balls and really hate mint.
UH
I've had good luck with dryer fabric softener sheets; no critters since I started using them.

--
Dan, 5J

On Wednesday, December 2, 2015 at 8:05:02 AM UTC-6,

Mice seem to hate moth balls and really hate mint.
UH

Interesting, Hank. Kansas Mice don't seem to mind them. In fact, they chewed through a sock that was holding them in one sailplane at my field! I tend towards Bounce fabric softener sheets and spring traps if I think I have mice already in the trailer. As with any solution, YMMV.

Steve Leonard