How To Prepare Your Car For Long-Term Storage

When you have a car that you need to prepare for long-term storage, you need to know a few things. And where else would you find tips for preparing a car for long-term storage if not here? So without any further ado, here is what you need to know if you are preparing your car for long-term storage.

Paperwork is important even if you are not using your car

What many people seem to forget is that you might need your car at one point even if you are keeping it in a storage unit. Maybe not for driving it around town but for moving for example. Not all moving companies want to ship cars as there are special companies that do that. This is when a problem occurs. You can't use the car if it doesn't have valid paperwork such as registration and insurance. Make sure you set a reminder for when you need to renew your registration on the car that you are storing. That way you won't find yourself in the situation we mentioned before and you won't have to pay for a moving company and a car relocation company. If your car has valid registration, you can simply drive it to your new location. And if you need a reliable mover, movingkings.com are the best ones we can recommend.

Service your car before you store it

For the same reason as before, you need your stored car to be in good condition because you never know when you will need it. The engine and fluids have to be in good shape before you store your car long-term. If they aren't the way they should be, you might not be able to start your car. This can, once again, create a problem. And why let it occur when you can avoid it? There are many reasons to move to Orlando, one of them is that they have cheap car servicing. So if you were thinking about it, this is another thing you can add to your "Why it is a good idea to move to Orlando?" list.

Things you must do before storing your car

There are other things you must do before you store your car. You need to change the fluids that contain sediments. These fluids are oils, coolant, transmission, and brake fluid. If you live in colder parts of the country, you can't forget to run out windshield washer fluid as it can freeze and cause a lot of damage to your car. What many people do wrong is to leave their tank empty. Leaving your tank empty allows mold and condensation to occur. These things might not sound dangerous, but if you are storing your car long-term, mold and condensation can do a lot of harm to your car.

You must also remember to check all the components of your engine such as belts, filters, hoses. Everything must be in perfect condition for long-term storing. A step a lot of people forget is to lubricate the car doors. When cars are kept in storage for a long time, the oils in the door can evaporate and you might damage something the next time you open it. So feel free to pour a lot of oil.

Don't leave your car dirty

Before storing you car you must thoroughly clean both on the inside and the outside. You can do it on your own or have a car washing service do it for you. Either way, you car must be very clean. If it is dirty on the inside, the dirty smell can get into the fabric and your car will stay smelly no matter how many times you wash it after. Make sure there is no dust inside and outside before you cover it. There are special car dusters that you should use. Throw away any trash and put up one of those car perfumes that you can purchase at every gas station. This will leave your car smelling fresh and nice the next time you decide to use it.

As you will clean the inside, you need to clean the outside part too. Wash, buff, and wax your car. This will serve as protection to the color of your car. Use the best car wash soap for your car in order to maintain it's color the way it was when you first got it.

Don't leave your car uncovered

If you do all this and leave your car uncovered, you did it for nothing. You need to buy a car cover or make one yourself. This will serve as another layer of protection. These covers keep away the dust particles and moisture. So even if you skipped a step or two, you won't have a lot of trouble later. Use wheel locks to protect your car from getting stolen. You never know when someone is looking so it is better to be safe than sorry. These wheel locks work great and you won't have to worry too much.

Keep the storage unit as clean as possible

Every storage unit needs to be maintained but the ones where you are storing your car have to have special care. You have to make sure that there is no direct sunlight on your car as sunlight can damage the paint. But if you have a cover, that is not something you have to worry about. Make sure to put at least one of those air cleaning devices that also absorb moisture. Believe it or not, moisture can be very harmful to your car both inside and outside. If you live in colder parts of the country, having a garage heater isn't a bad idea at all.