Perhaps Dumb Question About Maine (big house, maintenance, storage)

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by TRlaura

It also helps to disconnect the security system to prevent any unnecessary draining of the battery. I'll sometimes leave my car sitting at the airport for 3 straight weeks in the cold and have always had my car start.

How do you do that?

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by doghead

Hi, a friend of mine says that you need to garage your car in Maine; otherwise, the battery will die. I can't believe that all rental apartments offer garages. Is this true? Thanks.

Unless you heat your garage, it will be the same temperature as the outside. There used to be engine heaters in a dipstick in the oil, but some of them were very very cheap and the caught fire and so they were removed from the market. I think you can still buy them with a plug on the oil drain plug---probably from JC Whitney.

if it is garaged, and you have electricity in the garage, you can put a metal box with a 60 watt incandescent bulb(if you can find one) under the oil pan. it wont start a fire and it will keep the oil a little bit warmer.

You can get heating pads for the battery so that it is warmer and thus gives more starting power.

I don’t drive my two cars(a Pontiac Torrent(same as a Chevy Equinox) AWD, and a Subaru Impreza) every day, and so it might be 4 or 5 days between drivings. They both always start up.

It got down to -18 two years ago and I wondered if they would start, but they did.

You should let them idle a bit when its below 32. The transmission and engine work a lot better if you let it idle for about 2-3 minutes before pulling away. Use less time when its warmer and more time when its very very cold.

And another plug for winter tires: 3 season rubber is designed for handling temperatures of upwards to 100 degrees. 3 season(called erroneously all season) tires become rock hard below 20F degrees, and like marble below 10F. if you expect those tires to be pliable enough to grip the road at 0F, forget about it. Of course if you want to wear your winter tires down fast, then run them when the temps are above 60F.

[Submariner]

You do not 'need' a garage. But, ...

One year we decided to add a carport to our house. That has became the best improvement to our standard-of-living, that we could have imagined.

Sometimes freezing sleet will coat an exposed car with ice.

Do you 'want' to be out there in howling wind scraping ice off a windshield?

The previous night's storm dumped 4 inches of snow, no big deal right? But the wind made it into a snow drift against one side of your car. So now you must shovel that snow to get it away from your car.

With a roof over our cars and our tractor, our vehicles are generally ice and snowfree whenever we go out to them.

It makes a huge difference.

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by Submariner

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Do you 'want' to be out there in howling wind scraping ice off a windshield?

For less than the cost of a carport, I made a vinyl cover for my windshields. It attaches with magnets to the car, and is flexible enough even at single digits. I roll it up when I’m done and put it back in the car.

Way way less cost than a car port.

I move use the snowblower right up against the side of the car. Almost no shoveling anymore.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

"Do you 'want' to be out there in howling wind scraping ice off a windshield?"

Good point, Sub. Marden's has 5 x 7 foot tarps on sale for $1.23. At that price you can get 8 of them for ten bucks. When we are forecastto get a wet snow or freezing rain I close the right front door on a tarp, lay it across the windshield and across the top, close the driver's door and in the morning, just flip the tarp and it all comes off. Make sure you cover the wipers too so they are not frozen into a block of ice.

Buy Rainex washer fluid and frost and light ice will come right off your windshield with a couple of swipes of your wipers. It's the orange stuff and worth the price. The cheap blue stuff evaporates very fast and leave a glaze of ice on your windshield.

An additional tip is to coat the door seals with silicone spray. It's a real nuisance to unlock the door and not be able to open it. You end up opening another door or the rear hatch and climbing to the driver's seat, much to the entertainment of your neighbors. Silicone spray is also available at Marden's.

[Gerania]

I use a tarp, too. One year there was so much heavy, wet snow on it, I had to move half of the snow just so I could pull it off.

[OpinionExperience]

Originally Posted by Gerania

I use a tarp, too. One year there was so much heavy, wet snow on it, I had to move half of the snow just so I could pull it off.

Tarp is a good idea. Tie it to a tree and just pull out to drag it off, if you don't mind a few scratches.

I used a plastic shovel to clear mine at times when it is a real heavy snow anyway.

[maineborzoi]

No you do not need a garage. We have been here 3 and a half years, on an older van to start with, and not a problem.
If you have a poor battery- get a new one every few years, but no - you do not need a garage for your car. If anything- going fro a warmer to colder place back and forth, and do not let your car warm up with short trips could do more damage to your exhaust...

[Gerania]

Originally Posted by OpinionExperience

Tarp is a good idea. Tie it to a tree and just pull out to drag it off, if you don't mind a few scratches.

I used a plastic shovel to clear mine at times when it is a real heavy snow anyway.

Well, there was a big Maple about 20 feet away. I would have killed the tarp. It was stuck to the car. This was only in NEPA. Not even as far North as Maine.

There were some epic snowstorms there years ago. My brother, sister and I made an igloo in the snow bank attached to the family car.

Drive? It's not happening this week. The 1960s were so much fun.

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man

"Do you 'want' to be out there in howling wind scraping ice off a windshield?"

Good point, Sub. Marden's has 5 x 7 foot tarps on sale for $1.23.

Thank you.

"I should have bought it when I saw it at Mardens"

Though I prefer to park under a roof.