Storing a motorcycle outside?


lukem

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Staff member
My father passed away last week and it looks like I will be getting his 2002 Harley Davidson Fatboy. I have a friend that will let me keep it in his garage but I would like to keep it at my house so I can hop on and ride when I want. I'm hoping to move later this year to someplace that has an attached garage but in the meantime, are there any suggestions on how I could store it without it getting messed up? My location is in New Orleans. I had a parking spot in the back of my house that is cement. I saw some pod type storage options but thought I'd make a post and get some feedback from the members here.
 

Luke, please accept my heartfelt condolences on the passing of your father. I'll keep you and yours in my prayers.

Concerning the bike, you can do a few things. One is to get a good quality full cover. This will protect the bike from rain and harmful radiation from the Sun. It straps underneath to keep it from blowing away and has vents so moisture does not build up inside.

Something like this would work: Link Removed

With something like that, you can fold it up, put it in your saddle bag and ride off.

With a pod type storage: Motorcycle Covers, Motorcycle Shelters, Waterproof Motorcycle Cover, Speed-Way Shelters you might not be able to erect that on the street (check your local laws), and when you ride off, you'd be leaving the shelter on the street, which you also may want to check if you are able to do so within the law. I would get one of these shelters if you are able to park it off the street and you do not have a garage.

If it was me, and I was parking it in the street, I'd go with the first option. I have one of these types of covers when the wife and I go on vacation on the bike and I cannot garage it.
 
Thanks. I do have off street parking behind my house which I was thinking of putting a pod type storage in. A good full cover may not be a bad thing to pick up as well. I'll look into the both of them.

Sent from my SM-N900V using USA Carry mobile app
 
I am sorry to hear of your Father's passing. I will keep you and your family in my prayers.


If your the make it yourself type, Instructions to build a Pod type cover can be found here. --> Motorcycle Shell DIY Garage

I have a cover on my GSX-R, but it is starting to get a little ragged. I've been thinking of making the pod cover I mentioned above and attaching the back side and canter pivot point to the ground with tent nails. That way it won't move unless I want to move it.
 
First off, sorry for your loss mate. On the other hand I am happy for your inheritance. My Sweet Baboo and I ride v-twins, her C50-T and my Vulcan 900. She conceals on her bike, I open carry.
We park in the driveway during the "season" and the covered carport (in the back yard, under the deck) when not. Being in the Great Northwest (Go Hawks) we have a great deal of moisture. We cover both bikes with the standard bike covers, but that is never enough. I erected a ten by twelve popup in the driveway and added walls. Drive the bikes in.....wait till the cool (while covered)....put on individual covers and drop the popup door.
 
Leave a nice fat boy outside in most parts of this once great country & somebody else will be riding your bike before too long, park it in the house!
 
Storing it inside is not an option unless I get an elevator! I'm on a second floor. :)

I can put some kind of wheel locks or something on it while parked so no one can move it right?
 
Sorry for your loss of your father.
If possible, cement a ring into the ground. Attach a kryptonite cable lock from the frame of the bike to the ring. Add a disc lock on the front wheel to keep it from rolling. When you get a cover, get a good one that does NOT have a Harley logo or name on it. Low key is the way to go. Bike should have an alarm on it that disables the electronic system when set. So if someone tries to move it, the lights flash, the horn sounds (if set up that way) and the ignition is no longer functional.
 
Thanks for those tips Icemanii

Sent from my SM-N900V using USA Carry mobile app
 
Storing it inside is not an option unless I get an elevator! I'm on a second floor. :)

I can put some kind of wheel locks or something on it while parked so no one can move it right?

Yup, something like this: Link Removed

However, a few guys and a truck and that motorcycle is picked up and hauled away, lock or not. I believe they are only about 700 lbs if memory serves. If there is a street sign, you can fish a plastic coated chain through the wheel and lock it to the street sign or any such pole.
 
Yup, something like this: Link Removed

However, a few guys and a truck and that motorcycle is picked up and hauled away, lock or not. I believe they are only about 700 lbs if memory serves. If there is a street sign, you can fish a plastic coated chain through the wheel and lock it to the street sign or any such pole.
Good chance you'll come out some morning & have a wheel chained to a post. The pros in the stolen bike parts business can strip one down i a short time, have seen the results @ motels in Sturgis several times.
 
Yup, something like this: Link Removed

However, a few guys and a truck and that motorcycle is picked up and hauled away, lock or not. I believe they are only about 700 lbs if memory serves. If there is a street sign, you can fish a plastic coated chain through the wheel and lock it to the street sign or any such pole.
Good chance you'll come out some morning & have a wheel chained to a post. The pros in the stolen bike parts business can strip one down i a short time, have seen the results @ motels in Sturgis several times.

Any amount of theft protection (be it car, motorcycle, or home) will not stop the professional if they have their eyes locked on your possessions. However, I dare say that a bike that can be carried and put into a truck can be taken a lot quicker than a bike that is chained to a post and through its rear wheel. Yes, you are correct, with proper tools and enough time someone can steal any bike no matter how it is secured, but it sounds as if you are insinuating to do nothing?
 
What I'm saying is that long term outdoor storage should be the last choice. Rent space in a garage or shed or some place you can keep the bike covered & out of sight.
 
Sorry to hear of his passing. Mine, as well passed in 2012 at 102 years old. Regarding your new Harley, storing it beneath a tarp is a good idea. Also, though, get a heavy duty steel chain and chain it (also) to a nearby pole or something immoveable, so 2-legged varmints can't steal it! I rode a Harley when I lived in N. CA and parked it in my carport. It had a heavy steel chain around it, fastened to a pole that was cemented in the ground and attached to the roof of the carport. In fact I would chain the hog whenever I parked it while on the road. It kept the BGs from taking an interest in it and leaving me walking. A Harley is too valuable to just "park" somewhere. They are stolen quite often.
 

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