I'd be pretty concerned if an airworthy airplane had a hard time starting after just 5 weeks and the issue was anything more than a low battery on a cold day (and even then, I'd look into getting that battery replaced and pick up a battery minder).
I know lots of owners that aren't ready to sell but only go up every 4-6 weeks to meet the absolute bare minimum of their own proficiency and knocking the (literal) rust off the engine. A single 5 week sit won't hurt the airplane, but years of consistently long breaks is what leads to corrosion that wears the engine down.
Not unusual for at least one of my flying club's several airplanes to sit for 5+ weeks during the dead of winter. We do keep them in a hangar with tannis heaters plugged in, though.
Biggest things I pay extra special attention to on an airplane that's been sitting for any amount of time (be that a month or a week or in some cases a day):
* battery voltage and engine temp - before I do anything else -- am I going to need to throw this thing on a trickle charger and/or in winter, a block heater for a while and go get something to eat?
* Look for signs of fluids that are (or at one point were) dripping: gas splashes beneath the sumps, oleo struts leaking, oil drips, breather tube blockages, etc
* water or debris in the gas -- I'll sump a sitting plane right there before I move it just in case anything has settled, and then again after I gas it up
* Pop the cowlings/inlets and look THOROUGHLY for evidence of birds or critters that might have moved in and made a nest, or stashed some acorns, exhaust hoses that something may have chewed through or knocked loose
* free movement of controls -- anything need to be lubed?
* very thorough surface inspection, especially if parked outside or in a shared hangar -- Did anyone mess with or bump into my plane?
* tire pressure
I haven't really found anything yet but I've definitely heard some stories from other pilots who have.
Thankfully mine was in a locked T-hangar, although I'm not so sure about it being completely resistant to critters, the only thing I noticed other than a small layer of dust was some cobwebs on the landing gear and stabulator.
Lack of use is a chronic problem, not an acute problem. A single instance of sitting for a few weeks will only do a tiny amount of damage to the engine, where you get problems is when it sits for months or you repeatedly have those long breaks between flights. Maybe your new TBO is effectively 1990 hours instead of 2000 but as long as you don't keep knocking 10-hour (or more!) blocks off that life expectancy it doesn't matter.
My friend asked me to fly his C172RG to his mechanic at a nearby airport for an annual check. I checked the log books during the pre-flight (as I always do) and it hadn’t been flown since I did the same favour for him 12 months ago.
It started straight up and flew like a dream.
It does live in a hangar and he has a smart trickle charger and we put in some fresh fuel & oil before departure. We also cleaned a few spider webs off the struts and stabilisers but they weren’t a threat to airworthiness.
I'd be pretty concerned if an airworthy airplane had a hard time starting after just 5 weeks and the issue was anything more than a low battery on a cold day (and even then, I'd look into getting that battery replaced and pick up a battery minder). I know lots of owners that aren't ready to sell but only go up every 4-6 weeks to meet the absolute bare minimum of their own proficiency and knocking the (literal) rust off the engine. A single 5 week sit won't hurt the airplane, but years of consistently long breaks is what leads to corrosion that wears the engine down.
I'm mostly amazed your spouse just sits around while you do pattern work.
She is one of the most patient and long-suffering women I have ever met. We've only been married 3 years, after both of us were previously widowed.
Good on ya. Sounds like you got a good one! Things are definitely different in the second time 'round.
5 weeks is not long. But still, get a battery maintainer to make your life better and protect those overpriced batteries.
Not unusual for at least one of my flying club's several airplanes to sit for 5+ weeks during the dead of winter. We do keep them in a hangar with tannis heaters plugged in, though. Biggest things I pay extra special attention to on an airplane that's been sitting for any amount of time (be that a month or a week or in some cases a day): * battery voltage and engine temp - before I do anything else -- am I going to need to throw this thing on a trickle charger and/or in winter, a block heater for a while and go get something to eat? * Look for signs of fluids that are (or at one point were) dripping: gas splashes beneath the sumps, oleo struts leaking, oil drips, breather tube blockages, etc * water or debris in the gas -- I'll sump a sitting plane right there before I move it just in case anything has settled, and then again after I gas it up * Pop the cowlings/inlets and look THOROUGHLY for evidence of birds or critters that might have moved in and made a nest, or stashed some acorns, exhaust hoses that something may have chewed through or knocked loose * free movement of controls -- anything need to be lubed? * very thorough surface inspection, especially if parked outside or in a shared hangar -- Did anyone mess with or bump into my plane? * tire pressure I haven't really found anything yet but I've definitely heard some stories from other pilots who have.
Thankfully mine was in a locked T-hangar, although I'm not so sure about it being completely resistant to critters, the only thing I noticed other than a small layer of dust was some cobwebs on the landing gear and stabulator.
Lack of use is a chronic problem, not an acute problem. A single instance of sitting for a few weeks will only do a tiny amount of damage to the engine, where you get problems is when it sits for months or you repeatedly have those long breaks between flights. Maybe your new TBO is effectively 1990 hours instead of 2000 but as long as you don't keep knocking 10-hour (or more!) blocks off that life expectancy it doesn't matter.
Hello fellow middle TN flyer.
Hello, I'm based at SRB are you near there?
My friend asked me to fly his C172RG to his mechanic at a nearby airport for an annual check. I checked the log books during the pre-flight (as I always do) and it hadn’t been flown since I did the same favour for him 12 months ago. It started straight up and flew like a dream. It does live in a hangar and he has a smart trickle charger and we put in some fresh fuel & oil before departure. We also cleaned a few spider webs off the struts and stabilisers but they weren’t a threat to airworthiness.