Hangaring foamies in a garage in the Southeast US - too hot & cold?

[Chief58D]

I have been fortunate since I dove full-speed into the world of foam electrics (currently with two Warbirds and four EDF's on the roster), and have been able to store my models inside where cold and heat generally are not a factor - a good thing since I spend most of my time in Alabama. That said, I have also seen first-hand what extended exposure to hot southern sunshine or closed up inside a hot car can do to one of these planes!

I see a time in the foreseeable future where my models and I will be spending more time in East Tennessee, where due to space constraints, the models will generally be hangared inside a working (non-air conditioned) 2-car garage. Garage temps will range from well below freezing in the deep winter months, to several months of 80's and 90's during the summer. I'll keep the batteries and transmitters inside the air conditioned house, but other than time on a workbench inside the house or out at the flying field, the garage is likely where the models will generally stay.

So, as long as the planes aren't directly exposed to the elements and sunshine, how well should I expect the foam construction, glue joints, electronics, etc. to hold up to the continuous cold-soak in the winter, and heat-soak in the summer?

FWIW, planes I will likely be flying are the 1400mm (+) FMS and FlightLine Warbirds, and the 70-90mm Freewing EDF's.

Thanks!

[crxmanpat]

I've been storing foamies in my garage in Arizona (can get to 120° plus in my garage in the summer), and have had no issues. It's more direct sunlight that can harm the plane versus just heat alone.

[fhhuber]

If its hot and the wing is held in a warp.. that might eventually become permanent.

Otherwise no issues until its so hot the foam melts. That would be bad. But you'd probably have bigger problems to worry about than the deformed planes.

[Chief58D]

Thank-you Pat ~
I hoped that was the case!

Now if I can just come up with a nice, long runway for the jets when I get back to Knoxville -
The 600 ft paved strip at the club in Huntsville has me spoiled!

BTW -
After I get my 80mm Scorpion back in the air and brush some of the rust off the pilot (),
the next project planned is the A-6 Intruder.
I'm sure I'll have more questions for you as I get closer to the maiden flight!

Randy

[Chief58D]

If its hot and the wing is held in a warp.. that might eventually become permanent.

Otherwise no issues until its so hot the foam melts. That would be bad. But you'd probably have bigger problems to worry about than the deformed planes.

The warping is a good point (as is the melting - I hope to NEVER have to face that one!!)
I'll probably wind up building a PVC fuselage & wing rack to keep everything aligned.
Picked up a couple of good rack ideas from that "other" forum I visit occasionally... ;)

[mburton47]

I've been hanging all my planes in my garage here in Wyoming and temperatures range from below zero to 95 degrees or more. I haven't had any problems with this storage setup.

[doctormike]

Direct sun and being enclosed in a vehicle are the biggest worries. Doc

[TiredIronGRB]

I'm over in Kingsport/Church Hill about an hour from Knoxville and I hang all of mine in my shop...the P38 will be up soon :)

[Capt. Crunch]

Very nice TiredIron!

I keep one of my beavers in the camper at the lake. It gets pretty warm in there during the week when we're not there and have had no problems. Even left it in there over the winter.

[Chief58D]

I'm over in Kingsport/Church Hill about an hour from Knoxville and I hang all of mine in my shop...the P38 will be up soon :)
....

VERY nice workshop / hangar!!

Where do you fly?
I'm still trying to decide the best place to resume flying once I relocate back to Knoxville...

[TiredIronGRB]

The local club has a very nice paved runway but mainly here at the house, we have a large field. I only recently got back in the hobby after over 30 years.

[Grossman56]

I've been hanging all my planes in my garage here in Wyoming and temperatures range from below zero to 95 degrees or more. I haven't had any problems with this storage setup.

YAAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!
Another Wyominite! I knew there had to be at least two of us!
How's Cheyenne doing? I hear you got dumped on by the snow. Weather had been beautiful the last two days here in Cody, its just the dang wind!

Grossman56

[mburton47]

YAAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!
Another Wyominite! I knew there had to be at least two of us!
How's Cheyenne doing? I hear you got dumped on by the snow. Weather had been beautiful the last two days here in Cody, its just the dang wind!

Grossman56

Cheyenne is white, white and more white. Had 14" of snow last week ..turned into a blizzard and we are in the last day of another storm today. Haven't been able to fly much because......you guessed it the wind.

[StormyDog1962]

Having recently moved to Bluffton SC I was concerned about the heat also so when hanging the planes I try to keep the supports as close to the fuselage as possible to prevent warping. We shall see how it holds up.

[VOODOO]

I was approached by the widow of a deceased club member last summer, who wanted to sell all his planes. When I arrived at her home in central Florida, the planes, about 25 of them, were hanging from the ceiling of a metal roofed carport (not a garage) suspended on pipe insulation padded hangers similar to yours, Wayne. They had been unmoved for several months, and were all welded to the plane wings. Removing them took off the paint and left them scarred. The paint on the upper surface of the wings on several was checked from the heat. Inside a garage, as pictured by Wayne is a different situation, but I mention this experience to show the heat that can be generated under a metal roof.

[Chief58D]

Having recently moved to Bluffton SC I was concerned about the heat also so when hanging the planes I try to keep the supports as close to the fuselage as possible to prevent warping. We shall see how it holds up.

NICE mounting system, Wayne -
I might have to borrow your idea once I get resettled!

[Grossman56]

Cheyenne is white, white and more white. Had 14" of snow last week ..turned into a blizzard and we are in the last day of another storm today. Haven't been able to fly much because......you guessed it the wind.

We've had storm after storm passing through in the last couple of days. A bit of snow, but its melting as fast as its falling. I keep telling myself its a blessing in disguise as it will help fill the reservoir up so no water restrictions. Still hoping its all blown out by Saturday. This is the first year I've got to fly on the first day of Spring, but since then it hasn't been good enough. We never got any more than maybe 8 inches at any one time this year, and we didn't dip below zero once! I sure didn't miss driving to work in -22 conditions.

Grossman56

[mburton47]

We've had storm after storm passing through in the last couple of days. A bit of snow, but its melting as fast as its falling. I keep telling myself its a blessing in disguise as it will help fill the reservoir up so no water restrictions. Still hoping its all blown out by Saturday. This is the first year I've got to fly on the first day of Spring, but since then it hasn't been good enough. We never got any more than maybe 8 inches at any one time this year, and we didn't dip below zero once! I sure didn't miss driving to work in -22 conditions.

Grossman56

The Wyoming winter months are also the windy months making it difficult to fly. Also the weekends is about the only time I get to fly because of the short days in the wintertime. Come On Summer!