[FHG2088]

A little bit of a story for you folks, and a couple questions too!

As you may or may not know, I bought my first bike about 2 months ago and because it was essentially brand new and had very few kms on it, it hasn't yet had a full check up or overhaul while in my possession. I am new to motorcycles and don't really know very much about mechanics, but I want to eventually be able to work on my own bike and not be at the disposal of a friend or the dealership. So, after lots of reading and research I felt I was ready to explore a little and decided to have a look at my air filter... simple enough. However when I opened it up I found dog food! a whole handful! My first reaction was what the hell? My second reaction was what has this been doing to my bike! I'm assuming that some animals decided to live in there at some point, probably because the previous owner didn't store it properly? My question is... do you often find things like that in your bike? and could it have harmed anything?

 

[BlackBoar]

Wow. You can't make that stuff up.

 

[Onslaught]

That's hilarious, haha.

 

[shoota16]

yeh i cant say i have ever seen that before lol

 

[spooph]

I've seen lots of pictures from others having found the remnants of mice and such in their airboxes... I've even seen a video of a guy firing up the bike and the mice just oozing out everywhere! It has however never happened to me, cause I don't ever "store" my bike, it gets ridden A LOT!

The only thing for you to check is your air filter element. Make sure the mice didn't eat into it and destroy it. Otherwise just clean it out, clean the airfilter, re-lube it with air filter oil and slap it back in there...

Since the bike was down long enough for mice to make a home in the air box, I would also recommend some seafoam in the gas tank, just in case....

 

[Blue Ghost]

Wow. What ever it was, it had to be very tiny. The amount of space for something to crawl through the snorkel is very tight itself not to mention getting to the opening.

 

[FHG2088]

I've seen lots of pictures from others having found the remnants of mice and such in their airboxes... I've even seen a video of a guy firing up the bike and the mice just oozing out everywhere! It has however never happened to me, cause I don't ever "store" my bike, it gets ridden A LOT!

The only thing for you to check is your air filter element. Make sure the mice didn't eat into it and destroy it. Otherwise just clean it out, clean the airfilter, re-lube it with air filter oil and slap it back in there...

Since the bike was down long enough for mice to make a home in the air box, I would also recommend some seafoam in the gas tank, just in case....

As for storage, two words: Canadian winter. I feel like riding in 4 feet of snow and ice on unplowed back country roads is a bad idea for me, but maybe not for you spooph . So no riding in the winter for me. The previous owner had it for two years and hardly ever rode it... I'm guessing that's when the mice got in. I ride all the time, its been through many tanks of gas so I don't know if seafoam is necessary? I checked the filter and the wiring, nothing has been chewed up so I guess its all good!

 

[spooph]

Well, 4 feet of unplowed snow is a bit much for the little ninja to handle... Boar stores his bike every winter, I guess he lives somewhere where it's mandated by the state? Either way, as long as it's clean and there are no left over "food smells", you shouldn't get return visitors, I would think. If you're worried, spray some ether in there, and DON'T start the bike. The smell should linger long enough to keep early explorers out of there.... Best of luck!

 

[BlackBoar]

Storing the bike is not a legal requirement, mandated only by the weather. FHG is only a few hours East from me. Too much snow, too cold and way too much salt on the roads to even consider riding between about end November and early March.

I admire your approach, spooph, to Winter riding. I'm sure it's a tough haul in the cold elevations of Colorado. Anyone who rides their motorcycle - while other people are skiing - is a badass.

 

[KURT]

I'm going to suggest the previous owner of your bike, had a dog and little kids.

Grasshoppers in the filter box are fairly common. I had two in my 650 when I tore it down recently. :facepalm: