Chainsaw storage?

[Ben Helmich]

+1 on the Stihl case. It gets nasty in the case, but no puddles on the ground. Enough room for some little oil bottles and some extra chains. Don’t leave it out in the rain though. It will fill up with water. I never drain my saw. It has sat for years before. It shouldn’t run at all. It runs great.

[Alan Lightstone]

I store mine vertically on a slat wall with a metal piece holding it up. Paper towel underneath it on top of a plastic case.

Yup, it leaks.

[Jim Becker]

I've never had a leak from my Stihl .029 Farm Boss yet...and I've owned it since about 2001.

[Brian Tymchak]

I've never had a leak from my Stihl .029 Farm Boss yet...and I've owned it since about 2001.

Although I got rid of my Stihl a few years ago ( a mistake I regret now) on a major clean out, I also never had it leak in the 28 years I owned it.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

My Dolmar leaks oil. Never bothered to check from where. I have it on the bottom of a work bench in my garage sitting on a piece of sacrificial plywood that absorbs the oil.

If it will not start, someone mentioned it, a first step is to disassemble sufficiently that you can spray out the carburetor with carburetor cleaner and perhaps replace the spark plug. Pay close attention because it is often tricky to put it back together. if things look off with the diaphragm (or similar) while it is apart, then buy a kit to replace some of the parts. Diaphragms and gaskets are inexpensive. I have not had to replace the parts, nearly clean it up because it was clogged.

[Peter Kelly]

I should clarify—by “leaking” I mean residual bar oil running out after usage. If you’re seeing large pools develop, it’s usually that the oil supply line is disconnected or has a hole in it somewhere. Easy enough to replace the line but there’s some small fiddly washers to be mindful of so it takes a bit of time. Common problem with older Dolmars.

[Nathan Jordan]

I've got 2 stihls I can't remember off hand what models, but there's a farm boss with a 20" bar and a small one with a 16" bar. I wouldn't say they leak so much as that if you put them up dirty (saw dust gunked in between the bar and the oil weep hole) then there will be a small puddle of oil under the saw when I pick it up occasionally. 95% of the time its maybe 1 or 2 drops, and the few times it was more it was still less than an ounce of fluid, so I wouldn't call it a leak. Looking back I think the small saw has left a puddle 2 or 3 times and the big one maybe once, if ever (in the past year I've owned them). I cleaned them up a bit after the last oil drip case and haven't had a problem since. I'll probably buy a plastic case for them and find a good spot out of the way.

[Lisa Starr]

Both of mine live in hard plastic husqvarna cases. I keep a piece of "Pig Mat" cut the shape of the case to absorb any drips. The extra chains, wrench etc live in the case too.

[Tom M King]

Mine sit on plywood in the mechanic shop, to keep oil off the floor. The worst offender is the pole chainsaw. If one of the guys hangs it up with the chain up, there will be oil all down the shaft the next time it's needed.

The little Makita cordless one stays in the toolbox on the truck. It came with a nice little bag that, so far, has caught any drips.

[Jared Sankovich]

My Dolmar leaks oil. Never bothered to check from where. I have it on the bottom of a work bench in my garage sitting on a piece of sacrificial plywood that absorbs the oil.

If it will not start, someone mentioned it, a first step is to disassemble sufficiently that you can spray out the carburetor with carburetor cleaner and perhaps replace the spark plug. Pay close attention because it is often tricky to put it back together. if things look off with the diaphragm (or similar) while it is apart, then buy a kit to replace some of the parts. Diaphragms and gaskets are inexpensive. I have not had to replace the parts, nearly clean it up because it was clogged.

The 6400/7900 series leak at the soft line junction due to the design. Easy enough fix if you have a milling machine.

As for storage I keep all my saws all on a shelf, with the bars hanging below, or beside.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I have a Stihl and only use it periodically. It lives in the orange plastic case, so I don't have an issue with oil puddling and I can't say I've noticed it leaking/weeping in the case.

I know the issues with Ethanol, I have a couple of older motorcycles with 4 carbs on each, that get the pilot jets clogged if left with fuel in the float bowls for a few weeks of non use.

So back to the chain saw, when I think I might not be using the saw for a while. I'll get it running, warm it up, stop it and drain the fuel tank. I'll then restart it and run it until it starves of fuel.

I've disassembled a few two stroke dirt bike engines and am always amazed at how much the crank and internals are coated in residual oil that came in via a premix.

This seems to work and minimizes the pilot jet clogging.

[Donald G. Burns]

My Stihl stays in its hard plastic case with a towel in the bottom. If not, it leaks oil on the concrete like you mention.

Ditto, factory case.

[John Grossbohlin]

I generally leave my Stihl MS261 and MS461 saws sit on the concrete shop floor with bar covers on if I'm using them regularly. The oil cap on the 461 was replaced (a few dollars). Sometimes there is residual oil on the bar that makes it's way to the floor but usually not. After 25 years of use there are enough spots of glue, lube, WD-40, solvent, paint and finish on the floor to make the bar oil unnoticeable... The film of saw dust and chips on the floor absorbs quite a bit and they also scour the floor when I push them around with the concrete broom. If the next owner wants to epoxy the floor that's up to them.

For longer term storage I clean the saws and take the bars off as it makes the package more compact. There is no leakage during long term storage. I've got multiple bars for each saw and a pile of chains so there is already space dedicated for storing those items as well as sharpening gear. I store the gas and bar oil jugs in my outdoor equipment shed.

If you have a lot of excess oil on the bar and chain when done sawing, and your saw allows for it, you might want to adjust the oil feed rate so a little less oil is pumped to the bar. That alone could stem the oil puddle problem... but don't over do it such that you starve the bar and chain for lubrication. Use real bar oil too... not waste oil!

Regarding fuel, I use Stihl synthetic mix oil with 91 octane non-ethanol gasoline. I've never had a fuel related problem with the Stihl chainsaws, hedge clipper, trimmers or backpack blower.

Some of this I figured out via the web (wrought with danger!) and some during Game of Logging training as both a student and a host...

[Nathan Jordan]

I generally leave my Stihl MS261 and MS461 saws sit on the concrete shop floor with bar covers on if I'm using them regularly. The oil cap on the 461 was replaced (a few dollars). Sometimes there is residual oil on the bar that makes it's way to the floor but usually not. After 25 years of use there are enough spots of glue, lube, WD-40, solvent, paint and finish on the floor to make the bar oil unnoticeable... The film of saw dust and chips on the floor absorbs quite a bit and they also scour the floor when I push them around with the concrete broom. If the next owner wants to epoxy the floor that's up to them.

Mine right now are sitting in the middle of my garage floor, mainly because I have yet to properly organized my garage. My interest in storage solutions is 2 fold, I want to find a more permanent place to store them, and I want to park my truck in my garage again! Eventually the plan is to build a shop, and I also plan on epoxy for my shop and garage floors.

[John Grossbohlin]

Mine right now are sitting in the middle of my garage floor, mainly because I have yet to properly organized my garage. My interest in storage solutions is 2 fold, I want to find a more permanent place to store them, and I want to park my truck in my garage again! Eventually the plan is to build a shop, and I also plan on epoxy for my shop and garage floors.

You might try pulling the bar(s) and chain(s) off and see just how much more compact the saws are compared to its/their assembled size. Doing so might present you with a viable short term storage solution... In my case I find that they fit nicely under the side table of my cabinet saw. That said, I have been cleaning out and straightening up my equipment shed. At some point the shed will be cleared out enough that I'll move the chainsaws to it for storage. Interestingly enough, when I moved a bunch of old wooden storm windows in the shed I found a Black Raven axe that is in very good condition. From checking around I could probably turn it into a power feeder as there is a strong demand for nice ones... There are benefits to straightening up... I've been here 25 years and just found that axe.