Outdoor Machinery Winterising Checklist
Do one pass through everything with an engine before the cold, so nothing needs a carburettor rebuild in spring.
OM-08 2 pages
Outdoor machines · OM-21
Fuel Can and Stabiliser Log
A free printable fuel can log: each can numbered, then every fill with grade, stabiliser, your own use-by date and the machines filled from it.
Download Free · no sign-up
2 pages. Choose your paper size — both versions are laid out identically, so neither one gets shrunk to fit.
Print it and write on it
Fill it in type and save
The fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.
What this sheet is for
Know how old the fuel in each can is before it goes into an engine. Guessing is how a carburettor ends up being cleaned in spring.
Who it is for
Anyone keeping petrol or two-stroke mix in cans for mowers, saws, generators, snow blowers and other small engines.
How to use it
- Number each can and list it once, with what it holds and the mix ratio from your engine handbook.
- Every fill, write the date, the grade as shown on the pump and whether stabiliser went in.
- Set your own use-by date, and write it on the can as well as on the sheet.
- Note which machines were filled from it, and the date the can was emptied.
- Once a month, date a column and check the store.
What is on the sheet
2 pages, in this order:
Page 1
Printed under the title: Each fuel can numbered once, then every fill: when, what grade, whether stabiliser went in, the use-by date you set, and which machines were filled from it, with a monthly look at the store.
Your dates, not ours. No storage times, doses or mix ratios are printed. How long fuel keeps depends on the fuel, the can, the store and whether it was treated; the stabiliser's label gives its dose and the engine handbook its mix. Write your use-by date on the can as well as here, and check the rules where you are on how much fuel may be kept and where.
Write-on lines: Household or site · Where the cans are kept · Year
Cans — write the number on each can
Table, 5 rows: Can · Colour or type · Capacity · Contents · Mix ratio · For which machines
Fills — one line every time a can is filled
Table, 19 rows: Can · Filled · Bought at · Grade · Stabiliser · Use by · Filled into · Emptied
Page 2
Monthly look at the store — date the column, then tick or cross each line
Also printed: Check · Jan · Feb · Mar · Apr · May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep · Oct · Nov · Dec · Date checked · Caps closed, vents shut, no leaks · Cans upright, not split or swollen · Away from boilers, heaters and sparks · Out of reach of children · Total quantity kept · Checked by
Questions
How long does petrol keep in a can?
It depends on the fuel, the can, the temperature and whether stabiliser was added, so the sheet does not print a figure. Engine and stabiliser makers give guidance on their labels and in handbooks; set your own use-by date from that and write it down.
Why record which machines were filled from each can?
So that when a machine starts badly you can see which can and which fill it came from, and whether the rest of that can went into anything else.
Related sheets
Small Engine Service Log
Give every small machine in the shed the same maintenance record, using one sheet per machine.
OM-06 1 page
Machinery Winter Storage Record
Know in spring where every battery, drain plug and machine actually is, and whether it started, instead of finding out the hard way on the first fine day.
OM-11 1 page
Chainsaw Maintenance Log
Keep the chain and bar specifications where you can find them, and track sharpening and servicing between them.
OM-02 2 pages
