Putting a Powersports Trailer Away for the Season: A Step-by-Step Storage Prep

When riding season ends, the trailer that hauled your ATVs, side-by-side or dirt bikes often gets parked and forgotten until spring. The short version: empty and clean the trailer, check the tires, wheels, lights and coupler, move it onto a level, firm spot, then chock it, support it and check on it once a month.

Here is how to handle each step, including positioning the trailer where a truck cannot reach.

1. Pick the storage spot before you start

Look for ground that is:

• Level. A slope loads the jack and tires unevenly and makes spring moves less safe.
• Firm. Compacted gravel, concrete or asphalt beats soft lawn, where a jack or tires can settle.
• Well drained. Avoid low spots where water pools around the tires.
• Easy to get out of. In spring, can you reach the coupler without moving other things first?

2. Unload, clean and look the deck over

Remove straps, fuel cans, tools and loose gear. Sweep out mud, sand and grass, which hold moisture against the deck and frame.

With the trailer empty, look for loose or cracked deck boards, damaged ramp hinges, worn tie-down points and rust on the frame. List repairs now so they happen over the winter, not the week before your first ride.

3. Tires, wheels and bearings

Tires sit in one position for months, so check them before you park:

• Set the pressure. Inflate to the pressure your trailer manufacturer recommends, measured when the tires are cold. NHTSA notes that the correct pressure is the one the vehicle manufacturer lists, not the maximum printed on the tire.
• Inspect the sidewalls and tread. NHTSA advises taking a tire out of service if it shows cuts, cracks or bulges.
• Check the age. According to NHTSA, the last four digits of the tire identification number show the week and year it was made, and some manufacturers recommend replacing tires that are six to 10 years old regardless of tread.
• Spin each wheel. With the wheel raised, feel for grinding or roughness. Follow your trailer manufacturer's bearing service schedule, and have a trailer shop check anything that feels wrong.

4. Lights, wiring and coupler

Hook up to your tow vehicle and test the running lights, brake lights and turn signals, noting anything to fix over the off-season. Keep the unplugged connector off the ground and out of the dirt.

Check the coupler latch for wear and smooth movement, then clean and lubricate it per the trailer manufacturer's instructions. Inspect the safety chains and hooks too.

5. Move the trailer into position

A gravel pad behind the garage or a strip of yard beside a shed is often too tight to back into with a truck. A manual trailer dolly can handle the final positioning, as long as the route is level. Never use a manual dolly on an incline or decline, even a gentle one. If the route slopes, use the tow vehicle for that section.

Match the dolly to the ground and the tongue weight:

• Gravel, dirt or grass: the Monster-Tug has 13x6.50-6 inch flat-free polyurethane wheels and supports up to 1,200 lbs of tongue weight. Its listing advises having helpers on trailers over 6,000 lbs.
• Concrete or asphalt: the Trailer-Tug 3.0 supports up to 3,500 lbs of tongue weight on hard surfaces.

Those ratings are tongue weight, not total trailer weight. If you are not sure what yours is, our guide on tongue weight vs. trailer weight explains how to measure it. Larger toy haulers can have tongue weights well above 1,200 lbs; if yours is over that and the storage spot is soft ground, a manual dolly is not the right tool for that move.

Staying within a rating does not mean one person can do the job alone. Soft ground, low tires and tandem axles (which scrub sideways in tight turns) all add effort. Plan wide arcs, move slowly and bring a helper for anything large.

Hypothetical example: a single-axle dirt bike trailer with a measured tongue weight around 250 lbs goes onto a level gravel pad beside a shed. The surface points to the Monster-Tug, and the light single-axle setup makes it a reasonable one- or two-person move.

6. Settle it in for the season

• Use the hold brakes, then chock. The front brakes on both of our dollies are hold brakes. They keep a stopped trailer in place and are not designed to stop a trailer that is already rolling. Once the trailer is in position and stopped, chock the trailer wheels on both sides.
• Support the tongue. On gravel or soil, set the tongue jack on a solid board or pad so it does not sink.

Check in once a month

NHTSA recommends checking tire pressure at least once a month, and a quick walk-around at the same time will catch a settling jack, a loose cover or a chock that has moved. In spring, recheck pressure, test the lights and confirm the coupler latches cleanly before your first trip.

Need help choosing a dolly for your storage spot?

Trailer wintering on gravel, dirt or grass? See the Monster-Tug. Paved driveway or garage? See the Trailer-Tug 3.0, or read our surface-by-surface buying guide. Still unsure? Contact us with your trailer type, tongue weight and storage surface.