Difficult question, expensive hangar near home or cheap hanger 1 hour away

[FlyingDude]

I had the same problem.  Well, similar problem, because I was on waiting list for the nearby airport, whereas distant airports had immediate availability.  My rationale was:

m = number of times I fly in a month

d = distance to airport

p = duration of average flight (whether local or xc)

h = monthly hangar rent

g= cost of gas

financially: am I going to waste more money on car mileage (including depreciation, so 2x the gas price) than what I save on hangar?

(h_expensive - h_cheap) >? m * ( (d_expensive - d_cheap) / car mileage) * 2g. 

How many hours am I going to waste on the road each month?  I think 8 would be the max acceptable for extra drive if you have wife/kids, but YMMV

time burden of either solution = m * ((d_expensive - d_cheap) / (75% of speed limits)) >? 8

Will I spend more time on the road than flying?

annoyance of either solution = p / (d / (75% of speed limits)).  I think 25% is acceptable for average flight.  Here, each one of us has a different p.

Of course I assume that you can actually "afford" either solution, and are just making a guided decision.  When I was in Italy, the outskirts-of-downtown club that was accessible by subway (30min - 5 stops away) was a lot more expensive (annual fee and hourly rent) than the one 80km away (1.5 hrs on country roads), so my wallet had made the decision for me regardless...  Though I had no wife/kids at that time, so it wasn't time wasted, rather it was more like enjoying country roads with loud music 

Well, I still have my excel sheet for the 3 aiports but then wife stopped by and said to hope a spot opens at the near one, because she said I should be able to come home right away should something happen.  So, there's the "how long is your leash" factor, too.

[carusoam]

Preferring grass runways…

Must save a lot of tire scrubbing on each landing….  

-a-

[A64Pilot]

38 minutes ago, carusoam said:

Preferring grass runways…

Must save a lot of tire scrubbing on each landing….  

-a-

What you often hear is you change tires when you wear them out landing on pavement, you change them if you land on grass when they dry rot, and there is truth to that.

But it’s more than that, grass runways if runway alignment isn’t perfect will let you slide a little where pavement snatches you straight, plus grass is softer, walk in your yard, then on your driveway, the difference is pretty big, your airplane feels it too.

Of course the runway has to be maintained, and where I live grass comes with sand, so you learn to gradually accelerate on takeoff to save the prop, once you have some speed going full power the prop won’t suck sand off of the ground, but if you do at a low speed it will.

[McMooney]

So, another consideration.

My current airport is privately owned, meaning i can just about do whatever i want with my Hangar. ( some rules )

the new hangars are of course county owned which comes with lots and lots of rules.  ex. limited maintenance,  no couches, tvs, only tiny fridge.  essentially no Hangar Man Cave.  can't use extra space for storage, blah blah blah

[Mooneymite]

On 4/22/2022 at 9:18 AM, FlyingDude said:

Could you please elaborate?  I was under the impression that a smooth asphalt runway was easier on the plane during landing/take-off than a bumpy grass field.  Hence I've been avoiding a certain grass-strip airport (3NP) with a great restaurant, and even suggested it to wife that we should go there... but by car. 

"Grass" isn't the issue.  It's what the grass is on.  I've operated off of a "grass" home field since 1998, but there are a lot of "grass" fields I wouldn't consider operating my Mooney on.

Smooth is the key.

[Hank]

35 minutes ago, Mooneymite said:

"Grass" isn't the issue.  It's what the grass is on.  I've operated off of a "grass" home field since 1998, but there are a lot of "grass" fields I wouldn't consider operating my Mooney on.

Smooth is the key.

That's what those big rollers are for!

"Grass field" is not the same thing as "pasture." I fly to grass fields.