Apartments and bikes

[danv]

Well it looks me and mum are moving from our house to a much smaller apartment or unit. In the past I have had a shedful of all sorts of crap, including up 4 or 5 bikes at any one time. We have another place were I will be relocating all my shed crap too, but I am obviously still going to want a couple of bikes with me at the new place, where I will be living mainly. So basically i'm just wondering if people have any tips, ideas, stories, experiences etc. on storing and maintaining bikes in appartments. Do you keep them in your bedroom? Do you always dirty your carpet when you come home at night? Were you able to work out any other storage solution than storing them inside the unit? Is it easy to do basic maintenance in a bedroom without making it look like grease pit?

I was basically planning to have 3 bikes in my bedroom, the bare minimal of maintenance tools and supplies, and to go outside on a porch or somewhere to do messy stuff. Does anyone have any features to look for in a unit that would make it easier to have bikes there? We are still looking at the moment, and luckily mum and I have agreed we both what a ground floor place.

So how do you guys fare with bikes in small spaces? I don't know how i'm gonna cope without a shed!

 

[Laserguns]

I live in a apartment in Sydney and while it isn't super small it's not super massive either. I currently have 4 bikes in the appartment and if the bikes are muddy or whatever I give them a quick wash and then ride through the puddles and that usually cleans the tyres off.
When I get them up to the apartment I just have them sitting on a blanket so the carpet doesn't get fkd.
You should be able to carry out all you maintenence over a drop sheet too.
I just carry the bike from the door to the blanket and same to get it out.
Don't want to lose that precious, precious bond money.

 

[Nobi Wan]

hey mate i live in a 2 bedroom apartment and have 2 bikes which live in the enterance hall (only place where they fit) and its not that great...... i do all my maintenance on the balcony, (i am on the 1st floor) which is fine for the most part and i would def not recommend doing any work inside, especially if u r renting... bikes will make a mess of your carpet too, so what i do is use an old hall runner to put them on and that seems so be ok...

 

[fleshbone]

ah,my mate always had a plastic drop sheet in his lounge/living room and did all his work there.when i would stay at my sisters place,i just had it all out on the balcony.

 

[Faded]

ah,my mate always had a plastic drop sheet in his lounge/living room and did all his work there.when i would stay at my sisters place,i just had it all out on the balcony.

That's probably better than my idea i just use an old sheet in my room when ill be playin with grease or much or anythin if its all dry and clean i dont worry also u can use ur bed as a work bench just plonk a drop sheet or wateva over ur duna and its smooth sailing from there

 

[Weasel]

when i had a place in maroubra i got a couple of big screw in hooks and hung my bikes from the wall by their front tires... Like on the country trains

 

[Binaural]

Keeping the bikes inside is essential if they are worth anything at all. Try and stack them handlbars to saddle and you will get better packing density.

Your main problem will be keeping handlebar marks off the wall - mud on the carpet can always be vacuumed up but marking walls means you are going to get your bond docked if you aren't careful. Keep a large and crappy towel easily accessible from the bike entry point so you can give it a rough dry before carrying it into the house.

One last thing - if you have lots of bikes, choose places to live with that in mind. It's really annoying if you live in an apartment with nowhere to work on your bikes!

 

[cleeshoy]

We actually keep our bikes on the balcony but have them completed covered and roped by sheets of tarpolon. Would prefer to have them inside but for space reasons thats not possible The tarp does a great job though. Whilst the tarp might get wet/dusty, etc, the bikes are ok underneath . We also have them locked together in case someone tries to nick them - we are a few floors up from the ground but you can never be too careful ;-)

I clean them in the car wash bay within the apartment complex. Generally our bikes have dirt on the tyres so we have to carry them from the balcony to the front door and vice versa....

 

[McBain]

One last thing - if you have lots of bikes, choose places to live with that in mind.

I'm house/unit hunting at the moment, and suitability for bikes is at the top of the list of needs (basically a garage is a must for me, not for the car though!) - it is making it harder to find something.

I've had bikes in apartments for years (got a garage in the current place though - bliss!), and absolutely go with the drop sheet underneath the bikes at all times and make sure that grease/oil won't leak through whatever you use! I ruined a rug when fixing a fork inside that way (too lazy to go outside for what should have been simple - oops).

Marks on the walls aren't so bad usually - bit of spray n wipe or sugar soap will get them off, but make sure that your bars don't take chunks out of the walls.

The one that bit me at the last place I lived in was my cleats - I had polished floorboards in the entrance hall, and I didn't notice that I was leaving nice little dents in the ground everytime I came in after a ride.

 

[T-Bone]

My bike lives inside my apartment. I went to Clark rubber and bought a rubber hallway runner for $8. It protects the carpet 100% and is clear so it's hardly noticed.

 

[Binaural]

I'm house/unit hunting at the moment, and suitability for bikes is at the top of the list of needs (basically a garage is a must for me, not for the car though!) - it is making it harder to find something.

I'm in the same boat - hunting for a decent share house with three bikes plus one metric shitload of parts is not so easy

 

[dain2772]

Has anyone used any kind of rack system, particularly one that lifts one or more bikes up off the floor?

 

[Binaural]

Has anyone used any kind of rack system, particularly one that lifts one or more bikes up off the floor?

Grip does one I think (I have seen others as well) but I've been able to get by leaning my bikes against a garage wall thus far. Might be a good idea if I ever get a smaller place that what I'm living in now!

 

[Mo]

ultimately choose to live in a less than average unit, i got my place because it was easy and wasn't up to scratch, on the property report i put in all sorts of defects which is true.
so when you move out you clean the place but major stains are still covered by the property report.

of course the downfall is: you end up having to clean the place to meet your expectations and realise that a lot of things are missing as a Rangehood...welcome smoke after using the griller.

 

[gnarly_rider]

If you have the room, and need a semipermanent 'workarea/bike storage', use a couple of bike boxes cut to flat to line the floor. Easy to sweep up dirt/mud, can see grease clearly, doesn't move around when dragging DH bikes across it, and when they get ugly, throw them out and replace with new. Cost nothing, might not be sexy but very functional. My spare bedroom/workshop is half lined with them, and cos you can clearly see any grease, helps prevent you dragging it on your shoes through the house/flat.

 

[danv]

Cheers, there's some good ideas there guys.
We are buying a place, so there is no bond to worry about, but there is something even worse - my Mum. She can't stand all my bike shit, and thinks anything remotely bike related is a dirt and grease machine. This impression probably comes from the fact that our current shed is just a big dirty, disorderly pile of bikes and parts. However once I get a bit organized with having 3 complete shiny looking bikes and a few small tools I might be able to win her over a bit.

Clear hallway runners/floor coverings are a great idea, and I have some bike racks that hang the bikes vertically against the wall by one of they're wheels. I think those racks are the most space efficient. So that looks the go if I can convince mum to let me keep them inside.

Also, we looked at a unit in Elwood the other day which we are pretty keen on. It has tile all the way to the bedrooms, plus an underground car space that butts up against a wall, which fits a car AND 2 metres of empty space in between it and the wall. If the body corporate allowed it, we'd be able to build a secure storage locker. Hell even a little shed! It's pretty cool. Now I just need to work out what to do with my dirtbike

 

[scblack]

So how do you guys fare with bikes in small spaces? I don't know how i'm gonna cope without a shed!

Buy a place with a lock-up GARAGE.

Then you can maybe buy/make a storage area for the bikes inside the garage.

Personally NO WAY would I keep my bikes inside the house or unit, but I would then ensure I have a GARAGE. Many units have a garage, so make that a priority for you.

 

[splunk]

Has anyone used any kind of rack system, particularly one that lifts one or more bikes up off the floor?

I have, I live in a 2 bedder and bike live in the spare room. My partner hates the bike in the house, so I had to get a stand to keep it off the ground.

Anyway, I recently purchased a house and do not need the stand anymore.

Plug: http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI...30017811677&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MESE:IT&rd=1

 

[danv]

Buy a place with a lock-up GARAGE.

Then you can maybe buy/make a storage area for the bikes inside the garage.

Personally NO WAY would I keep my bikes inside the house or unit, but I would then ensure I have a GARAGE. Many units have a garage, so make that a priority for you.

I did not know that. Nor have I ever seen a flat with a garage. I might be getting my terminology mixed up, but i'm talking about flats that are in blocks, usually more than one story. I could see a freestanding unit having a garage, but that's probably out of our price range. (less than 400,000 around Melbourne bayside area - Elwood, St. Kilda, Elsternwick). Also, while a garage might be priority for me, unfortunately it isn't going to be my unit.

Hey why are you so adament about not having bikes inside?

 

[arpit]

Hey why are you so adament [sic] about not having bikes inside?

They are bulky.

You either need to spend time cleaning them after every ride, or put up with mud on the carpets.

Storage is difficult- If you don't have a suitable sized cupboard you need to leave them in a room.

In a room, they look ugly, and make the room seem cluttered. Have more than one bike, and your house begins to look like a junkyard.
Visitors will think poorly of you if you have have a few bikes lying in your room. Most people don't think bikes are cool. It doesn't add anything to your room. Watch the 40 year old virgin, and napoleon Dynamite to see what popular perceptions of bike riders are like.
I've kept a bike in my room for a while, and I speak from experience.


That said, if you don't care what visitors think, then by all means get a sub standard apartment, and fill it with bikes. Maybe get a dozen cats too, and a single bed with superman sheets.