Living Car Free - Are bicycles crowding you out?

It's winter, so I moved all my bikes into the house so I could work on them. My wife thinks the house is turning into an LBS. There are bikes everywhere. [she owns a couple of them too... I have ... ahem... a number myself]

Are you able to keep your quarters relatively bicycle free?

It's winter, so I moved all my bikes into the house so I could work on them. My wife thinks the house is turning into an LBS. There are bikes everywhere. [she owns a couple of them too... I have ... ahem... a number myself]

Are you able to keep your quarters relatively bicycle free?

Living quarters yes...shop...no:o

BTW took inventory...20 in the shop 16 more outside or in the junk pile.

Aaron:)

http://inlinethumb04.webshots.com/35715/2904508630066886751S500x500Q85.jpg

I'm not exactly sure, but I think that Rowan and I will end up with 10 or more bicycles in our little, tiny house when I get there. He's got a whole heap, including one of mine, there already, and I'm not 100% sure how many of the ones I've got here I'll be taking with me.

In addition to that he's got an LBS-full of cycling stuff there, and I'll be bringing another LBS-full of stuff with me.

I think we'll be living in the tent out back once the bicycles and bicycle-related paraphernalia gets all moved in.

I only own one bike (so far) and it live in the garage. However, all my touring bags and related gear are taking over my tiny bedroom!

ONE bicycle ........ how do you cope???? :eek:

Dont worry I am working on resolving that problem!

ever thought of a shed. My solution. Kick the car out of the garage.

ever thought of a shed.

For us to live in .... instead of the tent? :D

It's winter, so I moved all my bikes into the house so I could work on them. My wife thinks the house is turning into an LBS. There are bikes everywhere. [she owns a couple of them too... I have ... ahem... a number myself]

Are you able to keep your quarters relatively bicycle free?

Easy solution: get rid of the wife, become wife-free and you have more room for more bikes!

Just kiddin' :) :D

I sold the car years ago and now have 6 bikes in the garage with plenty of room left over for poker tables, a work bench, a fridge and tv

For us to live in .... instead of the tent? :D

Well. I could not sleep at night, If my bikes were relegated to a tent. ..

A watershed moment for me was when I realized I could hang bikes in the garage above where my car sits. And one over the freezer, and three over the rakes/shovels/brooms.

Well. I could not sleep at night, If my bikes were relegated to a tent. ..

That's why they stay in the house!

Are you able to keep your quarters relatively bicycle free?

Nah, we've got nine bikes and two trailers that live in the living room year 'round. One trailer lives out in the shed most of the time. Most of the bike stuff that isn't in regular use resides on one of two metal utility shelves in the master bedroom. Of course we don't have, want, nor need much in the way of furniture.

The 4 rideable ones stay in the dining room/living room of my tiny apartment. The frame without wheels, the ghost bike and the bikes to work trailer are relegated to storage across the street.

Maybe I should make a raised platform for my bed so I can slip the 4 bikes underneath.

Living quarters yes...shop...no:o

BTW took inventory...20 in the shop 16 more outside or in the junk pile.

Aaron:)

http://inlinethumb04.webshots.com/35715/2904508630066886751S500x500Q85.jpg

I feel so much more sane now. Thanks Aaron. :p

Cost me a bit but one bike lives inside and the other two live in a Tuff shed. The shed has a better door, lock and insulation than my house.

Maybe I should make a raised platform for my bed so I can slip the 4 bikes underneath.

I did that ... sort of.

When I lived in Winnipeg, I was in a 2-bedroom apartment, so of course one of the bedrooms was for my bicycles. But I also wanted it as a guest room so I bought a twin loft bed, which is essentially the top bunk of a bunk bed (although you can put the bed lower if you want). 4 of my bicycles fit under the bed, and I put a cloth shower curtain around, hanging from the railings of the bed, so that when they were closed you'd never guess there were bicycles in the room. I also hung my spare tires and various other things from the slats holding the mattress up. It worked very well!

I only have one bike, and it does me just fine. I briefly tried having two, a nice bike and one for winter, but summer here sometimes doesn't start until July, so I decided to just ride the nice bike all the time, and replace the drive train and rims when necessary. I tend to be pretty monogamous about bikes; I find one I like, and I don't want to ride anything else.

I do park my lone bike in the living room, though. I've discovered that if the bike is in a nice, warm room, close to coffee, music, and the occasional episode of Myth Busters, I tend to do routine maintenance a lot more regularly, with the result that the drive train and rims last that much longer. :)

The bikes are confined to the basement. But there they reign supreme.

I keep one bicycle on my back porch and one inside. I have room for more but think that having three would be enough. This summer I will buy a recumbent and sell one of the other two. After that I might sell the other one and get another recumbent. Three aren't too many for my apartment but at this time two seem to be enough. I only ride on paved streets and paths so I don't need an off road bicycle at this time.

Years ago I kept a small motor scooter inside my house for a few days. The smell of the tires really annoyed me. Having plenty of bicycles inside would probably generate a lot of rubber smell too. I probably won't ever keep that many bicycles inside. So far I need to be really close to the bicycle to smell the rubber from the tires. Air fresheners aren't enough to cover all smells.


The winter snow, sand, and salt have made my rear derailleur a bit finicky in the past month on my comfort bicycle. Maybe I can save it with a little more grease and cleaning. The other bicycle has stayed indoors since snow began falling last October.

The trouble is... when you get a group of bikes together, you don't know what mischief they get up when you aren't there. Mine seem to have orgies or something, because there are two MTB frames inside, several of questionable parentage outside, a trailer inside along with a burgeoning number of wheels and rims, tyres and paraphenalia.

And Machka is bringing more to party???!!!! Uh oh!

Right now we have 6 bikes in our studio apartment. Two of them are waiting to get sold, just need to clean them up a bit before putting them on craigslist. That will leave us with two bikes each, one for the city and one for touring. The city bikes will get sold in some months when we make a big move.

Right now 5 of the bikes fit in a walk in closet, and one lives in the living room.

I have two bikes. Right now one of them lives in my office at work because I brought it here on the weekend and it got locked in (I took public transit home).

I built a shed, though, with plenty of room for both my bikes and my girlfriend's bike.

I tend to be pretty monogamous about bikes; I find one I like, and I don't want to ride anything else.


I have a whole harem but I only ride one at a time.

:o What I mean is, I tend to ride the same bike every time, even though I have 5 or 6 others that I could be riding.

I have a two car garage and an entire basement to myself right now, so even with half a dozen or more bikes, they look pretty lonely in that large space.

I tend to be pretty monogamous about bikes; I find one I like, and I don't want to ride anything else.



The one I ride is the one I like, as long as its mechanically sound. Even when I borrow a friend's ride, after a few blocks I'm thinking "Hey! This is fun, I wonder if he wants to get rid of it." Even my old ill fitting clunker is like that. It seems to always happen that when I get on one of them that I haven't ridden in a few months I think to myself "This is great, I should take this one more often."

No, thanks to a garage. I have 2 bicycles personally, but there are 5 more on the premises.

I feel so much more sane now. Thanks Aaron. :p

Found the other picture:o:D

BTW 20 bikes inside and 16 in outside storage. I have cleaned and done some reorganization since this was taken.

Aaron:)

http://inlinethumb06.webshots.com/37445/2005525610066886751S500x500Q85.jpg

Found the other picture:o:D

BTW 20 bikes inside and 16 in outside storage. I have cleaned and done some reorganization since this was taken.

Aaron:)

http://inlinethumb06.webshots.com/37445/2005525610066886751S500x500Q85.jpg

JEEEEZZZZ Save some bikes for the rest of us!!!!

Found the other picture:o:D

BTW 20 bikes inside and 16 in outside storage. I have cleaned and done some reorganization since this was taken.

Aaron:)

http://inlinethumb06.webshots.com/37445/2005525610066886751S500x500Q85.jpg

If I'm a bicycle monogamist, this photo clearly exposes you as the bicycle equivalent of Brigham Young. At any rate, this is a little sick, even by BF standards. Very impressive. :D

Fortunately, I'm an organization freak - my garage will hold eight bikes hanging off the walls, another two on the ground. Once I reach that point, something has to go before something new comes in. The two walls on that you can't see in the picture are shelves full of sorted (yes, sorted) bicycle parts:

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q10/sykerocker/Shop2.jpg

I am always shocked when I see photos of lines of bikes. Then I remember I am not so far off from seemingly large collections myself....
Right now I have 2 bikes and the DU has 1. I want at least 1 more touring/commuter or cross style bike and that should do it.... right?....:twitchy:

I am always shocked when I see photos of lines of bikes. Then I remember I am not so far off from seemingly large collections myself....
Right now I have 2 bikes and the DU has 1. I want at least 1 more touring/commuter or cross style bike and that should do it.... right?....:twitchy:

RIIIIGHT!:thumb::p:roflmao2:

Aaron:)

ever thought of a shed. My solution. Kick the car out of the garage.

My solution; a 2 car garage. About 12 or 13 bikes in there somewhere besides the wife's car.

Are you able to keep your quarters relatively bicycle free?

i've got a collection of five bikes, and my girl has one too. we have a 2nd bedroom that we keep a big pile of bikes/parts in, although it's starting to spill out into the hallway.

the worst part about bikes inside is grease on the carpet!

the worst part about bikes inside is grease on the carpet!

I just bought a cheap throw rug, and park my bike on that, to spare the "real" flooring from road grit, sand, oil, etc.

I used to keep the bike (yes, just one), on the balcony, but, in this climate, that didn't prove to be a very good idea.

I only have two bikes (so far), and I live alone in a three-bedroom house, so I have plenty of space. If I ever end up "attached" again and need more space inside, I have a garage that I could kick the car out of. :)

I currently park the bikes in the living room, but the floor is hardwood, in poor condition, so I don't worry too much about grease.

I just bought a cheap throw rug, and park my bike on that, to spare the "real" flooring from road grit, sand, oil, etc.

yeah, i shoulda done that...

oh well, there's always the next apt!

I have 1 bike and it hogs a lot of space in my teeny tiny living room/home office. Supposedly we are getting a bike for the husband unit, but he's been saying that for awhile. We'll definitely have to do a reorganization so we don't scrape our shins or knock a bike over (done that, oh I don't know, 4 or 5 times already this winter. Had to replace a wrecked bell, will have to look over RD).

I do maintenance in the apartment hallway. Not a great situation, but there is absolutely no room in the apartment. Although I did manage to instal fenders, rear rack, and the basket on her in the apartment. Not easy, but at least I could swear in private.

I have 1 bike and it hogs a lot of space in my teeny tiny living room/home office.
Last winter, I had just one bike in the house over the winter, but I decided it needed a prominent place so I parked it in the living/dining room. It was a great conversation piece. Many visitors admired it and I must say I often gazed fondly upon it.

This year, I have all bikes herded up in the basement except for the winter commuter. There's no practical advantage, but I often use my Fuji Monterey as a foot stool while I read Bike Forums posts.

Last winter, I had just one bike in the house over the winter, but I decided it needed a prominent place so I parked it in the living/dining room. It was a great conversation piece. Many visitors admired it and I must say I often gazed fondly upon it.

This year, I have all bikes herded up in the basement except for the winter commuter. There's no practical advantage, but I often use my Fuji Monterey as a foot stool while I read Bike Forums posts.

My bike helps out by acting as a coat rack, wet towel stand, handbag holder, and bookshelf at times. I sometimes think I can hear her weep from the humiliation. I'll make it up to her as soon as the snow melts.

My bikes don't crowd me out. Since they fold up, they fit nicely and out of the way in the odd corner or underneath something.

Yup, I have an efficiency with one living space, say 15x15. I built a lift that holds the road bike and mountain bike up against the ceiling when I'm not using them. That is, they stay stay up there if I'm not feeling lazy and haven't left them in the kitchen or against the dresser. My commuter bike and polo bike live between the bookshelves and the bed. For a while I had a loaner bike for friends which stayed in the bathroom since there wasn't any space left!

Yup, I have an efficiency with one living space, say 15x15. I built a lift that holds the road bike and mountain bike up against the ceiling when I'm not using them. That is, they stay stay up there if I'm not feeling lazy and haven't left them in the kitchen or against the dresser. My commuter bike and polo bike live between the bookshelves and the bed. For a while I had a loaner bike for friends which stayed in the bathroom since there wasn't any space left!

Polo bike??

for playing bike polo!

I have 7 bikes inside my studio loft, 3 on the balcony and 3 in storage. I have another collection at my moms house that I have been gathering since my early teens which fills one entire half as well as a second floor of an old carriage house. A lot of them are junk, but since my girlfriend is store manager of a salvation army store I drag home just about everything that comes in, as well as having access to all the nice stuff in their regional distribution center.

Polo bike??

http://www.nopolo.org/ (New Orleans Bike Polo)
http://www.flickr.com/groups/nopolo/ (New Orleans Bike Polo Photos)
Yup, it's the newest silly way to have fun on a bike. And by newest, I mean been a fringe cycling activity since the 1900s. With the resurgent popularity of urban riding bike polo is becoming a important event alongside alleycat races, roller racing, and other ways to have a party with bikes.

My bike helps out by acting as a coat rack

I used to do that when the bikes lived in the hallway outside my front door. We moved last year and now keep 6 working bikes in the garage, as well as one MTB build that's slowly taking shape. I lug the bikes upstairs to do light maintenance.

When I bought a new bike a couple of months ago, I kept it in the kitchen for a bit, just while I adjusted it and fitted some accesories. It stayed for a month or two (I'm quite lazy when it comes to maintenance... and everything else really) before I was finished, now it lives in the garage with the mountain bike and the motorbike. The folder is still in the kitchen, for some reason.

We've got 5 right now, but 2 of them (as well as the bike trailer, if I have any say over it) are going to Goodwill as soon as I get a chance.

We haven't bought into the "N+1" theory and I don't play polo. :)

I keep my bikes in my room whenever I am not using them, and they aren't crowding me out at all, although to make space for them, I had to remove the model railroad in my room, which took up a lot of space. Living in a 2 bedroom apartment sure isn't helpful with storage space :(

Boy, some of you guys sure get carried away. You're kind of like the photography bugs who aren't happy until they own every kind of camera ever made. The owning is more important than the actual taking of pictures. Why don't you just simplify and concentrate on one good bike of each type that you actually need.