Commuting - How do you store your bike(S) while at home? (Pictures if possible)

Hi all, I never thought i'd have more than one bike...or even need more than one bike, but now that im up to 3 and possibly 4 (in the near future), im just wondering how do people with multiple bikes store their bikes?

Do you have a bike rack in your garage? Do you use those wall folding mounts? Do you throw your winter bike in the shed and forget about it until needed again, thus free'ing up space?


I currently have my $2000 mnt. bike in my basement and my commuter (regular and winter) leaning up against the garage wall, but their always a pain to deal with as they have no kickstands.
It is especially a pain when I need the bike against the wall and I have to pull the first one out to get to it. And I use an old piece of styrofoam insulation to keep my handlebars from rubbing up against the garage wall.


What systems do you use? Pictures would be great!!!
Anybody here have an actual bike rack they use?


Well this is my current setup
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/8968/img0122qd.jpg
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/716/img0119uy.jpg
http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/6084/img0117vf.jpg
http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/9749/img0116u.jpg

In the garage, leaning on its kickstand. Not much to take a picture of.

However, due to some scheduled maintenance, the Uni is currently sitting in my office...

Hanging over my wife's car are 4 MTBs (wife's, sons' and mine) as well as wife's and my road bikes. The MTBs require moving the car (they don't get regular use) but the road bikes are accessible with the car in place. My commuter sits in from of my van so it is easy to load and go. My wife's and my vintage road bikes are at my m-i-l's as we ran out of room and it gives us bikes to ride when any of us are there (my son's are a bit taller than I so they can ride my bikes).

J hooks. I have them all over the walls and rafters of my garage. The family all together has 8 bikes. These live vertically on the walls. I also store a couple of bikes on J hooks in a 2 x 4 up in the rafters. I also have spare wheels on J hooks hanging from the rafters.

My garage walls are pegboard and I use peg hooks for all sorts of tools and misc stuff. I am right in the middle of putting up some shelving over the bikes for a handy place for helmets and other misc gear.

Did I mention J hooks?

What you need to do is mount a couple of 2 x 4 boards onto the cinder blocks and screw in some J hooks. You can mount the 2x4s by drilling into the cinder blocks with a masonry bit and then using masonry anchors. Us a bit of liquid nails too... that way nothing works loose from the constant movement.

I actually thought about a cool system that consists of a rail mounted to the studs that has a place to put sliding bike hangers on it... but decided that J hooks were good enough and darn cheap too.

http://www.sciplus.com/itm_photos/webHO0143.jpg

I actually thought about a cool system that consists of a rail mounted to the studs that has a place to put sliding bike hangers on it... but decided that J hooks were good enough and darn cheap too.
I saw pics somewhere on BF where a guy used roll-up garage door track and rollers to make an overhead bike storage rack.

One thing I found is the vinyl coating on the J hooks doesn't hold up well. I cut it off and slide a length of tubing over the hook (I had some the right size left over from a water softener install). It has worked awesome.

In the living room of my third-floor walk-up apartment. The like the view.

http://www.brucew.com/images/wordpress/2009/hangin-out-1-800.jpg

http://www.brucew.com/images/wordpress/2009/hangin-out-2-1024.jpg

I saw pics somewhere on BF where a guy used roll-up garage door track and rollers to make an overhead bike storage rack.

One thing I found is the vinyl coating on the J hooks doesn't hold up well. I cut it off and slide a length of tubing over the hook (I had some the right size left over from a water softener install). It has worked awesome.

The stuff I was thinking about is called slatwall... and it looks quite nice. You might have seen it in use in stores. Not a bad system... but somewhat expensive compared to J hooks in studs.

Here is a pic:

http://www.uttamfabrication.com/images/slatwall.jpg

My bikes are parked in the section of the apartment that management laughingly calls the dining room. They are merely parked closely together, with the ones I use the least like my Giant Stiletto against the wall and the ones I use the most easily accessible.

I went to KMart and got each one a little 18"x60" or so rug of its own so the dirt doesn't get into the landlord's carpet.

I've got four bikes hanging offset vertically on 16" centers with these. Realsimilar to tsi above.
http://www.amazon.com/Delta-Leonardo-Single-Bicycle-Vinci/dp/B000FGTTEW

http://img691.yfrog.com/img691/6576/p1170337400.jpghttp://img691.yfrog.com/img691/6576/p1170337400.jpg (http://img691.yfrog.com/img691/6576/p1170337400.jpg)

Two different owners, I won't have to tell you which one is mine. Yea our bikes don't sit outside.
I will move mine into my bedroom if we need the space.

In winter I move all the bikes from the garage to the basement so I can make adjustments and just generally admire them in some warmth. In summer, the bikes stay in the garage. I think we have 7 of them at present.

In winter I move all the bikes from the garage to the basement so I can make adjustments and just generally admire them in some warmth. In summer, the bikes stay in the garage. I think we have 7 of them at present.


And you haul the bikes into the basement everytime you commute? I don't have the energy for that.


As for the J-hooks... I guess you don't have any locking systems. Any fear of anyone breaking into the garage to steal the bikes?

I live in a townhouse-style apartment, so I don't have a garage. My usual commuter is just parked near the front door. My Mundo sits stands vertically in a corner near the back sliding glass doors. I need to get some plastic to put down under both, though. The whole place is carpeted so it's sort of annoying to clean.

I struggled with the same problem a year or so ago. Decided to build my own storage for 4 bikes in the basement. Cheap, easy, effective.132849

I have one of those 2 bike storage racks that they sell at nashbar. I keep it in my kitchen. You can buy attachments to put another 2 bikes, but I only keep my main 2 bikes at home. The other bajillion of them are in a storage building that's located about 10 feet from a bike trail. Makes it easy for a weekend ride. I really like the nashbar rack though. I suppose you could make something like it, but for me it was just easier to buy it. It's free standing and doesn't try to tip over when you take a bike down like some racks.

If you're hanging them in a garage... a good idea is to put in an extra anchor bolt with a massive ring to lock the bicycle to - in case the garage door is left open.

Also might consider that for your MTB....

The Surly Big Dummy I just keep with its stand down and the Moulton has its seat leaned against a pillar which has zipped tied a peice of foam to keep the saddle from getting abraded and the front wheel is in one of those wheel holders you use for an indoor trainer. They are both in the garage which is fully enclosed but I keep them locked anyway - just in case. These are the only two bike I ride regularly, my spare bike I keep hanging from the garage ceiling using J hooks. Some times a bike is in the repair stand for a while (also in the garage). I also have various spare wheel sets, tires, rims, trailers, etc. hanging from J hooks. The kayaks are also up there using a rope and pulley system. Not much ceiling real estate left.

In the garage. Together with my lawn mowers, summer tires, garden tools and cars. I might consider locking them up just in case if I forget to close the garage door when I drive out.

I bought a 6' x 6' plastic shed because I was tired of moving my car to get my bike off of the J hook it was hanging on. I built plywood shelves for the shed and installed them opposite the door. Plywood sags so I installed 2" x 4" supports from the bottom shelf to the floor. The 2" x 4" s are spaced a little wider than our bikes' tires, thus doubling as bike racks. So, all we have to do is push the bikes into the "racks" and shut and lock the door. The rest of the shed is rapidly filling up with other stuff, but not to the point we can't park the bikes. You could park three bikes in this arrangement if you put one in rearwards, but my third bike is a folder, so no need for a rack for it.

I've also used bike hoists in my garage, but only for bikes that are used infrequently.

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This is kind of a terrible picture but basically I just have two hooks in my living room and a spot in the hall for guest bikes.

...

http://www.mip.sdu.dk/~glewin/cykling_files/shed.JPG

My bike gets used every day, so I don't store it anywhere, I just roll it into the garage at night, and out again in the morning.

The rest of the family's bikes are on J hooks in the garage much of the year. They're mainly there for me to bash my head on, and to fill the tires with air once in a while, then they go flat again hanging there.

Leaning against the basement wall/other bikes. Next to a floor drain. With a fan blowing on it to it dry off.

No pics, since no one is allowed to see my basement until I clean it up. Sometime before 2017.

I just pull it into my front hall and lean it against the wall. I'm amazed at how many people I see locking their bikes up outside leaving it sitting out in the snow and rain.

I've got all of mine hanging on hooks that are lagged into the cinderblock wall. Some of the hooks are attached to a 2x4 that is lagged on the ends.

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/cyccommute/Garage-3.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/cyccommute/Garage-2.jpg

Also have my mountain bike in the closet in the right of this picture.

http://i422.photobucket.com/albums/pp308/bsull184/DSC00419.jpg

My Gosh....how many bikes do you have? How come you have so many?

I like the idea of the wood and the J-hooks, which i'd probably use a cable lock with in case the garage door is left open



I've got all of mine hanging on hooks that are lagged into the cinderblock wall. Some of the hooks are attached to a 2x4 that is lagged on the ends.

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/cyccommute/Garage-3.jpg
http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/cyccommute/Garage-2.jpg

In the basement of my apartment building. The main area down there is a laundry area, but it's a fairly large open area, and other people already had their bikes parked down there when I moved in, so it was a no brainer where to keep it. It doubles as a nice work area for bike maintenance too (industrial tile floor makes for easy clean up).

It's only one short flight of about 6 or 8 stairs down from our building's split entryway. A couple of doors and some tight spaces along the way make it a chore to get the bike down there or out of there sometimes, but I've worked out a system and gotten used to it.

I think I'm the only one who uses a bike more than once a month (or six) judging by how often the other bikes get moved/touched. Mine gets moved almost every day I come to work and occasionally on weekends.

I got one of these rolling racks from Harbor Freight for six bikes (and put up the tandem on a pulley hoist).

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/photos/02600-02699/02628.gif

$49.99

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=2628

I park them in the garage.

http://i370.photobucket.com/albums/oo143/johnlesar/P1010001.jpg

My 2 roomies and I keep them in the garage during the winter - save for my newest purchase, which spends time in my bedroom with me, and the living room when adding new parts.

Currently the ones in the garage are mostly hanging from the rafters on J hooks (So 8 hanging). My xtracycle and two other ones reside on the floor - leaning up against other objects/each other. We hang them outside on our covered patio in the summer. Can't wait to get rid of some of them though!

My bikes are all over the place, much to my wife's chagrin. I have them in the garage, the living room and the family room.

She's currently cleaning out a back bedroom to set it up as her office; once that mess recedes I'd like to consolidate it all into the family room and make it my man cave or whatever the popular term is.

This is how I store mine in the spare bedroom. 9 hooks on an 8 ft 2x4. If I were to redo it, I would put up a sheet of plywood to protect the paint on the wall.

http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/uu214/big_heineken/Bicycles/P8042324.jpg

In the summer, I keep 2 in the garage on fold-up hangers and 1 in my shop stand in the 1/2 of our second bedroom which I claimed as my shop area.
In the winter, I keep 2 in the shop area: My commuter on the shop stand, and my fixie ready to go on the trainer in front of my computer on days when I don't ride to work. The utility cruiser stays in the garage.

I park them in the garage.

http://i370.photobucket.com/albums/oo143/johnlesar/P1010001.jpg

OK, there has got to be a thread on the Alt Bike forum about that monster chopper. Am I right? Please, I have to know more about that beast!

We have a Performance 2-bike stand (http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1023853_-1_400028_400007_400245) in the carport with my wife's MTB and my road machine locked to it.

The third bike is the commuter that gets daily abuse, it just leans up on my road bike and locked to the stand.

And you haul the bikes into the basement everytime you commute? I don't have the energy for that.


As for the J-hooks... I guess you don't have any locking systems. Any fear of anyone breaking into the garage to steal the bikes?

Big cables that run through the bikes and through large eye bolts also in the wall. But honestly, if anyone broke into the garage, they would also have access to lots of cutting tools that can zip right through just about anything you can think of.

When I go away on long trips I lock up the tools as well as double lock the roll up doors... and I have dogs.

But if someone really wants the goods, there is no stopping them.

I keep my commuter and (in the summer) my cruiser in the garage. Locked to some old iron scaffolding for now, but I plan to get a proper bike rack in the future. My girlfriend keeps her commuter and I assume will keep her cruiser there in the summer too. Those are the bikes that get the most use. All of the rest are in the basement. It's a bit more hassle to get them out, but not too bad the odd time I want to ride something different, which is usually for fun when I have spare time so it's no big deal to put a bit of extra effort into it.

But honestly, if anyone broke into the garage, they would also have access to lots of cutting tools that can zip right through just about anything you can think of.

Depends on what kind of door you have. If you don't care what happens to the door its not very hard at all to get into a garage with little more than some effort and a pair of boots.
Like I said I lock up in the garage, but I also always keep the door closed and pay attention to who is hanging around if I'm taking bikes in or out. I was also considering a sacrificial bike.

My Gosh....how many bikes do you have? How come you have so many?

I like the idea of the wood and the J-hooks, which i'd probably use a cable lock with in case the garage door is left open

When the picture was taken, I had 13. I've purged them down to 5 plus the tandem that hasn't seen the road in 10+ years.

Mostly I had so many because I hadn't purged any out for a long time. I now have, from the right, a hardtail mountain bike (mostly a commuter now), a touring bike, and a dual suspension mountain bike that are the first 3 bikes. I also have a cyclocross that's my main road machine/commuter and a Moots YBB for mountain bike touring. My wife has 2 bikes.

Imminently crappy picture. Bikes in the corner near a sliding glass door to the outside:

http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/3987/img0304mf.jpg

In the winter, all the family's bikes are hanging from the ceiling of the garage with the exception of my winter bike which I leave on the floor because it's too heavy to hang up every night.

In the summer the family bikes/trailer take up half the garage and one car is kept outside. Ironically both of my bikes hang in the summer. The winter bike doesn't get used very often outside of winter so it's hung by both wheels. My summer bike is light and I just hang it by it's rear wheel when I get home to keep it out of the way and to keep it from getting knocked over.

This is how I store mine in the spare bedroom. 9 hooks on an 8 ft 2x4. If I were to redo it, I would put up a sheet of plywood to protect the paint on the wall.

http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/uu214/big_heineken/Bicycles/P8042324.jpg

Is that a Raleigh Marathon in middle of the pack? I got one of them.

I have the same color Raleigh Marathon too but with a brown Brooks saddle.

I have a set of bike hoists on my garage ceiling...

And you haul the bikes into the basement everytime you commute? I don't have the energy for that.



I guess it's a question of basement access. It takes 25 minutes to ride home from work and 25 seconds to put the bike in the basement.

As mentioned, this also allows to me to dry it off completely, do any needed repairs, and change wheelsets based on the next day's weather forecast, if needed.

I use this stand. It's a great four bike stand for a apartment dweller.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000PGXLDC/ref=ox_ya_oh_product

This is the storage system utilizing 2 pulley systems I bought at the LBS. The bike on the left is my regular commuter, 08 Giant Rincon. The bike on the right is my back up/spare, Raleigh Century.

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Close up to attach points:

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My summer bike lives on the wall in my office. My winter bike (and during the summer, my wife's bike) is locked to a fence outside. We also keep a bike stored in my parents' garage. I've been trying to figure out a way to store a second bike inside the house, since I'd like to buy my wife an upgrade, but would be uncomfortable storing a better bike outside. Finding space is challenging, though. I saw someone who staggered the heights on their wall hangings - I might be able to pull that off. :)

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Depends on what kind of door you have. If you don't care what happens to the door its not very hard at all to get into a garage with little more than some effort and a pair of boots.
Like I said I lock up in the garage, but I also always keep the door closed and pay attention to who is hanging around if I'm taking bikes in or out. I was also considering a sacrificial bike.I don't believe he was talking about the tools required to get into the garage. I think he was talking about the tools available in the garage, which are likely adequate to grind off a lock.