Chain rusting in Cyclehoop
 

I keep my bike in a cyclehoop hanger in the street. The end of the hanger is a grille with lots of holes. My bike is adjacent to this. Water keeps getting in and making my chain rust. What can I do to stop this? Can I cover the chain somehow.? I'm tempted to put something up against the grille, but it would probably be removed in time.
Thanks.

Lube your chain. You can't expect miracles if the bike is outside though.

Don't keep your bike there for long periods. An outdoor rack is always for shorter lock ups or maybe while you are at work, they are not storage solutions for the bike. A bike should be stored indoors to keep it out of the elements especially things like humidity and frequent rain but also to keep it away from thieves.

If you for some reason cannot take it indoors to store it or you work long hours and it is outside and no inside storage exists then make sure to properly maintain it often (lubing chain and cables, checking and replacing wear items, regreasing bearings...) either yourself or at your local bike shop. Also clean your bike as well, all the grit and grime can wear out chains and cause other issues and the cleaning also allows you to see if there is any damage to the frame that would make it unsafe to ride.

Bike pajamas are a thing that exists but really only protects from falling elements and not humidity or other weather conditions. Certainly could be a step up from nothing but still isn't a solution. The best solution is bring it inside and there are plenty of ways to store a bike indoors that doesn't take up a ton of space or look like poo-poo-garbagé.

Thanks. Cyclehoop say "the Bikehangar offers a secure solution to long-term cycle parking and an effective way to protect bikes from tough weather conditions " but that doesn't seem to be quite true. I don't like to bring the bike inside because I can cause damage bringing it inside, there's a tendency for dirty drips of water to fall onto my carpet if my bike has got wet, and it takes up space. I live in flat which is carpeted throughout.

Duct tape on the inside of the holes?

Possibly, but it would take a lot of time for me to cover all the holes and would then be easy for someone else to just pull off. I'm thinking perhaps of getting a perspex sheet and drilling some holes in it to attach it to the grille. I do have difficulty in understanding why they have this grille with all the holes on the end.

If you cover the bike with a bicycle cover or tarp you can reduce some of the effects of the humidity and dirt getting on the bike.

Yeah and they also have a bridge to sell you at a very reasonable price. The actual product looks decent for what it is but it is a non fully enclosed structure with no chance of removing humidity or anything like that and easy chance of water ingress. Certainly better than just locking it up to a pole but not really weather protected that much.

If you are worried about drips just bring the bike in and put a mat underneath it easy peasy and you can hang it from the wall, without much fuss. I am assuming you don't just take off your shoes outside of your flat and never walk through with shoes on, it is not a lot different!

You could also have a towel and just wipe down the bike before bringing it inside. That are use the towel underneath the bike instead of a mat.

I would use a Dual Touch to hold it which is a nice floor to ceiling rack from Topeak that can hold two bikes. If you can drill into the wall then you have a ton of other excellent options as well for just hanging it from the wall which can easily tuck away quite nicely or add extra storage for other bike stuff.

This might help some, as would trying to hang the bike in the center of the structure so you have less rain or fog being blown in through the grill on the end.

Ultimately, I think you'll want a combination of a good "wet" chain lube, wiped after every ride to re-spread the lube, and ride the bike more often.

Though I wouldn't "normally" recommend this, you may want to use a light grease on the chain. The grease would do a better job protecting the chain from rust while it is stored outside.

KMC makes some rust-resistant chains. How bad is the rusting?

Are you in a snowy area? You might be battling the effects of road salt during this season.

Guess what? Chains need to be lubricated from time to time. If you ride your bike and put it away wet while never doing regular lubing and maintenance your chain will rust. Give your bike some love from time to time. Bring it indoors and dry it off. Clean it up and oil your chain. This will deal with most of your problems. If you just ride it and then stick into an outdoor shelter without regular maintenance parts will rust