Storing Bikes without causing damage
 

I see all these cool ideas about storage bikes and I planning to buy a new bike rack for multiple bikes.

What should I look for in a bike rack? I want something that can handle 3 or 4 bikes. The storage option should be able to allow a 5"6 person to remove one of the bikes reasonable.

Also what is the best parts of the bike to hang hooks without that would not cause functional damage to the bike? I remember as a kid we hung out bikes from the back wheels and then notice that the back wheels on all the bikes were being bent from the hooks.

I won't help on the specifics, but can offer comfort by telling you that bikes are light and cannot be damaged by being hung by any part, except, possibly, the saddle's deck, though hanging by the rails would be OK.

One caveat. If using a grid type floor rack, some extra care for brake discs and rear derailleurs is called for.

Well, just a roll-in rack is easiest if you don't want to lift any bikes. But if you can lift bikes to hang bike by the front or rear wheel (probably alternating F/R so adjacent handlebars don't clash), I've seen online racks that attach to the wall (I don't know if one rack for multiple bikes or they are all single and you just put up as many as you need), and when the bike is hung, they swivel left and right, like rugs hung up in a store, for easy access to any bike, but then all store compactly against each other, either straight out from the wall, or all swung closer to the wall to save space. The wheel hooks adjust in height so for each bike, you don't need to lift far up off the floor once tilted up vertical. Seems like a smart system in both respects.

Bike storage in my previous place:
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...85d315e2be.jpg

Stored my bikes like that for years without damage

This is probably my next storage rack for all my bikes:
https://tealtriangle.com/products/freestanding-g-bike

I have been looking at it for a while so I just need to pull the trigger on it. They do some wall mount stuff as well but this fills the need for an upright rack that replaces the Minoura one I have but don't love as it is not super stable if you remove or move a bike sometimes.

Been hanging my bikes off the wheels on hooks for 25 years, never an issue, carbon wheels, aluminum wheels, whatever. You don’t indicate where in a basement/ garage / apartment you will be storing. A 2x6 beam on edge with J hooks from Home Depot, etc…. Spaced 2 ft or so, hang all your bikes from that. Cheap.

Nice. If you were 3 inches taller, that might not have worked!

I also have been hanging my bikes from bike hooks by the wheels for decades with no problems either. I have a small shed in my back yard that holds five bikes hanging on hooks,

If you have more than one, and if you alternate front-up/front down, you'll fit more into the same amount of space. Just make sure the screw hooks sink into a stud or ceiling joist so that they don't pull out. Pre-drilling the holes slightly smaller than the screw's threads will ensure you don't split the stud or joists...which can (but not always) loosen sheetrock screws/nails and, well, cause problems.

If your back wheel was bent from the bike being hung on it…then I’m sure there must have been some other pressure acting upon in a lateral direction it to cause it to bend. Like others have indicated above…most every part of the bike is designed to accommodate the weight of riders of more than 200 lbs. So you can hang it from just about anything. Just watch of for lateral pressure. Although hanging it from the brake/shifting cables probably not a good idea. Nor would I hang it from the brake/brifter levers, and individual spoke(s), nor any other attached component like fenders or panniers, derailleur, etc. Hanging it from the chain would probably even be OK…but just a little weird.

Dan

No real danger in hanging the bikes by their wheels, unless you have very heavy bikes with poor quality wheels.

Taking care when you load and unload will prevent the vast majority of damage from happening to your bikes; my feeling is that a lot of the anecdotes of damage from hanging on hooks is from putting the hook around or against the spokes instead of just the rim, and the tendency to unload the bike by just yanking it down, rather than getting it all the way free of the hanger before lowering it to the ground.

Fancy hangers are nice and all, but you can do just fine with regular hardware hooks if you think about what you're doing and take a little care.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7d9437fad.jpeg

This is almost unimaginable. How exactly where the wheels bent from being hung up?

BTW I have this free standing 4 bikes hanging stand in the garage:
https://www.amazon.com/Bike-Bicycle-...DKIKX0DER&th=1
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/...AC_SL1500_.jpg
Probably the best way to store 4 bikes without any drilling etc

Hanging bikes from vertical hooks, is not the same as using hooks from the side as pictured, which can increase hook and rim loading, in the same way that levering a nail out with a hammer claw, can exert far more pulling force than hooking with the claw and then pulling straight up; The latter will never pull the nail.

I recognize the black Cannondale 3.0 Crit, somewhere around '89-'92?

It's an '89; started life as an R500, I repainted it in Kameleon green/purple, fitted a 2x10 drivetrain and 320tpi cotton racing clinchers. It wants "Full Gas" all the time now. :giver:

Yes and No; Yes, in that you are side-loading the hook, but that side-load is only ~20* off angle , but No, in that WRT hanging up a bike, the net force in the whole system is only equal to the weight of the bike. In a "dead hang", all of the force is on a single point on the wheel, and the whole thing is in tension. In a wall mount, the bikes' wheels are "pushing" against the wall, and the hook is keeping the bike from falling away from the wall as much as supporting its weight. Same net total of forces, just split up in a couple different directions.
Id have to pull out my old Statics notebook to get you an actual breakdown, though.

The nail-pulling example also brings biomechanics and levers into the equation, which increases the variation in the amount of force you can apply to a given point in the model. Unless you're putting the bike on the hook and then hanging from the handlebars, that just muddies the water.
I stand by my original statement though, that the anecdotes of damaging bikes by hanging them is because they were hung with the hooks against/around the spokes, and loaded or unloaded by trying to pull the bike "down" off the hook, rather than lifting it clear of the hanger, then bringing it down. I will agree though, that a wall mounted hook takes a bit more care, both in setup and in use, than a single ceiling hook.

I just hang most of my bikes by the saddle nose on the garage. Never had any issues. I hang a couple from hooks also.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1d2ad92ed4.jpg

I agree the weight is not much for a typical bike. But the loading is different. The weight of the bike is being exerted straight down at the axle of the wheel being hung, and you then have that moment arm, the wheel radius to the wall, to exert a torque. Now take that same torque and divide by the distance from the tire contact point at the wall, and the vertical distance upward to the hook; If that distance is small, you have a force magnification. The hook also experiences shear and bending loads, because even though the tire has contact with the wall and has friction, the tire can roll (EDIT: I have to think about this... it can roll when first hung... need to think about this), so none of the vertical load is being taken by the tire, it is all a downward shear and bending on the hook at 90 degrees to its intended load direction. But it can handle that. But whatever outward pull of that force magnification, is harder pull on the rim at the hook contact point, and possibly an actual point with deep section rims, so for lightweight rims like carbon race rims, I'd do a quick calc and check the force magnification versus a pure vertical force hang on a hook.

The bike looked familiar; Mine is an '89, I think R600 (sorta) that I had them add the aluminum fork and the 7 speed cassette. I guess I have about 70k miles on that bike before going into storage in favor of townies. Loved the sportiness of it, was my first good bike, but over the years I didn't like the stiff ride, eventually fit I think 28mm tires that just barely fit with a file dusting of the front derailleur, and a triple crank when I moved from flatland to gentle hills for work. Bike still looks like new. 3rd set of wheels, due to fatigue cracks at spoke holes from the miles, roads were smooth.

Except hanging the bike isn't exerting any "extra" force. Just like simply hanging a hammer on a nail by the claw isn't going to pull the nail without the "extra" force added by your arm. .

It is an interesting exercise; I can draw up the free-body diagram pretty easily, but I’m going to have to dust off some math I haven’t used in two decades to actually grok out some actual values. (And I really wanted to ride my bike this morning, than do homework)

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...e4dce98fe.jpeg


Anyhow, I stand by the assertion that the OP claims of “we stored our bikes on hooks when we were kids and it damaged the wheels” is probably more due to poor practices (no offense intended) like hanging against the spokes, or twisting the bike to get it on or off of the hook; also could be inexpensive bikes with lower quality wheels (which are demonstrably more easily damaged) rather than “Hooks Damage Wheels”

(above) Perhaps. Thinking about this more:

There would be less downward load into the sideways hook if the hung wheel were locked, so the tire against the wall can actually excert some vertical friction holding the bike up. But instead the tire can rotate under the bike weight, adding force to the hook. And I think because the wheel can "roll", the FBD may get weird. Too tired now to figure it out.

The closer the hook is vertically to the tire contact with the wall, the higher the hook forces. A wider span is better.

I'm less nervous about those forces on the rim if they are traditional aluminum ones. A bit more concerned if carbon.

I don't like the downward (lateral) forces on the sideways mounted hook, screwed into low-density wood, with force direction that would split the wood.

Yeah, I don't think I'd hang a carbon wheeled bike from a utility hook either, but I'm not in that budget range or weight class. I did put some extra rubber tubing over the hooks for the road bikes, because the rims are a little "pointy"

The heaviest bike I usually have up there is my old Bridgestone, at just over 30#; the Cannondales and the Klein are significantly lighter.

I picked a 2x4 with good grain, piloted the holes for the hooks and waxed the threads for good engagement without splitting. It's attached to the wall with a 5/16x3-1/2 lag into each stud. I was more concerned with it pulling out of the wall than the hooks coming out of the 2x4; there's 6 lags supporting the 5 hooks; I'm pretty sure it's secure.

Unimaginable! :twitchy:

Where is your storage going to be, inside house, garage, shed ?? If you have the space, I can't recommend these enough. A little pricey, but they are fantastic and do not regret buying them

Steady Rack, I have 2 of the version for fenders as they handle fenders, but I think they work much better for the road\gravel tires. The other 4 are the standard Steady Racks. One of my bikes is at the shop , but these things swivel side to side and roll right on and off, no lifting. I originally bought them, as my wife hated lifting her bikes off the hooks or the racks. so I just hung some 1 x8x12 across the wall attached to the 2x4's and then spaced them out based on handle bar type. Flat bars about 2 ft spacing, drop bar, roughly 16" if I remember. The fender version will easily accept up to a 42mm tire hard pack type gravel tire, a slightly knobber gravel up to maybe 38, possibly 40. Anything really knobby will need the standard type, like a Mountain bike type knobs. Keeps everything off the floor, they sit about 1.5 to 2 inches off the ground. When I need to replace the AC filter, I just swivel everything to the left, replace and move them back... no fuss, no muss. They sit pretty close to the wall as well. I used to have one of the 4 bike stands, and it took up so much space with the bikes on it, so I opted for a better plan and this was it.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...dc74995c4c.jpg

Yes, that was what I was trying to describe in my post #3 above. I think a number of companies make similar ones, it may be too simple and tons of prior art to patent. That they can be swung left and right with the bike on with ease, is the great part.

If space is tight at ground level with a car in the garage, I use ceiling bike lifts that are also used to hold kayaks and canoes, they used to be $75 but I find on sale at discount tool places for $8.