bike shed for storage

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barbelfisher
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Joined: 5 Sep 2009, 6:54pm

bike shed for storage

Post by barbelfisher »

Not sure where to put this post so thought i would try here. I need more storage space for my bikes and cannot afford one of those steel lockable ones and don't want a cheapie wooden one from B&Q so would consider building one. What do you store your bikes in and has anyone built their own bike shed. I would be really grateful for ideas or suggestions on any point.

Regards barbelfisher.
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Si
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by Si »

I went for the cheapest one that I could find (of reasonable quality). I figure that no shed is going to keep the thieves out if they want to get in (and indeed, they have done so with mine). Instead I invested in the best lock and chain that I could afford (http://www.torc-anchors.com/index.php) and this has kept my bikes safe (touch wood) so far.
Ayesha
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by Ayesha »

I bought a good quality bunk bed for my son's room. My son sleeps on the lower bunk and our best bikes are on the top bunk. There is also enough room for several boxes of spares and clothing.
Our lesser value bikes are in the garage and garden shed.
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NUKe
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by NUKe »

If you have to buy materials you will spend more than cost of A metal shed.Hwever unless you insualte the metal ones they are pro to condensation inside. Unless your building something which is harder than fort knox to get in, I would put your effort into ground anchors set into the Concrete base. We have a large brick built garage cum workshop but most of the families bikes live in the house, Since being cleared out twice.
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thirdcrank
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by thirdcrank »

I think there's a lot to be said for thinking about security before doing anything else. There's a suggestion somewhere on here from CJ to get some sort of anchor in as the very first step, then to build the shed over it with a floor over the anchor. In that way, anybody who wants to attack it is trying to lift their own weight and everyting else to get to it. In these days when the baddies will attack ATM's with JCB diggers, nothing is impregnable, but that idea sounded like a good start to me.
mak1
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Joined: 24 Apr 2012, 11:50am

Re: bike shed for storage

Post by mak1 »

I was going to build my own but in the end went for one of these gardenbuildingsdirect.co.uk/Wooden-Storage/BillyOh-Pent-Overlap-Bike-Store

Cheap and chearful and was deliverd very quickly, not the best quality but is screwed together fine and is bolted to the floor, the side of the house and then the bikes are secured with two ground anchors (one in the house and one in the concrete floor). Plus I'm about about to put up CCTV (as I used to do that for a living and have a few odds and ends lying around, I figure one camera looking at the doors and one inside should do it :mrgreen: )

After adding up the costs of the materials I decided it wasn't worth building one....
barbelfisher
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Joined: 5 Sep 2009, 6:54pm

Re: bike shed for storage

Post by barbelfisher »

Thanks for all the replies and help. The shed is in the back garden and we have a narrow covered entrance between two houses. There is a steel gate at one end of the covered walkway and another gate at the other end so I feel things are reasonably secure. I already have one shed which is 10x8, which should be my bike workshop and storage, but the bikes stop me having any real space to do other things. So I am really desperate for storage. I sold my honda CB1000 three years ago, took up cyling and guess have got rather too involved and now have too many bikes.

Regards barbelfisher
thirdcrank
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by thirdcrank »

I'm not sure if you are saying that because the front access is secure, the rear can take care of itself, or whether the rear is secure as well. This may seem obvious but I've met plenty of people to whom it wasn't including senior police officers. A thief will simply look for the weakest point, rather than tryi to defeat the impressively strong bits.
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gaz
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by gaz »

Ground anchor through the base of shed. First bike D-locked to anchor, subsequent bike D-locked to that one (it is possible to D-lock both to the ground anchor but it's damned fiddly).

It's far from impregnable but should they break in I hope they'll just grab the lawnmower and scarper.

Visit your local shed company they may have a discounted ex-display model. I'd certainly think it more economical to reinforce a shop bought shed than to build your own.
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dewi1
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Location: Birmingham

Re: bike shed for storage

Post by dewi1 »

I am lucky and have a garage that is the bike shed. One thing to bear in mind though ... my garage has a really high ceiling (1930s house) and it means I have been able to put in a home-made mezzanine-type floor whihc is where I keep spares and other stuff .... if you do build your own, consider going higher & doing similar.
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squeaker
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by squeaker »

barbelfisher wrote:.....and now have too many bikes.

Sorry, don't understand :roll: :lol:
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[XAP]Bob
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by [XAP]Bob »

I'm considering a brick built garage - the side of our house is (fractionally) too narrow for a (modern) car anyway...

Whilst I save money for that I'm actually getting half a greenhouse (and keeping an eye out for more) - I'll paint the lower glass, and anchor the trike(s) inside.
Basically I'm relying on the locks, and associated alarms, for security - this is just for weather.
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
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vjosullivan
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by vjosullivan »

I bought a cheap(ish) wooden shed (6 x 10 ft) and built a simple wooden frame inside it, along one of the short sides, that supports four bikes vertically - the shed not being up to it in the long term. I haven't bothered locking them since there's enough other stuff in the shed to slice through pretty much anything practical. Besides, we live in the countryside, so are safe from getting burgled (except that we have been burgled). Oh, and the ATM at the petrol station at the end of the road was stolen (using oxyacetylene cutting gear) one night, despite the fact that it faced directly onto an 'A' road, not that my bikes are likely to attract that 'class' of thief.
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Ash28
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by Ash28 »

Do you want a full sized shed or just some thing bike sized ? If it is bike sized then you could knock some thing up using exterior grade plywood. Wood battons in the corners screw it all together, Felt roof.The cost could mount up !. Access could be the trickiest part, perhaps a hinged roof like a chest which would require the bike being lifted in of course.
Perhaps using a locking system where the padlock is protected by a metal shield as on shipping containers or these metal tool chests used on the back of vans.
What about beefing up the cheap B+Q jobby perhaps lining it with plywood.
I have never tried any of this just a few ideas.

Some thing I have done is concreting an old D lock in a large bucket. This can be used to lock bikes to and has the advantage of being portable (not portable enough for a thief to bother with).
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Edwards
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Re: bike shed for storage

Post by Edwards »

I think that R2 has built as shed out of 3/4" thick ply wood? Hopefully somebody can find the picture.

If you think about it making the door secure is the hardest part for any shed, as normal hinges are accessible to be levered off. I have a shed that I built on to the outside wall of the house, it is made from 8ftx3ft framed 1/2" ply packing cases. I used fence posts in between then secured into the ground by metposts. The front gate is a wooden 6ft high garden gate with the hinges on the inside. the lock is a 3 lever mortise one bolted to the gate with a 6" square metal plate on the outside (Bolts though this as well).

A friend needs a shed for bike storage and the one thing I though of is to use spray builder foam to glue a sheet of ply to the inside of the outside of a wood wood. That way the wood can not just be pried off. The door lock and hinges would all be bolted through with something to spread the load on the inside.
We can not decide if to do the same with a metal one or go with wood.
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