Wooden Bike Store -quality?

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
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VinceLedge
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Joined: 12 Dec 2020, 9:51am

Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by VinceLedge »

I am looking for a wooden bike store for the garden , there are loads available on line at a range of prices, but I have no idea about the likely quality of the products. I don't want one made of wood so thin it doesn't last.
Has anyone got any recommendations for well made ones?
Nearholmer
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by Nearholmer »

Leaving aside considerations of security, and assuming we’re talking about a small hut to keep the weather off your bikes:

- I would personally avoid anything made from plywood, and especially chipboard or particle boards, because it’s very hard to keep those boards well-sealed against damp, and once damp gets in it will cause rapid decay;

- buy or make something that has reasonably sturdy frame members and planks (2x2 and decking boards would be good) and make absolutely certain it’s well-impregnated with preservative, and has a good roof/top, either robust “felt”, or one of the bitumen-based corrugated sheets;

- above all, keep wood well away from soil, raise the hut up on small concrete blocks or engineering bricks standing on slabs to allow air circulation under it, and keep that air circulation free by preventing accumulation of dead leaves etc.

Kept well ventilated and periodically given a coat of preservative, a shed or hut under a good roof will last for decades.

Personally, I would probably build, rather than buy a an off the shelf one, because that way you can choose good, sturdy material.

Really complete security is hard to obtain, but if you screw, rather than nail, and if you use hasps bolted through a frame member etc., plus a really solid lock, you can make getting into it more trouble than casual thieves can be bothered to take. Think of it as a large treasure chest.

The other option for security is a really solid steel anchor, concreted into the ground and coming up through the floor of the hut, to which you secure the bike(s).
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Paulatic
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by Paulatic »

When it comes to wooden sheds, if you can’t build your own, then look local. Got to be someone builds them local and you can see the material they use. I’ve three sheds I didn’t build myself 2 are 25yo and one is 40yo.
There’s a factory down the road from me builds them for online and diy centre sales See through wood you’d be lucky to get ten years from.
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geomannie
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by geomannie »

I can highly recommend Tunstall Garden Buildings https://tgbuildings.co.uk/hobby-garden-sheds/. They will build you anything from a simple shed to something more elaborate. I have two of their constructions, one a simple shed, the other a small workshop. The quality of the material & build is excellent. Mine are both about 12-15 years old and remain watertight and likely to last, with a lick of wood preseservative, for many years to come. If you want, as I did, they will both deliver & erect onto a pre-prepared base
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rotavator
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by rotavator »

I have bought two sheds from this company, may be 10 and 20 years ago, and both are still doing well so I can recommend them. A window is a good idea, especially if the wind blows the door shut while you are inside.
https://www.gcraft.co.uk/overview/sheds/index.html
VinceLedge
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by VinceLedge »

Thanks for the links, will have a look.

Security isn't a particular issue where we are.
Jdsk
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by Jdsk »

Nearholmer wrote: 31 Mar 2023, 8:39pm ...
Really complete security is hard to obtain, but if you screw, rather than nail, and if you use hasps bolted through a frame member etc., plus a really solid lock, you can make getting into it more trouble than casual thieves can be bothered to take. Think of it as a large treasure chest.

The other option for security is a really solid steel anchor, concreted into the ground and coming up through the floor of the hut, to which you secure the bike(s).
I'd add the use of bolts rather than screws, clutch-headed screws and the like.

And if you can't get those floor anchors into concrete you can put a steel bar under the floor and screw eyes down into it. Either a proprietary kit or DIY.

Jonathan
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Audax67
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by Audax67 »

One advantage to buy a kit from a reputable firm is that the wood will be well-seasoned and the means of assembly will allow for the wood "working" with atmospheric humidity. Building your own out of any old wood the DIY shops are pushing is a great recipe for warping and cracking. That said, buying the wood a month or so in advance and letting it season under cover should be OK.

My dad built a low lean-to shed under our kitchen window with "runners" under the roof so that the bikes hung by the saddles and the bars. I reckon my first drop-barred bike was still in there when my mum sold the house, years after he died.
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pwa
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by pwa »

Jdsk wrote: 1 Apr 2023, 10:11am
Nearholmer wrote: 31 Mar 2023, 8:39pm ...
Really complete security is hard to obtain, but if you screw, rather than nail, and if you use hasps bolted through a frame member etc., plus a really solid lock, you can make getting into it more trouble than casual thieves can be bothered to take. Think of it as a large treasure chest.

The other option for security is a really solid steel anchor, concreted into the ground and coming up through the floor of the hut, to which you secure the bike(s).
I'd add the use of bolts rather than screws, clutch-headed screws and the like.

And if you can't get those floor anchors into concrete you can put a steel bar under the floor and screw eyes down into it. Either a proprietary kit or DIY.

Jonathan
I get the feeling that the OP lives in a place where security is less of an issue. We are lucky enough to live in a place like that, where a padlock on a shed is enough to make it very unlikely you will lose anything. We don't even have a lock at all on our shed and none of our garden equipmet has ever gone AWOL. It really does depend where you live.
nosmarbaj
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by nosmarbaj »

Just a note on roofing. Consider using EPDM (synthetic rubber sheet) instead of felt.
You simply glue it on with PVA-based adhesive. It has no joins (at least for any normal-sized shed) - you buy a piece of the correct size for your roof. It lasts for decades rather than just a few years. It might be a bit more expensive per sq. metre than cheap felt, but there's less wastage. Having used it a couple of times, I'd never think of buying felt now.
There's lots of information online. I've bought from rubber4roofs with no problems, but there are quite a few suppliers.
thirdcrank
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by thirdcrank »

This thread reminded me of a Leeds firm Ablesons. By coincidence, a pic of their premises has come up on the pot luck feature of the Leodis archive.

https://www.leodis.net/viewimage/69434

I've never bought a shed from them or anyone else but I did buy some of their tanalised Larchlap feathered edge fencing which came as a kit for numpties like me. The feathered edges of the boards were significantly thicker than the typical boards in the flimsy stuff widely on sale now

They went out of business some years ago which suggests that the market for durability etc is not a big one

FWIW, I understand the Ablesons were Russian Jewish refugees - a part of the contribution made by migrant labour to this city
Sooper8
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by Sooper8 »

Sorry, I cannot answer your original query - but personally, I attached a tarpaulin using an L shaped aluminium bar to my wall (but could be a shed etc) , just a bit higher than a bike's height., and at the other end stapled a length of wood to the loose end of tarpaulin that I wrap under wheels just enough to hold it

Then it is adjustable for 1 , 2 or 3 bikes and experience has shown me that over the course of 4 years, no issue with rain has damaged the bikes. In fact the 'blow through' of the open ends has kept the bikes in superb condition. The weight of the 2"x4" thick piece of wood has held it secure in the strongest winds.

I just chain the bikes together and then attach to the wall with loop.

It's cheap, it works, and when the tarpaulin wears through, I'll just buy another.
mattsccm
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Re: Wooden Bike Store -quality?

Post by mattsccm »

Without being rude might I suggest your local shed suppliers. Everywhere has one. Wander along and pick the size you want and go for the thickest timber in your budget. Ask them what wood it actually is, research its suitability and pay up.
Mail order sheds are like brides. They may look great but probably won't go the distance. :D
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