DIY Bike Rack
So for those that don’t know, I’ve moved into a new apartment. My old place was kind of a tiny hole, which was exacerbated by the pile of bikes that lived in my kitchen. We had 3 or 4 bikes leaned up against the wall, in various states of disrepair. I scribbled up some plans for a vertical rack with legs to support it, but never built anything.
A few months back, I saw this online, and figured I could build one cheaper.
Here are some pics of my version.
It took about 30 minutes to slap together. It’s a 2×4, cut to about 7′7″. I drilled a hole in one end and screwed in a long lag screw. I just unthreaded the screw to tension the 2×4 against the block at the top. The bikes are held by some stud hooks that I found at Home Depot. They slide over the 2×4 crosspieces, and hold really well. The entire project cost about $15.
I have to credit my dad with the idea of using a lag screw to tension the rack. I was hashing out much more complicated (read expensive) solutions; this is real slick.
It’s rock-solid, as well. I was a little worried about stability, but it’s not going anywhere. As you can see, the construction is pretty rough. I could make it prettier, but this is functional.
**edit** This is also posted (slightly differently) at spicybiscotti.com. link
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19 Responses to “DIY Bike Rack”
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[...] I’ve updated the pictures the recent post about my bike rack. If you missed it before, check it out.link [...]
Erin told me about your bike rack. She was pretty excited about it. It does look great!
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[...] I know what you’re thinking. “Didn’t I see this somewhere else? Maybe some super-popular site, with millions of hits every day?” You’d be correct; I originally posted this at mike.sapak.info. [...]
Thanks for taking the time to post this. $15 is hard to beat! I look forward to putting a couple of these together this weekend in my garage.
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[...] the bike only set him back around $15 in supplies and took about a half hour to assemble. Not bad! DIY Bike Rack [...]
Your a genius! I’m so making one of these for my apartment. It will be perfect out on my balcony. My landlord has been complaining about the bike parking lot we have out there!
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@Elle
Glad you like it. Bikes are tough in apartments, aren’t they?
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I really like it! You can buy for about 30 cents each a copper pipe bracket _|-|_ (looks like an omega) to keep your stud hooks from slipping.
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You’ve got to be kidding me! That’s the ugliest, most kludged together thing I’ve ever seen! I just bought two wall-mounted folding racks from a local sporting goods store for $9.99 each. Two screws to install each unit.
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@Cornflower
Thanks for the tip. I’ve been thinking about a good way to attach the hooks. I bet a pipe bracket would work nicely.
@Mark
Wall-mounted means finding studs and drilling holes. Not a good option in a short-term apartment. To each his/her own. However I have seen the folding bike racks, and they do look pretty sweet.
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[...] gibt es ja noch die Möglichkeit es selbst zu bauen. Ausschauen könnte es dann wie bei Mike. Das möchte ich dann aber nicht mehr in meiner Wohnung [...]
Could you please elaborate on “using a lag screw to tension the rack”? I am sure how it is done. Thank you very much for the information.
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mike.sapak Reply:
October 14th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Sure. A lag screw is just a heavy screw with a hex head. You use a wrench or socket to drive it, rather than a screwdriver.
First I drilled a vertical pilot hole in the top of the rack. Then I drove the lag screw almost all the way in. Then I stood the rack in position, and had my girlfriend hold the horizontal piece against the ceiling. I unscrewed the lag screw until it pressed tight against the horizontal piece.
You can’t really see it, but I drilled a shallow hole in the horizontal piece, to keep the lag screw head from sliding. I also covered the top of the horizontal piece in rubbery non-slip cloth. The bottom of the main rack has some screw-in feet to keep it from sliding. These things might be optional, but I felt like they helped.
Let me know if you have any more questions.
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BikeLover Reply:
October 16th, 2008 at 10:19 am
How do you “unscrewed the lag screw until it pressed tight against the horizontal piece”? It seems to me you can drive the lag screw only from the top of the hex head. Thank you very much again for the information.
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mike.sapak Reply:
October 16th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
I just used a crescent wrench to unscrew it. If you don’t have a crescent wrench or an open-end wrench, you could probably use a pair of vice-grip pliers to grab the shaft of the screw. A wrench would be the easiest, however.
Mike,
I liked the design and the price and I have a similar situation myself where I’m not allowed to mount to the wall.
I built two, but using 1×6 and 2×6 scraps from a construction dumpster to fashions “hooks” to hold the bike. Saved money, but way more time. Also, instead of the lag screw I used salvaged casters and threaded inserts, primarily because I had the casters laying around. Anyway, I was into things for less than 3 bucks each, plus screws and wood glue I already had.
Besides complimenting your design/idea, I was curious how yours has held up. I was wondering if the 2×4 has warped under the weight/tension over time.
Thanks again for saving me big bucks.
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mike.sapak Reply:
November 15th, 2008 at 3:53 am
Glad it worked out for you. I was only in that apartment for 8 months, so it wasn’t exactly a long-term experiment. However, I had no problems with warping at all. I was actually amazed at how well the thing held up. After about a week, I gave the screw a bit more tension, just to be sure. After that, I didn’t make a single change. I checked on it every month or two, but it never slipped or sagged once.
I’ll definitely use this design again. With a bit more care and some finish work, I think it could be attractive as well as functional.
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[...] $15 DIY Bike Rack (Sapak) [...]
Very cool, man. I would’ve tried this if I didn’t buy one of those racor things… Bah! I guess when I add more bikes to my collection, I’ll hook it uo! Great post!
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