Fans of active recreation can only be envied - who does not like to bustle along the highway with a breeze, go on an unloaded car route and overcome steep climbs and descents on a bicycle? But the severe climatic conditions of our country are such that in winter the storage of a bicycle in an apartment becomes a real problem. Especially, if we are talking about small-sized Khrushchevs, in which simply there are not two or three squares of free space. But it does not matter, now we will consider several options for the location of your bike in the apartment.
Let's start, perhaps, from afar. If there is a possibility to put the bicycle in the tambour in front of the entrance door, then it is better to take this opportunity. True, grumbling grandmothers-neighbors can prevent your impulse, then you will have to look for a place in the apartment.
Where to store a bicycle in the apartment
Often use a glazed balcony or loggia for these purposes. Some even hang it on hooks behind the balcony, but this can only be done with the unloved "pedal horse", and not with an expensive iron friend, because high humidity, temperature drops are contraindicated. Therefore we continue to search for a suitable place for a bicycle, and we move to the hallway.
This is probably one of the most successful places to store a bicycle in an apartment. Returning home from the bike ride, there is no need to carry it across the whole apartment to the balcony, or you can directly attach it here using wall hooks or other devices, which we'll talk about below. In addition, this is a very good option in terms of hygiene, because you will agree, in this case, dirt and dust are not carried throughout the apartment, but are accumulated in the hallway, which is usually easy to keep clean.
If we talk about the hallway, then the bicycle can be suspended behind the entrance door horizontally or vertically - often in the apartments behind the door an unused niche is formed, which can be used as a storage place for a bike.
If the dimensions of the hallway allow, you can build an open two-section wardrobe with shelves, which will fit not only the bike itself, but also appropriate clothing and cycling( helmets, sunglasses, gloves, knee pads, elbow pads).
In winter, you can store the bicycle in the apartment in disassembled condition. Disassemble and stack somewhere, for example, in the closet - so it takes up quite a bit of space. If you are a happy owner of an apartment with a storage room, then in this "snug" you can easily equip a place for storing a bike, it can not only be suspended vertically or horizontally on the wall, but also fixed under the ceiling.
What other options are there for storing the bike? It turns out that the bathroom can be used not only for its intended purpose, but also as a parking lot for bicycles. In addition, a pedal friend is hung in the bedroom and even in the living room. Probably, the question of aesthetics is not considered here, the main thing is to successfully attach its "pet".
Special bike mounts on the wall
Now that we have found a suitable bicycle shelter, let's think about how it can be fastened or suspended to be safe and secure for all households, including young researchers.
So, the mounting for a bicycle on the wall can be different - some types are sold in bike stores, others are made by folk craftsmen with their own hands. We are talking about a kind of wooden shelves, hangers for bicycles, where the latter are hung over the frame. They do not occupy much space, and it becomes possible to hang several bicycles on one shelf. In addition, a beautiful wooden hanger will fit neatly into the interior of the hallway.
You can hang a bike for another frame on special metal brackets with hooks. The advantage of such an attachment for a bicycle in an apartment is that it can be secured not only by one bicycle, but several - this is important for those apartments in which each of its inhabitants has its own bicycle. By the way, by arranging the two brackets at different heights, you will provide a place for storing four bikes, children fasten lower, and adults higher.
For the wheels of the vehicle hang on velokryukah - an option is good, but not quite comfortable, since in this case the bicycle is perpendicular to the wall, which means it always remains in sight. However, if you place the hooks somewhere in the corner of the hallway or any other room, you get pretty compact.
In the vertical position, you can lock the bike behind the wheel with the help of brackets, in this case, just like in the previous one, this fastening is completed with a support for the rear wheel so as not to damage the wall.
A wooden or metal stand is used for mounting several bicycles, which can be attached to 4 bicycles in two tiers.
Among the "exotic" options for storing a bike, you can not help fixing it on the spacers under the ceiling. Such a block system can be purchased ready or made independently. The minuses include the inconvenience of using it in the apartment, because the height of the ceilings is low, only some 2.5-2.8 m, which means that the bicycle will interfere with the normal movement of household members.
Regardless of how to hang a bicycle on the wall - horizontally or vertically, you should understand that by the moment of "suspension" it should already be clean, otherwise the wall and floor covering will quickly come to an end. And in fact, there are few fans of extreme sports, which will allow you to hang your beloved "friend" with clods of dirt on wheels.
How to wash a bicycle in an apartment
Asking the question of washing a bicycle in the apartment, you need to prepare for the fact that such actions are associated with certain inconveniences and dilution of dirt on the floor. Therefore, it is better to practice cleaning somewhere on the street( for example, in the courtyard of the house) or at least on the landing.
But if the above options do not suit you, then let's understand how to wash the bike in the apartment with the least loss. If on a bike went in dry weather, then it is enough to remove the dust from it with a damp rag. If you are exposed to rain, you'll have to wash it in the hallway( prepare for the dirty pool on the floor), or in the bathroom( and this option is not very much for the owner of the house, who will have to bring the bathroom to the proper view after such awashing).
If you still stopped on the second option, then before the water procedures from the bike you need to remove all electrical appliances and even the front wheel( sometimes the bike is washed without removing the wheels, in this case it should be put in the bath vertically), put on the bottom of the bath rags, so as not to scratch it, and you can start washing with warm water from the shower. After this, it is necessary to wipe the bike dry and lubricate the chain.
We hope that after all of our advice, keeping the bike in the apartment will not be difficult and impossible. Different variants of fixatives will help to make the process of wintering a bike painless for all members of the family.