Just moved into our new house and for the first time ever I have the luxury of a insulated, secure and heated 23m2 room to be dedicated to my bikes etc.
Now I'm over the moon, but all of a sudden I've come over with a memory loss of what to do with it. Is there any kind of info out there for ideas or even places to buy a setup?
The room is about 4m x 3m, I want to set up my Tacx Fortius connected to a projector, something to hang my bikes (5), a workshop area, then storage of kit and stuff. Plus its an unpainted concrete floor so maybe some sort of floor tile etc.
What have other people done? and yes, I know I'm a lucky bugger, but after keeping my bikes in a flat for 4 years I deserve this 😉
workstand, kettle, bong.
Paint the floor to keep the dust down.
go back to school 4*3=12 not 23 😉
plan it out on paper,how are you going to store bikes? hung from wall by top tube? wheel?
Garage floor paint. B&Q. £25 for 2.5 litres = 1 coat on a garage floor.
I thought I had the same opportunity but, after painting the floor and buying some stuff to hang my bikes from, the wife says she wants to park the car in there over the winter. 😥
paint floor, mat for the trainer(big fan also), bench/kit under, tool board, bike hooks on one wall, old chair and think about lighting unless you like strip lights. no phone and a lock on the door.
go back to school 4*3=12 not 23
I thought that as well, but gave the OP the benefit of the doubt that he actually meant 23m^3, not ^2.
I have a shed the same size (ish - it's an odd shape and a bit smaller) that accommidates my 4 bikes a bench, shelving and wall spikes to hang wheels and tyres. Big enough to house this (and our 3/4 size chest freezer) and still be able to fettle. Floor is done with garage floor paint, has a small electric heater for chilly nights, and the next project will be to add a small corner sink and electric water heater for hot and cold water.
If you are putting a projector in there i'd be makeing sure there was a small sofa or atleast a comfy chair and a beer fridge. possibly half painted (workshop/dirty area) and half floor tiled/carpeted (turbo training/clean comfy area)for warmth.
teaboy, go along with that on condition you can have a room indoors for bikes.
i sincerely hope that there will be the traditional bad soft pron calendars on the wall, otherwise your man-cave is a fail
(by the way im incredibly jealous!! bikes in the kitchen and random parts and cleaning products, helmets etc all over the place)
Err, granted, my math was rather poor, it's all this bike space blowing my mind, it's 23m3 not m2 🙁
Anyway, the room has strip lighting so all good there, I think I need to draw it out on paper like said before. I think I'll try and split the room if poss with a training/crash side and workshop the other. Then mount the projector on one wall side opposite the trainer so I don't block the projected image, want to try and keep the picture size as large as poss. Will also keep and eye out for an old comfy sofa or similar, maybe I should get a sofa bed for when the wife kicks me out or a lock-in 😆
But first things first, recon I'll get everything out and paint the floor next. What about the walls, should I leave them bare or would it help with a coat of paint?
Also, what temperature should I keep the room at, min as poss to keep the el costs down but high enough to keep the damp at bay?
Big screen & turbo trainer, job done...
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ooh that was a bit bigger than I had intended, sorry
Second the planning on paper - I never did this..!
Similar size to my cellar. I have to store 8 bikes, and a host of other household stuff, so it's a permanent struggle against untidiness.
I built a workbench, which doubles as both an area to work on stuff and also storage underneath:
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3060/2645934402_fe76b76b8d.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/59714726@N00/2645934402/ ]In situ[/url]
This has attached to it a [url= http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=23&item=PCS%2D12 ]Park PCS-12[/url]. In hingsight, I probably wouldn't have bought this, as it means I can only work on bikes inside the cellar, even on a sunny afternoon.
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3222/2857125366_c2140a1c91.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/59714726@N00/2857125366/ ]Workstand[/url]
Bikes are stored stacked against each other, with one of Mrs North's bikes now hung from the ceiling. If they are stacked front wheel next to back wheel, then they don't take up much room.
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3212/2856248041_82630cc502.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/59714726@N00/2856248041/ ]Cellar 1[/url]
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3121/2857080024_6fde71d384.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/59714726@N00/2857080024/ ]Cellar 2[/url]
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3003/2856248375_3dcbe0fe40.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/59714726@N00/2856248375/ ]Cellar 3[/url]
It's now er tidier than the above (grainy) photos show..!
I have various hooks on the wall, from which spare wheels and tyres are hung.
Turbo is in the middle of the room facing the workbench. Laptop goes on the workbench (to run sufferfest, natch) and a 16" fan faces me when I'm on the bike. I do know a couple of people who run Computrainers with projectors. It's not a bad way to divert the mind from the pain.... 😉
My last man cave had a propper workbench, either buy one, or build something from big thick ply from B&Q, as long as its solid and not going to move while your hammering stuff. Makes life so much easier than working on the floor.
Also a scrap wood and metal pile for fashioning drifts/presses out of.
I'd get (in-order) a teasmade (kettles are so last week), workstand, toolcabinet/chest thingy (like they have in "car garages - avaialble cheap form halfords), decent lighting and a work bench like ourmaninthenorth's or a piece of kitchen counter works well on top of say............a fridge!
How about laying some cheap laminate flooring rather than painting the floor, as my experience with painted garage floors is that the paint will flake off over time, also the laminate with insulation underneath will be warmer and also might keep the noice of the turbo trainer down.
might keep the noice of the turbo trainer down
Not sure about that. Hard surfaces tend to reflect sound more.
Some cheap vinyl from a carpet shop would give a wipe-clean surface (oo-er) and be relatively easy to lay.
thesurfbus - Member
How about laying some cheap laminate flooring rather than painting the floor...
Still worth painting it though just to stop the dust.
currently half price at Argos, was £130 now £65
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http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/7070909/Trail/searchtext%3ETOOL+CHEST.htm
Beer fridge and a workstand.
What else is needed?
Also, what temperature should I keep the room at, min as poss to keep the el costs down but high enough to keep the damp at bay?
Heat won't keep damp at bay. Vapour barrier and ventilation is what you need.