Main Project Aesthetics: Plans and Alternatives

From my previous post, I was considering making a bike storage rack for my apartment. For a long time, I have simply left my bikes parked on the floor of my apartment and it can often become cluttered when I have 2-3 bikes sitting on the floor next to my desk. With my current living situation and what will most likely be my living situation for the foreseeable future as a young engineer, making the most of limited space is important to my organization. I have seen numerous solutions to bike storage in apartments that range from standing the bike upright and being supported from the front wheel to having the frame supported parallel to the wall. Furthermore, I wanted to include a dynamic element in the design in the form of a foldable work stand to also be able to work on my bikes.

The current state of my bike storage

After researching different ways to store bikes, I found several interesting solutions that I had never thought of before. My initial thoughts for this project were fairly simple: hang the bikes upright next to each other and be able to remove them to extend the work stand. However, I felt that this solution wasn’t streamlined nor would it be aesthetically pleasing if I wanted to display my bikes in my living space. I then found two different ways to support bikes in the form of shelving that blends in with furniture in the area while also supporting a single bike.

Bike frame shelf (1)

Bike stand with cubby storage (2)

I was intrigued by how shelving and furniture could also act as a form of bicycle storage and display. I liked aspects of both designs shown above and I thought it would be an interesting challenge to create something similar that would satisfy an aesthetic. However, both of these examples have one major drawback for my purposes. Both of these designs only accommodate one bike! As I have mentioned before, I have several bicycles and I would like to have storage for at least two. Therefore I plan to combine these two designs with a main base that incorporates the use of cubbies and has slots for bike tires. Above the base will be a shelf with a slot through it to accommodate a bicycle top tube for mounting. Between the two racks, there will be arms that fold out to form a work stand for general maintenance. The stand would fold out and be supported by a sliding two-force member for the stand to fold into the correct position and be properly supported. This assembly will all be one piece that I hope will support itself. I want to refrain from using any fasteners to connect it to the wall. If extra support is required, I am confident that wall anchors with screws connected at the top of the rack will accommodate the additional torque applied when the work stand is extended. I have included some initial sketches of my idea below.

Initial design with minimalist aesthetic

Initial design with industrial aesthetic

I think I could go in one of two directions with this design. I am considering a minimalist or an industrial design. Both of these would be similar in form and function but would differ in their appearance and the materials used. Both aesthetics utilize simple geometric shapes that coincide with my use of shelving and extra storage. If I were to choose a minimalist aesthetic, I would use mostly wood for the material to keep a consistent appearance and finish throughout the piece. This would be relatively easy to manufacture and cut up and would require the use of some fasteners and wood glue to assemble. On the other hand, an industrial aesthetic would require the use of metal for the framing although I believe that the use of some wood for the shelving would still be necessary. I think this could be more of a manufacturing challenge with the cutting of the steel tubing requiring higher accuracy and the need for welding. I have been learning to TIG weld for almost years and I don’t doubt my abilities. Despite it being time-consuming, I think the metal option would be a great project and challenge me more. If I were to choose a completely different aesthetic I think it would be interesting to create an organic design. The smooth curves that the style is known for would be completely different from what I have planned.

Organic Design

With these ideas in mind, I think it would be most likely that I made the bike stand out of wood in a minimalist style. If this design does not work I will fall back on the initial idea of mounting the bicycles vertically next to each other while still following a minimalist design. I think this is still liable to change but for now, this is my approach.

Sources:

1. https://www.clutter.com/blog/posts/best-bike-racks-for-apartment-gift-ideas/
2. https://www.demilked.com/bike-rack-furniture-manuel-rossel-chile/