Madrax Bike Racks
We often get contacted with a similar question: ‘Here’s the room or area I have to work with, how can I store the most bicycles in here?’
Depending on your bike storage space, your specific solution will vary. But one thing that's true is that there are certain bike storage styles designed for high-density bike storage, and these racks will be perfect for most applications.
When you're looking to create the most bike parking spaces in a compact area, a two-tiered horizontal bike rack system is a great place to start.
With two levels of racks and staggered heights, this storage solution creates a large quantity of spaces in a small footprint.
To utilize this type of bike storage rack you’ll need a minimum ceiling height or vertical clearance of 9 feet.
You’ll also want a recommended length of 144 inches. This allows room the racks to be placed as well as the necessary amount of space for maneuvering bicycles into and out of the racks.
The total width will vary based on how many bike racks are used. For reference, 8 racks can be parked within a span of 80 inches.
One factor to consider with these racks is that users will need to be able to lift their bikes to use the racks. However, there are solutions available, such as the Madrax Bike Boost, which has a pulley system to make it easier to park bicycles on the upper tier.
The rack elements on the upper level are spring-loaded to assist with lifting the bicycle into the raised storage position.
As these types of racks are intended for long-term storage, security is a primary concern. It’s worth making sure any bike storage system you select has an element built into the rack that allows the bicycle to be locked to it.
Vertical Bike Storage Racks
If two tiers of horizontal storage are not an option because of height or lifting challenges, consider storing your bikes vertically.
When parking bicycles vertically, stagger the heights of every other rack. This will eliminate the issue of handlebars overlapping and reduce the amount of space needed between each bicycle storage spot.
One of the best things about vertical bike racks is their versatility. Because of their small profile you have more freedom in their placements and can easily work around obstructions such as electrical wires or water pipes, for example.
These parking racks can also be incorporated with a Unistrut type system. This makes it easy to re-position the distance between each rack without having to create additional holes in the wall.
Vertical bike racks are also available as a freestanding unit. These are great for increasing the bike storage capacity of a room by creating bike storage spots in the center or “open” area of a room.
Freestanding units are also an ideal option when you want to take advantage of vertical bike parking, but are unable to anchor into the wall.
High-density Ground Bike Storage Racks
The bike racks we’ve discussed to this point utilize vertical space. But often, ordinances or the restrictions of the intended users may limit these as viable options.
When you are limited to ground bike parking, high-density bike racks come in two styles: doubled sided and vertically staggered.
The advantage of a double-sided bike rack is that each parking spot alternates, so every other parked bicycle is parked facing the same direction. This allows you to fit bikes closely together without issues arising from handlebars.
The other way to avoid overlapping handlebars is to stagger the heights of the racks, with every other rack being elevated. The Shark-up is one example of a vertically staggered bike rack. It can be configured as two-sided or as a single row of racks.
Either way, the distance between each bike parking space is minimized in order to achieve a maximum volume of bike parking spaces.
Bike Storage Plan
Any of these types of racks will help you to create effective indoor bike storage.
Which one or combination of solutions will best fit your needs depends on your specific situation.
For information on how to transform your space into a functional bike room, download the Madrax Bike Storage Guide. Use this comprehensive resource to easily go from site planning through rack selection and layout.
Or, if you’d prefer, reach out to our team, and the sales representative for your area can work with you to come up with a plan that will achieve your goals. We can even layout your bike storage area within the specifics of your blueprints or building plans for you.
Related Resources
- [Download] Bike Storage Guide
- [Article] Vertical Bike Parking Systems
- [Article] Correctly Spacing Bike Storage Racks