The more you love your home bike workshop, the more you’ll love working on your bike. And the more work you do on your ride, the better she’ll perform!
Whether you only have a small area to dedicate to your home mechanics or a whole garage or shed, here are our tips for some key things to make sure you have in your work space!
A workstand like our partner team Canyon-DHB p/b Bloor Homes use makes life a lot easier
bench
First things first, you need a bench to work on. You want this to be around waist height when standing up.
Try to find a bench that is higher than a standard dining table as it’s typically easiest to do your work standing up.
Having a surface that can be easily wiped clean is beneficial (as opposed to an un-varnished wood top for example), as it’s likely you’re going to make a mess on it with oils or grease at some point.
WORK stand
A workstand such as that in this image makes life a lot easier, if you have space to accommodate it.
Look for a stand with an arm that can be easily rotated and adjusted, so that you can hold the bike at any angle, or hold it by different parts of the frame. Different types of bike and different shaped tubes are all best gripped in different places, so it’s good to have the versatility of an easy-adjusting arm.
You should be able to pick up a reasonable quality stand for under £150. That may sound expensive, but having one makes your life so much easier!
Peg Board or Tool Boxes
If you have a lot of room and are setting up a permanent space for your bike workshop, a peg board attached to the wall can be a great way to keep all your tools neat and tidy. A peg board with hooks allows you to store all your tools neatly arranged and easy to see, meaning you can always find exactly what you need, quickly. This method does rely on you putting the tools back in their designated space of course!
A more simple and cost-effective solution, particularly for those with limited space, is a set of tool boxes. If you have a lot of tools, using two or three boxes, each with a different purpose (i.e., wrenches, spanners, allan keys) is a good way of keeping organised.
Boards such as the one we have on our wall are a great way of keeping lots of tools in easy access
Good Lighting
It’s amazing how hard it can be to see small bolts or the fine details of complex components such as derailleurs or bearings if the lighting is bad.
As a minimum, make sure you have a small angle-poise lamp such as you may use on an office desk. If you’re going full gas on making a mega-workshop, adjustable lights in the ceiling are a great option as they’re super-bright and can be angled however you need them.
SLIP-PROOF MATT
Whether it be cleaning fluid, chain lube, or disc brake fluid, you’re likely to spill oily, messy products at some point – and so arises the risk that you either stain the floor or put your foot in it and slip! Prevent either of these by picking up some slip-proof matting, or even an old carpet to put on the floor under your workspace.
POWER STRIP
Sure, a lot of the work you’re going to be performing will be with hand held tools requiring no power, but a bank of power sockets comes in super-handy for battery chargers, lights, and of course, some speakers for your tunes!
Storage Crates & Mini Drawer Cabinets
Having bikes means you end up accumulating a lot of spare parts and miscellaneous items, whether that’s old cassettes, spare bolts and spacers, or random parts that you’re not even sure what they are for! Keep them all tidy with a few storage boxes, using a different box for a different purpose – i.e., bolts, spacers, components etc.
A few boxes such as these are great for keeping random spares tidy
(or not so tidy in our case!)
Free up floor space and keep the workshop tidy with a Wall Hanger
Bike Wall MOUNTS
Got a lot of bikes in your workshop? Keep the floor clear and keep your bikes safe with our range of storage options!
If you only have one bike, our Wall Hanger is a great option – with fully-adjustable arms to enable you to hold any size and shape bike, and rubber arm cradles to protect your frame, it ticks all the boxes.
Three or Six Bike Storage Racks
If you’re lucky enough to have a lot of bikes to store, our Three or Six Bike Storage Racks are ideal! With sliding hooks to adapt to the number of bikes you own, and protective-coated material to prevent damage, these will spare you floor space and keep your collection tidy.
TOOLS
Obviously, it’s not a bike workshop without tools! Check out our guide to understanding what tools you need, and how to select them.
Garbage Can
This sounds obvious, but is easily overlooked. Working on your bike creates a lot of mess, whether it be from packaging for components and tools, lengths of cable, or old bit of electrical tape (a mechanics’ best friend!). It’s good to have a bin in your bike workshop to keep it all tidy and to prevent you losing important bits of kit amongst the mess.
Coffee machine and drinks fridge
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