Bike Tree Howto

Bike tree at home, functioning!

If you live in a confined space and have bicycles, you may struggle with finding a good way to store them indoors. With a little inspiration and a lot of help from my friends, I created vertical bike holder.

I am now storing two adult-sized bikes indoors using less than 3 square feet of floor space. The best part is that this entire project can be built in a day for under $20 USD. The rest of this article outlines how to create your very own "bike tree."

I have created a more compact, printer friendly copy of these instruction, available here.

Design

After I concluded that I needed an indoor bike rack, I looked for some commercial solutions. These proved to be expensive or impractical, so I took a gander at a DIY site called Instructables. There, I found several projects of this sort, providing plenty of inspiration.

After a little prodding by Nick, I decided to go for a vertical standing bike rack. Storing them upright takes up considerably less floor space than the typical horizontal orientation. After a few prototype designs (and a few on-site plan changes), I came up with a workable, low-cost design using only a few 2x4s, a sheet of plywood, and a pair of 99¢ rubber-coated hooks.

Here is 3D model of what I actually built. (Note: lumber is modeled using nominal dimensions.)

3D model of finished product

Overall Dimensions

• 3' wide
• 2'6" deep
• 6'6" tall

Materials

The following materials will be needed for this project:

Cut List

• 2"x4"x8':
  • Cut each to 6'6" long. This will be for the vertical post
• 2"x4"x10':
  • First board:
    • Cut two 3' long pieces.
      These will make up the front and back on the base.
    • Cut one 2' long piece out of the scrap.
      The bike hooks will mount to this.
  • Second board:
    • Cut four 2'3" long pieces.
      These will run depth-wise on the base.
  • Third board:
    • Cut two boards with 45º angles on both ends. The long side should be 2'1½".
      These will make a V shape behind the post to help square things up. It will also eliminate any possibility of lateral post bending.
• OSB/plywood:
  • Cut a 30"x36" rectangle. Notch out a 3½"x5½" rectangle for the post.
    This will cover the base.
  • Cut a 1½"x3½" rectange.
    This is to sheath behind the post. This is not necessary, but looks nicer.

The complete cut list is available in the downloadable printout, available here.

Cut list for dimensional lumber

Cut list for bike tree sheathing

Construction

1. Nail-laminate the 6'6" long 2x4s (piece A) together to create your vertical post.

   Note: you may want to do this before cutting.

   We used a nail gun during construction and went overboard on the nails. You could get away with far fewer nails, but we were having fun. We nailed the post together every 6" on alternating sides.

   

   Post nail lamination diagram
   

   Nail-laminated vertical post
   

2. Next, grab the two B pieces and four D pieces and arrange them into the box pattern shown below. The center section will hold the post we made in Step 1.

   Put 2 or 3 nails through the face of the B boards into the ends of the D boards as shown below.

   Note: only 3½" is required for the post track because the actual size of a 2"x4" board is actually very close to 1½" x 3½". Be sure to measure before nailing.

   

   Base construction diagram
   

   Base box's lumber, cut
   

3. Next, place the post in the base's channel nail it from the all sides.

   You can orient the post either way. I chose to face the 4x flat side toward the front of the box. The post would actually resist bending much more in the direction we will be loading it if it were oriented the other way. However, we will not be putting anywhere near that much stress on it – the post does not need to bear the weight of the bicycles; it just need to prevent them from falling backwards. I chose to face the flat board forward simply because it looks nicer when viewed from the front.

   Note: the post is not square because of actual lumber size is smaller than 2" x 4". If you chose to orient your post the other direction, make the appropriate changes to keep the post channel centered.

   

   Post nailing diagram

4. With the post firmly attached to the base, test for weak points. You should be able to hang from the post without any noticeable bending. With a 3' wide base, it should also be quite sturdy, resisting side-to-side tipping.

   It looks silly, but it is a good test.

   

5. If you have not done so already, cut the OSB/plywood for the base's top sheathing. Depending on what tools you have available, notching out for the post may be difficult. We made cuts straight in with a circular saw then used a reciprocating saw to finish it off.

   
   

   Nick notches out post hole

6. Attach base sheathing and nail around the perimeter. Don't forget to attach the small piece behind the post.
   

   Base sheathing diagram
   
   

   Nailing down the platform

7. The V bracing is not an essential component, but it will help square up post and make your bike tree practically invulnerable to lateral post bending. To assemble the V bracing, take the following steps (this is by far the trickiest portion of the project):

   • Take both E pieces and nail the 45° ends together to form a V shape.
   • The resulting bracing may not fit perfectly on the base – the boards should actually be slightly less than the 25½" stated in the cut list. Experiment, cutting down both sides equally until you are satisfied with how it fits.
   • Nail the V bracing to the base's top, directing behind the post. Use two nails here also.
   • Finally, nail the V bracing to the post using four nails. Be careful to avoid the nails which hold the V in shape.

   Hint: Though our post was already very stable, we found that it was nowhere near squared up with the base. Before nailing the V bracing to the post, we had one person bend it in to place while another checked the level. Once everything was squared up, we shot four nails into the post with our newfound toy, the nail gun.

   

   V bracing diagram
   

   V-Bracing helps square up post
   

   Team work
   

8. Next, mount the cross member and bike hooks.

   I chose to mount the bottom of the cross member at 5' from the top of the base's sheathing. The positioning seems about right, but could actually be a little lower. Remember: we are not looking to hang the bikes, simply to keep them from tipping backwards.

   Note: if you have abnormally large or abnormally small bikes, adjust this as necessary.

   Using four nails, fasten the cross member to the rear side of the post so the bikes will pull forward, putting strain on the post.

   

   Cross member diagram
   

   The scary is intentional

9. Finally, mount the hooks on the cross member.

   The threads on the hooks I bought were pretty big. As such, I suggest predrilling the holes prevent the 2"x4" cross member from splitting.

   Once predrilled, screw the hooks in by hand with the opening facing outwards.

   

   Hook assembly and cross member diagram
   

   Inserting the bike hooks

10. Stand your bike vertically with the rear wheel parked on the base. Slip the front wheel in the hook and let it be!

    
    

    Bike tree at home, functioning!