Yeah, all Australian boys need a shed
A place where he can go, somewhere to clear his head
To think about the things his woman said
Yeah, all Australian boys need a shed
--The Shed, John Williamson

Well, the "True Blue Balladeer" may well be right, but I reckon all cyclists (boy or girl) need a shed. So we built a backyard shed a few weeks ago and piled all of the bikes and bike-related stuff into it, recovering extra space on the back verandah that we could really get used to having.

My last ride of 2009 was quite pleasant until I shredded a tyre and had to limp home on a warm-ish afternoon. So yesterday I went out to the new shed for the first time to do a spot of repair and maintenance. And I realised that a few things will need to be done to turn it into a proper bike shed. I stand by my decision to ban anything not bike-related from the shed—and will be curious to see how long I can hold out against the tide of household detritus just itching to get into this precious new space—but I'm thinking more about how the shed needs to be kitted-out to make it really work. The immediate priorities seem to be:

Bike racks

Yep, I can't just leave those bikes piled up in a heap. It looks like PVC pipe might be the go here, in a variation on the Utah Mountain Biking truck bed bike rack or this bike rack on instructables.

Tools

The basic toolkit, plus all the odds and sods (such as rags, cable ties, spare parts, patch kit, spare tubes, miscellaneous hardware, etc) that you need on hand during a maintenance session.

Storage

A couple of plastic crates on the floor is not going to cut it, I am going to need some shelves in there. And a few more hooks—you can't have enough hooks.

A radio

No, not one of them high-falutin' digital music players, a proper radio with an old wire coat hanger for an aerial, that needs to be thumped occasionally to get it back in tune.

What else?

But what else does a good bike shed need? I guess I'll need a work stand. A beer fridge has been suggested but (although it might be heresy) I'd prefer to use the space for storing bike stuff in. An intercom? MLSP might appreciate that, but then again I might appreciate being out of earshot when I need to be.

I turn the discussion over to those with more experience of bike shed ownership for advice…

Comments

Surly Dave

Sounds like you're on the right track. Hooks for bikes, hooks for odd wheels, hooks for tyres. A stand, a bench with a vice, some shelves or loads of boxes for tools and bits and the more space the better. My shed it too small, I have to build another one!

Grant

+1 for vice and work stand. They make life easy. I also can pick up the wireless network in my shed. Sometimes its nice to sit and relax away from the crowd.

Gavin

Of course every guy and gal needs a bike shed, great future building idea.

Kevin

BEER FRIDGE!! ...oh, and some tools, too...