No space inside the house, where do you store / secure bike?

Question

I live in the UK. At my house, I don't have much space, I have a drive-way but no gate surrounding it. Here's an image:

What are my cheap storage options for a mountain bike (voodoo bizango).

Thanks

Answer 1

You can get wooden storage sheds for bicycles for around £150 - £200.

You'll also need something to secure the bike to. You could install a ground anchor, either the screw in type:

Or the type that you embed in concrete:

Answer 2

Storing a bike outside leaves you with two problems to deal with: thieves and weather. No perfect solution for either problem exists unless you build something around your bike that starts qualifying as storing it "inside".

Against theft, use the biggest chains and U-locks that you can find to bound your wheels and saddle, use anti-theft QR skewers for axles. Lock the frame to the burliest stationary object you can find around. I do not see any reasonable candidates on your picture though. You might just want to install your own bike rack by screwing it down to the pavement with huge bolts.

Against the weather, provide some protection against the rain by covering the bike with a tarp. You cannot protect it against low temperatures outside, but direct water contact is by far the worst. Make sure the tarp is well fastened to not be blown away by a strong gust of wind.

A cage would be good enough only if it is made of steel bars 10 mm or more in diameter (otherwise it would be easier to cut it than a lock on its door). I can imagine that one big enough to fit in a bike (2 meter × 1 meter × 1,5 meter) would cost more than a decent bike rack. On a plus side, it might possibly be so heavy that it would not require bolting it down to the pavement. And then you can make a roof for it and it will become storing a bike inside.

You might still want to consider finding a place to store an expensive bike inside, like renting a storage room or an underground parking spot somewhere nearby. Or just suck it and bring it inside your home and hang it from the ceiling or disassemble it before storing.

Answer 3

Since you’re from the UK, I’d be remiss if I didn’t suggest you get the greatest folding bike ever invented, the Brompton:

But if you already bought a bike, you might want to look into storing it in your house either horizontally:

Or vertically. The vertical stands in particular take up little room:

Finally, as @Daniel Hicks notes, it's also possible to buy and mount a pulley system that will let you lift the bike to the ceiling, either horizontally or vertically.