Storing two bikes in a narrow hallway without blocking it

One bike in a hallway is a solved problem. Two is where most people give up and leave the second one in the yard. It is worth persisting, because the difficulty is geometric rather than fundamental, and once the handlebars are dealt with the rest follows.

The clearance you cannot negotiate

Before anything else, decide how much corridor you are prepared to lose. As a working rule, keep 70cm clear for walking and rather more if the hallway is also the route for shopping, a pushchair or a suitcase. Storage that pinches the route below that gets dismantled, usually by whoever did not choose it.

Measure at the tightest point, not the average. A corridor that is generous for most of its length but narrows at a doorway is limited by the doorway.

Why handlebars are the real constraint

A bike hung flat to a wall projects roughly the width of its handlebars. Two bikes at the same height, side by side, therefore need the sum of both bar widths plus clearance — which almost no corridor has. Stagger them vertically by around 40cm and the bars pass over and under each other instead, and the pair occupies barely more depth than one.

This single adjustment is what makes two-bike storage possible in a normal flat. Most multi-bike products build it in, which is why their slots look oddly uneven at first glance.

Nose-to-tail along the wall

Where the corridor is long rather than wide, hanging both bikes horizontally in line — one in front of the other, staggered in height — keeps the total depth to a single bike. It also means neither bike has to be moved to reach the other, which matters more day to day than any amount of tidiness.

Leave about 15cm between the rear wheel of the first and the front wheel of the second so you are not threading them past each other.

Vertical hooks and ceiling height

Vertical storage packs two bikes into very little wall, but it needs height: roughly the bike’s length plus the lift you can comfortably manage. In a flat with a 2.4m ceiling this usually works for adult road and hybrid bikes and becomes marginal for a large mountain bike with a long fork.

Alternate the two bikes front-wheel-up and rear-wheel-up if the bars still meet. It looks unusual and it solves the problem completely.

Give priority to the bike that leaves first

Whichever bike is ridden most often should be in the outer, lowest, easiest position, even if that is the less attractive arrangement. Storage that requires lifting the daily bike over the weekend bike is storage that will be abandoned.

Where two people ride at similar times, avoid any layout that makes one wait for the other. Two independent mounts almost always beat one clever combined solution.

Doors, radiators and the things you forget

Check the swing of every door, including the front door and any cupboard. Check that a hanging pedal does not sit where a hip goes. Check that the bike does not cover a radiator, both because it blocks the heat and because repeated warm-cold cycles are not kind to tyres.

Also check the light switch. It sounds trivial until a wheel is permanently in front of it.

Protecting a shared wall

In an apartment the wall is often shared, and repeated small impacts travel. Rubber-sleeved hooks, moulded cradles and a small buffer where the tyre touches keep both the neighbour and the paintwork happy. It also keeps the deposit intact, which is a practical argument for spending slightly more on the mount.

If you are drilling, keep fixings away from the line where a chase for cabling would run: directly above and below sockets and switches.

Putting it together

Measure, choose a stagger, decide the priority order and only then pick products. A pair of well-placed swivel mounts, a two-slot vertical stand or a nose-to-tail pair of horizontal hangers will each solve it; the wrong one for your corridor will not. Bring the measurements to the counter on Driggs Avenue and we will work through the geometry with you.

What to do about helmets, locks and pumps

The bikes are only half the problem. Helmets, locks, lights and a pump all end up on the floor beneath them unless they are given somewhere to live, and a hallway floor with a bag of accessories on it is exactly as blocked as one with a bike on it.

Several of the wall racks we stock include hooks for a helmet and a lock, and a single small shelf above the bikes absorbs the rest. Deal with the accessories at the same time as the bikes and the corridor stays clear; deal with them later and it does not.

The short version

• Keep at least 70cm of walking clearance or the installation will be undone within a month.
• Stagger the two bikes vertically so the handlebars do not meet.
• Give the bike used most often the outer, easiest position.
• Nose-to-tail beats side-by-side in almost every corridor.

From our shelves

• WALMANN BIKEPAL No Lifting Wall Mount Swivel Bike Rack, Bike Wall Hangers — $94.99
• monTEK No-Lift Swivel Bike Wall Mount, Bike Hangers for Garage, 1 Pack — $39.99
• PRO BIKE TOOL Bike Rack for Garage Wall Mount – Horizontal Bike Storage — $49.99

Where to go next

Browse the full range on the shop page, read the frequently asked questions before ordering, or check delivery timing on the Shipping Policy page. If you would rather ask a person, contact us — the phone reaches the counter.