There are so many benefits to cycling; it allows you to get out into nature, enjoy some exercise, take the misery of traffic out of your day-to-day commute, and gives you a level of exploration and versatility that is not afforded to you by your car.
Unfortunately, as with many things in life, cycling does have its issues, the most prevalent of which is bike thieves. From the hearts of our cities to country cafes, bike thieves are a terrible nuisance that forces us to take measures to protect our precious two-wheeled treasures. In fact, in England and Wales alone there are around 77,000 bicycle thefts each year with around 90% of cases going completely unsolved.
These statistics are certainly extremely scary especially when you consider the prices of bikes and bike maintenance in today’s world, but it’s not time to start panicking yet!
There are plenty of things you can do to ensure that your bike is as safe as possible whilst it’s being stored at home.
Let’s take a look at some top tips that will improve your home bike storage, boost your security and ensure that you are able to beat those awful bike thieves.
Securing Your Garage
Now this may seem strange to bring up; surely all garage doors are strong and secure, right?
Actually, not all garage doors are created equal. There are many different styles and materials that can be used, different mechanisms for lifting the door, and the structure the door is attached to is a crucial element in security; a strong metal door on a run down old shack kind of defeats the point!
Having a rusty old door made from soft aluminium can be a real threat to the overall security of your garage, and offers plenty of opportunity for thieves to find weak points.
If you’re lucky enough to have a garage then having strong, well designed garage doors is one of the best steps you can take to improve your overall garage bike security, and as a bonus, anything else you choose to keep in there will be much safer too.
The Good Old Garden Shed
If you’ve got a garden somewhere in the UK, then the chances are you’ll have a shed too; it’s a bit of a British thing. Now, what many people don’t realise is that their sheds are absolutely not the ideal storage place for an expensive bike.
Wooden doors can change shape in mixed weather conditions, they can be forced open despite being locked, windows in wooden frames can be dislodged or smashed and damp conditions can cause panels to rot. All of these things make life a bit easier for a thief, so what can you do about it?
Having a strong and secure door is a great first step. It must be able to lock with a key or a padlock and if it’s wooden, it needs to be very strong and well made. Cheap flimsy doors are imminently defeatable.
If you do find weaknesses in your shed’s exterior then have them fixed as quickly as you can, not only are they targets for thieves, but they’ll seriously impact the life of your shed and all the things stored inside.
Even a sturdy modern shed is not really an impenetrable fortress, so be prepared and give your bike the very best chance. In certain scenarios a good security light at the entrance of your shed can make a huge difference.
Next up is how your bike is stored within the shed. Simply leaning up against a wall is not really enough; instead, you’ll need a fixed point to lock it too. Yes, you should be locking your bike whilst it’s inside your shed! Extra security is always a good thing.
Creating a Dedicated and Secure Bike Storage Area
Storing bikes is not always easy, particularly for those without spaces like garages and garden sheds. But don’t despair, there are still solutions that can work for terraced houses with small gardens, or even flats with communal spaces.
Mini Bike Sheds
The solution for those with a small front garden, or tiny outdoor storage area, is a bike specific shed; and before you say ‘I don’t have enough space!’, let us tell you that they come in all shapes and sizes.
You can have them custom built for your very own space, and they can be built from wood, metal, plastic or a combination. The doors can be full height, bike height, double, pivot, swing, hinge- you name it. These sheds can fit as many bikes as you like and lock securely making a thief’s job much more difficult.
They also mean your bike will be protected from the elements in a nice, dry spot that will lengthen your bike’s life, it really is a win-win.
Secure Communal Areas
If you live in an apartment building your choices may well be more limited, but that does not mean there is nothing you can do to deter thieves. If your building has a communal storage area, try to optimise it for cycle security.
This could be as simple as ensuring the door lock works, getting your own bike lock to use in the storage area, finding a spot to place your bike so it’s out of the way and ensuring others are doing the same.
If your building has the scope or budget then installing security lights will make a huge difference, proper bike racks will provide secure anchor points for locks and CCTV can be a major deterrent.
Storing Bikes Inside Your Home
If none of these options are available to you, and you’re keen to keep an eye on your precious machine at all times, then there are plenty of ways to store your bike inside your apartment or home.
Wall mounts are great ways to lift bikes out of the way and ensure passageways remain clear, you can even get stylish racks that allow you to display your pride and joy as part of your decor.
Whilst this can be a fun, creative and genuinely useful way to store your bike securely, you’ll need to make sure it’s clean and dry before getting into your living room!
Storing Bikes Outside Your Home
This is obviously not the most ideal option, but sometimes there is no choice. If your bike needs to be secured outside then there are a couple of things to consider.
Firstly, you’ll need at least one really high quality lock; two are sometimes recommended depending on the threat of theft. A decent lock can set you back a fair bit, but it will be minimal compared to the cost of replacing your bike, so don’t cheap out; you may well come to regret it.
There are many different types of lock so do your research and be sure to lock your bike to a secure rack or anchored position. Some locks are angle grinder proof, some are easy to carry, there are chains, D-locks, U-Locks, foldable locks; the key is to look for the highest safety rating possible, and ensure it’s securely locked and insured.
Insurance, Registration and AirTagging
Even after taking all of these steps and precautions, there is nothing you can do that will 100% guarantee the safety of your bike. Thieves are determined, creative and opportunistic.
In the end, once we have taken all these steps to physically secure your bike as best as possible, there are a couple of extra steps we can take to ensure we are covered financially, and to give the police the best possible chance of recovering your bike in a worst case scenario.
You can get the Goodordering airtag bicycle bell which hides your airtag within the casing of your bicycle bell.
Insurance
Luckily, bicycle insurance is not like car insurance. It’s affordable and quite flexible depending on who you go with, so make sure you choose a policy that suits your bike, where it is stored, and the way you use it.
Thankfully, if you’ve followed all the steps above, your quote will be considerably cheaper as the more security measures you take, the safer your bike will be in the eyes of your insurer. You’ll also have the added benefit of being able to financially recover from a bike theft.
Registering Your Bike
Every bike worth its salt will have some kind of unique identification number that, when properly registered with the authorities, can allow your stolen bike to be identified and potentially returned to you.
The National Bike Register is a police approved, government funded initiative that ensures your bike is properly registered to you, and is identifiable in any circumstance. You can get kits that allow you to register your frame as well as individual components which can go a long way towards making things as difficult as possible for thieves to resell items.
Airtags & GPS
In this glorious age of modern technology, there are solutions that can enhance or replace the so-called ‘old fashioned’ methods like registering your bike, although these measures are still strongly recommended.
AirTags and GPS trackers can be a great way to find lost or stolen items, and the same idea applies to bikes, although hiding them is becoming a bit of an art form.
Simply sticking an AirTag, or other GPS tracker, in an obvious place means they can be ripped off and thrown away, rendering them useless. Instead, cyclists are resorting to extremely clever means of hiding their trackers, making them hard to find and even harder to remove.
There is a bell that, for all intents and purposes looks and works just like a normal bell, although hidden within the mechanism is an AirTag. You’ll also find kits that allow you to hide them within your tyres, inside your frame, in your handlebar ends, and even your pedals.
This can be a great way to aid police in recovering your items, but don’t rely on it as a sole method, and don’t ever approach the location of the stolen bike without police.
The Final Word
So there you have it, some of the key things you can do to improve your bike’s security whilst at home. Following and implementing as many of these steps as possible will give you the best possible chance of keeping your bike safe, recovering your stolen bike, or being able to buy a new one in the worst case scenario.
Remember, sometimes paying for quality security features may seem expensive, but it will usually be only a fraction of the cost of your bike. Be sure to prioritise the right security steps for your home, take care of your bike and ride safely.
