The Lemon Fool

We've bought a 36.5kg exercise bike which we would like to put in an upstairs bedroom*. Will that be ok for a modern house?

Thanks
Clariman
* I might prefer to keep it in its box in the garage but I'll give it a go!

Of course - that's half the weight of a person, and I'm sure you'd have no qualms about a couple of people standing in the same spot of floorspace.

But I'd strongly recommend some vibration damping being placed underneath the bike to reduce noise and resonances elsewhere in the house, especially for downstairs occupants. I use two separate layers of matting: some of those interlocking foam squares people place in gym rooms etc together with a rowing machine / turbo trainer mat.

Have "fun". I'm just about to jump on mine for a torture session

PS if using indoors, you're going to want a powerful fan, or fans, to help cooling, else you'll be constrained by overheating. Static bikes mean you get none of the natural cooling airflow generated by your forward motion when riding a regular bike. I use three powerful fans and try to keep the room containing the bike as cool as possible.

tikunetih wrote:PS if using indoors, you're going to want a powerful fan, or fans, to help cooling, else you'll be constrained by overheating. Static bikes mean you get none of the natural cooling airflow generated by your forward motion when riding a regular bike. I use three powerful fans and try to keep the room containing the bike as cool as possible.

I'd never thought of that, perhaps the pedals could be set up to drive the fans?

tikunetih wrote:
But I'd strongly recommend some vibration damping being placed underneath the bike to reduce noise and resonances elsewhere in the house, especially for downstairs occupants.

I use two separate layers of matting: some of those interlocking foam squares people place in gym rooms etc together with a rowing machine / turbo trainer mat.

Those interlocking foam squares are a god-send for things like this.

Halfords are currently selling a 6-pack of 600mm x 600mm squares, with a total coverage of 1.2m x 1.8m, for just £10 (20% off) -

https://www.halfords.com/tools/garage-equipment/garage-essentials/rolson-6-piece-floor-mat-set---120-x-180cm-552101.html

I've used them for vibration-dampening in a number of places, and also cut some up to glue strips on my garage wall, next to where my car doors open onto...

I'd put some under the fans too Clariman, if you get some set up...

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

Also be aware that sweat may :-

- potentially rot floorcoverings e.g. carpet . . . chipboard. If it gets through your protective vibration/ soundproofing layer(s)

- potentially rust the metal of the equipment. i.e. Bear in mind that you might have to wash it off periodically. Professional equipment tends to be galvanised and resisted well : home equipment is probably powder-coated and can eventually rust.

Steady on folks. Who said that sweat would be involved or cooling fans needed

I won't be racing on the bike, merely going for a gentle cycle on a flat coastal path (in my head). We have a Dyson cooling fan in the bedroom .... not that it gets very hot in the bedroom these days . We bought it in that very hot spell a couple of years ago and it hasn't had much use since then.

It would be wise to get something to protect the carpet but the bedroom is above the garage so sound insulation is not a problem.

Thanks
Clariman

Clariman wrote:We've bought a 36.5kg exercise bike which we would like to put in an upstairs bedroom*. Will that be ok for a modern house?

Yes, but to get a good workout you will need to take it up and down the stairs several times in each session.

Clariman wrote:We've bought a 36.5kg exercise bike which we would like to put in an upstairs bedroom*. Will that be ok for a modern house?

Should be - I weigh over 100kg and I’ve yet to fall through the floor.

Clariman wrote:Steady on folks. Who said that sweat would be involved or cooling fans needed

I won't be racing on the bike, merely going for a gentle cycle on a flat coastal path (in my head). We have a Dyson cooling fan in the bedroom .... not that it gets very hot in the bedroom these days . We bought it in that very hot spell a couple of years ago and it hasn't had much use since then.

It would be wise to get something to protect the carpet but the bedroom is above the garage so sound insulation is not a problem.

Thanks
Clariman

Put a screen up for watching stuff if you can

I've spun through a bunch of series on Netflix this past year in lunch time sessions
- i find that there's a bunch of stuff that doesn't sufficiently demand attention to warrant being watched on the sofa, but can be quite good for zoning out while pedalling (or nordic walking thing-ing)

- sd

As others have said - the vibrations can be quite noticable in other rooms (and to the neighbours).

I would suggest a stepper/cross trainer type thing. You get the same amount of exercise but the huge advantage over a cycle is that when you get fed up with it after 3 weeks it is large enough to dry sheets on, rather than just being able to hang a couple of shirts off like you can with the cycle.

That way, rather than selling it the following January (when it gets another 3 days of enthusiastic use) you benefit your community by using it as an airer for 9 years before giving it away on freecycle.

DAMHIK- IJK-OK?

Paul