Hi, i have never owned a bike trainer and am wondering about the noise it creates. I live in an apartment building and since i cant train inside my apartment, i was debating training before work in my building’s underground parking garage at 5:30am. Anyone ever done this? Aside from the absolutely zero scenery, are there any problems? Will the trainer create an echo?
Strange question, but if anyone has an answer, please let me know. Cheers!
Cam
I do it in my garage, you will be fine.
I think I Wind Trainer will be a little noisy. Go with a fluid trainer and it the noise should be minimal.
Make sure there is adequate ventilation so that you are not sucking car exhaust fumes. Last thing you want to do is be exercising with lots of bad stuff in the air.
You may want to read ‘Stationary Bike’ by Stephen King first, deals with that exact scenario. You may change your mind after!
You are gonna be the ridicule of the complex in no time.
I would warn your fellow dwellers,before they call police.
Or make a big sign that says: “I am a harmless bicyclist/triathalete” or similar.
Other than that: If I’d ever would be forced to go to this lengths (after all there are gyms), I would rather give up cycling/triathlon.
After all, we do this for fun.
Why not try riding the trainer in your apartment and ask your neighbors if the noise bothers them, fluid trainers are quiet enough
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I agree with this, give it a try in apartment before ruling it out. We have a small house and I was worried about the same thing but as long as I close the door on the guest room my wife barely hears me. If you have hardwood floors I would definitely put a mat down, but most trainers aren’t that loud.
if you ride in the apartment- go to Home Depot (or similar) and get some “exercise room flooring”. They come in 18" x 18" tiles IIRC, made of recycled rubber. (don’t get the play room stuff, 'cause that is too bouncy. get the weight room tiles, black, look like chopped up tires) You can put them together wherever you wish in your place. I used mine to protect the hardwood floor- but it also cut down any vibrations transmitted to the neighbors below.
(one box of 4 should be enough- just make a T shape with two in the back then two in the middle out front. may require cutting off one of the jigsaw ends, depending on brand)
going to your parking spot is going to be more hassle than its worth- and then you just won’t do it. for me, the trainer has to be easy and quick to set up so I am more inclined to get on it. (I also put mine in the living room so I am still part of the family while riding. I don’t want to feel like i’m in the basement being punished.)
Wind trainers sound like mini jet engines but fluid trainers are very quiet (the drive chain and wind in the spokes is all you hear), and fluid trainers provide a much better ride to boot, so that’s the type you want. Its more the vibrations through the floor than the sound of the trainer that is going to bother your neighbors if your ride in your apartment. (They won’t hear you in the garage). Get a rubber mat as suggested and pick a room that is not directly over where your neighbor will be when you are riding. Also, if you like to watch TV or listen to music while on the trainer, get earphones. They might not care about the trainer too much but blasting Metalica at 5:30 am will cause problems.
It would be helpful to talk to your neighbors too. You might find out they are already up and out or that you’ve inadvertantly put your trainer right over their baby’s crib.
You could ride in the garage but you’ll really want a fan on you unless its pretty cool in there. Cycling gets really hot when you don’t have a 20mph breeze blowing over you.
Make sure there is adequate ventilation so that you are not sucking car exhaust fumes. Last thing you want to do is be exercising with lots of bad stuff in the air.
Long ago I read of a study indicating that training in polluted air can have similar effects to altitude training with reduced oxygen into the lungs. What are a few carcinogens between friends?
I wonder if there’s an intake fan for the structure. He could plant himself in front of it and get a cooling breeze and fresh air.
I’d seriously be worried about the fumes more than about waking the neighbors up. I don’t know about you, but most parking garages I’ve been in post warning about how there are fumes in the garage that are known to cause cancer, kill babies, etc. etc. I’m sure that’s lawyer talk, but even if there was just a small amount of toxic fumes present, I’d be worried enough to scratch the idea of setting up my trainer—plus, the idea of having to haul all your crap back and forth to the garage sounds like a huge pain in the ass.
Excellent comments. FYI, my building is about 40 years old, and only has about 20 units. There are only about 12 cars in the garage that are actually used on a regular basis and I bet vehicle traffic between the hours of 11pm and 7am is almost non-existant. That being said, it is a fully enclosed garage and perhaps there are lingering carcinogens from throughout the day that are cause for worry.
I like the Stephen King comment.