Repurpose an Old Bike Into a Bathroom Counter
Edited by Emmanuel M. Lardizabal, Robbi, Eng, Lynn and 6 others
Instead of junking your old bike or selling the parts off of your broken one, you can turn it into a counter for your bathroom. An old bicycle can add flare and style around your bathroom sink. An old bike can still be useful if it is turned into a bathroom counter and it doesn't matter if the bike works or not.
The following steps will explain how to to make an old bike into a bathroom counter.
Steps
- 1Gather the things needed in making your bathroom counter.Advertisement
- Old bike
- Plumber
- Paint
- Coupling metal
- Extra pipe just in case the sink pipe is not enough
- All around sealant (elastomeric sealant)
- 2Clean the sink, where you will attach the bike.Advertisement
- 3Remove the seat of the bike.
- 4Clean the bike.
- 5Paint the bike.
- 6Wait until the paint on the bike is dry.
- 7Place the bike under the sink.
- 8Connect the pipe of the sink together with the pipe of the bike (the pipe where you remove the seat of the bike)
- 9Connect the extra pipe together with the bottom part of the bikes' pipe using a coupling metal.
- 10Try to open your faucet. If the water is leaking, you can use the sealant to cover the leak.
- 11Now you have your new bathroom counter.
Warnings
- Always check if the water is leaking to avoid accidents.
- It is very important that the bike is positioned in a way that its balance won't let go after a few weeks of use. Keep in mind that water current may cause some stress into the structure. If you have not installed your bike properly to be able to hold the sink and the flow of water, it may fall off after a while. Therefore, balance and sturdiness should be the first two things that you will consider when repurposing an old bike.
- Clean the tires of the bicycle before placing it inside your house. The tires are the dirtiest part of the bicycle. If you have not cleaned it well enough before repurposing, it is rather risky to put it inside your house, particularly in the bathroom as it may be carrying with it a lot of germs. Pay attention to the dirt embedded in between the creases of the tires.
- The height of the bicycle may be adjusted depending on your preference. Ideally, the sink should be a little bit above the waist.
Advantages of Repurposing
- 1Preservation of valuable items. If some items have sentimental value for you, you will be able to preserve those by repurposing them into other more useful items. You need not worry about having to store these valuable items and wasting storage space in your home. Also, some items tend to lose their beauty when they are just stored and not used. Therefore, if you have these types of items which you cannot throw away or give to others, start thinking how you can repurpose instead and start doing your next creative project.
Questions and Answers
What's the best way to clean and paint an old bike for re-purposing?
What kind of paint should I use. Is there some kind of cleaner I can use to get the rust off of the bike?. I have tried: Nothing so far. I just want to get the bike looking as good as possible.. I think it was caused by: The bike is quite rusty and old and I want it to look neat and clean after I am done re-purposing it. I am just not sure what products to use to get the metal completely smooth and new looking.
Take apple cider vinegar and using a wire brush, apply the vinegar to the rust. Make sure to brush the vinegar into the rusted areas to loosen any rust dust particles. You also could use a product like C.L.R. which you can get at any home improvement or big box store. Usually in the plumbing or cleaning supply aisles. To paint the bike I recommend using an outdoor paint because you are installing this in a bathroom and water accidents can happen. Krylon and Rustoleum both make spray paints like Oil Brushed Bronze which will adhere to the surface of the bike without heavy sanding. You could also use a chalk paint either DIY or Annie Sloan to paint your bike. You can distress chalk paint and seal with wax or varnish if you would like to add any extra character to the bike.
If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.
