Pros
- Easy to put together
- 10-year guarantee
- Does its job effortlessly
Cons
- Electric sockets and other security items are not included
Features
- Heavy-duty galvanised steel construction
- Steel floor included
- Extra-large double doors and a gas-strut-assisted lid with twin locking shrouds and a deadbolt
- Weatherproof, rust-resistant, and maintenance-free
- Mounting plates for electric sockets (not included) and access holes for charging cables
Spec
Material: Galvanized steel
Dimensions: 7’7” x 3’4”, height at back 4’ 4.76”
Locking System: Shrouded, twin lock system (8.5 Heavy Security Rating)
Weight: 122kg
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Asgard Access Premium Electric Bike Shed: Review
Cycling Electric staff writer Myles Warwood has been reviewing the Asgard Access Premium Electric Bike Shed to test its durability, weatherproofing, ease of use and access. Asgard claims this shed provides ample security for up to three electronic bikes, so part of the job was seeing how many could fit in.
With its galvanised steel design and arriving in panel sections, it’s not as cumbersome to put together as you might think, the only heavy and potentially tricky section being the roof. It’s entirely possible to complete the job on your own, although I did need some help installing the roof. Some things come at an extra cost, including the disc padlocks, hooks, shelving and a wooden floor. What makes it e-bike-specific, though, is the ability to charge the bikes while they’re locked up inside the shed. This is a massive plus for bikes with internal battery packs, which are difficult to remove. It means you no longer have to run an extension cable out to your bike or haul it inside. It can be all done outside safely and neatly tucked away in its shed.
The shed is certainly very secure, if not one of the most secure on the market, so let’s look at its particulars and figure out why it may be considered as such.
How well does it go together?
Provided you have the tools and a flat surface, you can get this together in an afternoon – quicker if there are two of you working together. The flat surface ensures the door lines up properly, leaving no gaps for ultimate security – gaps allow space for thieves to get tools inside and potentially lever the doors open, so you must have a hard, level surface for the best setup. Instructions are easy to follow once you’ve established your flat surface, and there aren’t that many, either, in an easy-to-read layout. All screws, nuts and bolts come provided in a sectioned-off bag, so you only need to open the part of the bag that you’re working on at that time.
Using a drill, the screws go in quickly as panels slot into place, and once you have one panel on, it starts to support the other, and you can move around to get all the pieces into place. It was easy to follow from the first section to the last, and while I initially tried to install one panel upside down, this was quickly noticed as the guide holes for the screws didn’t line up correctly.
The roof was the most complicated panel to install. It was big and heavy to handle on my own, as you have to hold the screws in on one side to tighten the bolts on the inside. If you have duct tape, you could hold the screws in place while you fasten the bolts if installing on your own. If not, help on this bit would go a long way. Installation of the plug was super-easy. While I’m no electrician, I can wire a plug and securing a weatherproof plug was easy enough. A weatherproof plug is ideal here as the wind can still get through the gaps in the shed; if wind can, water can. Overall, from start to finish, it took me around two hours to have a completed bike shed.
How secure is the shed?
While I’ve not tried to break into the shed myself, and nor has anyone else, I can see why it gets its recognition as a secure bike shed. Given enough time and tools, I’m sure a thief could likely find their way into this shed, but it would make a lot of noise, alerting you to what’s going on. The panels are designed to be noisy when interfered with, so if anyone tries to kick through the shed, it will quickly alert someone in your house. Equally, gaining access will take enough time for you to call the police. And if there’s one thing that will discourage a thief, it’s an attempt at theft being noisy and time-consuming.
A really neat touch is the coverings over the disc padlocks, leaving just enough of the lock exposed to lock and unlock. This means that the weak point in the padlock – the arm that locks into place – is covered. Hinges, while external, are solid and robust to discourage tampering with. Overall, over the month that I’ve had the shed, it’s remained solid and shown no sign of movement in its build. It’s discreet in design, and comes in three colours – cream, green and grey – all of which blend into most backdrops.
How many bikes can it hold?
I’ve managed to get three full-fat e-MTBs in the shed, though it’s all about how you store them. You’ll be amazed how much room a pedal takes up, for example, if you’re lining one bike up alongside another, and taking the pedals off isn’t ideal if you use your bike daily as it adds to your get-out time in the morning and put-away time in the evening. However, if you want to maximise your use of the space, this is an option. If you have flat bars, turn the handlebars so they lie parallel to your front wheel. This gives you much more space to store bikes. You can also pack kids’ bikes around adult bikes if you close the doors and load in from above, exploiting the space left behind by the bigger bikes.
This shed came with two shelves. However, I only installed one as the bigger wheels on the e-MTB needed a bit more space. But if you have a road bike or fewer bikes to store, installing both shelves will give you added space for odd bits of bike stuff, pressure washers, tools, etcetera.
