I know this is a 3rd world problem, but Im hoping someone here can help me.
Im about to buy a squat rack. Im going to spend a little extra and get a quality commercial grade rack. Im looking at this purchase as more of an investment. Anyway my garage ceiling isnt high enough, so Im thinking of keeping it outside under a pergola. It will be protected from the elements, although occasionally I suspect with heavy winds and rain it may get rained on a bit. I dont want to buy an expensive squat rack for it to be full of rust 6 months later.
Has anyone got any experience with keeping equipment in outdoor areas?
[quote]Fuzzyapple.Train wrote:
Why not buy something similar to this for your garage? [/quote]
Thanks for the suggestion, but I really have my heart set on this particular squat rack.
Reasons are;
Its 244cm tall, so at 6’2 Im not going to be touching the floor with my knees when doing chins (I do lots of pull-ups and chin-ups).
I like the various grips that it offers for chins.
Its very sturdy. Its not going to shake and rattle when Im working on it.
I want a traditional "cage: rack, as I will be using it for bench and rack-pulls. I think this rack offers me the most flexibility for my work-outs now, and in the not so near future.
[quote]caveman101 wrote:
give it another coat of exterior metal paint, cover any moving parts in oil, keep it under a tarpaulin when not in use. [/quote]
Thanks caveman!
Is there a particular paint I am looking for? Is it clear in colour?
So are you suggesting oiling the joints/screws? There will be no moving parts as I am not getting a pulley system or anything.
If you don’t pay extra attention to it and really make sure to keep it protected from the elements its gonna take a beating… I have had issues with equipment outside in Sunny LA weather
I know this is a 3rd world problem, but Im hoping someone here can help me.
Im about to buy a squat rack. Im going to spend a little extra and get a quality commercial grade rack. Im looking at this purchase as more of an investment. Anyway my garage ceiling isnt high enough, so Im thinking of keeping it outside under a pergola. It will be protected from the elements, although occasionally I suspect with heavy winds and rain it may get rained on a bit. I dont want to buy an expensive squat rack for it to be full of rust 6 months later.
Has anyone got any experience with keeping equipment in outdoor areas?
I have equipment I welded out of old drill pipe in my side yard so I can can look at the mountain and valley while I train. (Started with a pull up bar because I hit my head on the ceiling if I do pull ups from a bar high enough to keep my feet from hitting the ground — again freakshow tall guy)
Now I have a dedicated power rack set up, and a climbing rope hanging off a telephone pole, just because I like training outside.
It’s in the snow and ice and is fine — just plain old steel Ivanko weights I got when a gym went bankrupt.
I take my bars back into the garage when done.
IF there is not salt or whatnot, just plain krylon paint will keep the weights OK.
[quote]caveman101 wrote:
give it another coat of exterior metal paint, cover any moving parts in oil, keep it under a tarpaulin when not in use. [/quote]
Thanks caveman!
Is there a particular paint I am looking for? Is it clear in colour?
So are you suggesting oiling the joints/screws? There will be no moving parts as I am not getting a pulley system or anything.
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As the equipment manager you should also periodically inspect the rack, weights, and other tools used during sessions, and do at least a yearly maintenance on all heavy equipment. Ask the primary member about his schedule so these actions can be timed around his programs. A lot of other facilities typically employ EMs who are happy to purchase new stuff to keep members happy, but then disappear until shit starts breaking down. Don’t be that guy.
You’ll want to contact the manufacturer and request a replacement part catalog for your rack model. Keep on file in case any screws, joints, bench pads, etc., begin to look wonky. The catalog also serves as a guide when looking for replacement screws at local hardware stores.
[quote]theBird wrote:
Thanks for the suggestion, but I really have my heart set on this particular squat rack.
Reasons are;
Its 244cm tall, so at 6’2 Im not going to be touching the floor with my knees when doing chins (I do lots of pull-ups and chin-ups).
[/quote]
You don’t have to have a bar that high to do chinups. I’m as tall as you with pretty damn long arms and I’ve done weighted chins with full size plates from a bar that’s about 190-200 cm above ground.
Won’t let you do any standing presses in the rack though if you’re into that.
Is there room in the garage to store it indoors when you’re not using it? Just tip it over and at least height is not a problem. You could even puts wheels on the sides.
Or hot-dip galvanize the whole thing if you can find someone to do that.
That rack is a beaut! Is it a HD-2? I would be careful about repainting given the risk of creating cracks in the original coat. I would definitely buy a can of oil spray and coat the inside of the standards. I would also rubberise the spots which will take a beating (top of safety bar, hooks, etc.) Keeping it under cover should give you many years of use, or at least until the bush fire gets it…
I have my power rack permanently located outside exposed to the elements. I built my rack out of “C” channel and had all surfaces coated with zinc. I think the regular rack with square tube steel would have rusted out from the inside.
If you keep your rack covered and protected from rain, and you do not live next to the coast, I would guess that you will only see minor surface rust on any unpainted surfaces.
