Student-Built Solar Bike Station Available on Campus

With the warmth of spring not too far away, campus bicyclists will now be able to take advantage of a new bike repair station built by Sustainable Living students that features a solar-powered air compressor for inflating tires.

A photo of the bike station

Located next to the Sustainable Living Center, the station also features bike tools, a work light, and a USB charger.

Constructed as part of a class on renewable energy projects taught by student engagement coordinator Rich Dana, the low-cost station was made from recycled and salvaged materials. The bike station is made from scrap PVC pipe (for the main housing), scrap chain-link fence (for the mounting bars), and unused parts that had been lying around, such as an old compressor and solar panel.

Inexpensive bike tools were purchased. They are suspended within the station using a brass chain and are available to residents who need to perform bike repairs.

“So far, it’s a real conversation piece, with lot’s of passers by stopping and trying to figure out what it is,” Mr. Dana said. “Pretty soon, the light goes on over their head, and they start playing with it.” He expects the station to get a lot of use as soon as the weather warms up.

“The bike station encourages people to ride bikes and to learn to work on their own bikes,” said Gerrie Stood, departmental administrator in the Sustainable Living Department. “We combine fitness, with sustainability and ingenuity.”

Campus residents and others who don’t have bicycles will again be able to rent them at the Recreation Center when the weather gets warmer, likely in March. The rental for these single-speed bikes is free for students, staff, and faculty and $5 per day for others. They are also available for shorter periods for $2 per hour.

Mr. Dana wrote about the experience of building this do-it-yourself bike station on his website HomeFixated.com, and the news was picked up by a number of websites focused on sustainability, including Inhabitat, a leading green news website.

Jim Karpen is a writer by trade, with a special focus on technology. He has a Ph.D. in English and studied the impact of the computerization of language. In addition to writing for iPhone Life magazine, he has also been writing a column about the Internet for the Iowa Source since 1994. He also edits and publishes the MUM Review.