Kyrinov
Level 5 Valued Member
I have moved into a new home in a new city. For the first time since I left home, I have a backyard! This has been one of the best things to ever happen to me, as I now have my own space for training. I've taken the plunge and purchased a barbell set to make use of my new space. It's one of those Chinese ones (Amstaff etc.) but seems relatively well made. As I figured, you can't really screw up a barbell. I am renting the main floor of a duplex and do not have access to the basement as it is occupied by another tenant. I fear damaging the floors/making noise/hurting myself trying to protect the floor so I have decided to park my barbell in the backyard. I am taking steps to try to keep the barbell relatively safe from the elements, I purchased some high-impact flooring tiles to raise it up off the patio bricks and have placed a tarp over it when not in use. I'm wondering if anyone else has tips for keeping it the best possible condition under the circumstances. I'm wondering if I might put some kind of oil or sealant on it from time to time to combat rust. I don't expect it to remain shiny and new for years and years...quite frankly I don't care - it was $300 for the whole set of olympic bar and 300 lbs of weight and if I can get a few good years of it....rusted or otherwise and squeeze what strength I reasonably can from it, I'll feel I got my money's worth. Just want to see if anyone has any tips that might extend that mileage as much as possible until I reach a point where I'm ready to buy a home and have my own basement. FYI the plates are rubber coated. Any ideas much appreciated.