Whether you just moved in or you've been living there for a hundred years, you may not have given much thought to the organizational status of
your garage. If you have, kudos to you! If not, it's time to take a trip into your garage and get ready to organize it. Once your garage is organized, it will be cleaner and you'll be able to use it for storage efficiently.
Empty the garage
If you're going to
reorganize your garage, the first thing to do is to empty it as much as possible. You want your garage to be a blank canvas so you can really visualize what needs to be done.
- Since you're cleaning out the garage, now is the perfect opportunity to get rid of some stuff by hosting a garage sale. You'll lighten your load and make a few bucks to boot.
- Once you've emptied the garage and the garage sale is over, start grouping similar items together in piles either on your lawn or your driveway if you have the space. This will make the process of putting things away much easier and faster.
- Once you've got your piles of similar items you'll be able to see how much space you actually need to dedicate to each group be it holiday decorations, tools or anything else you may have forgotten hidden away in there.
Storage system
After you've emptied and sold some of the contents of your garage, you'll need to come up with some kind of storage system to utilize.
- If you have a lot of tools but don't have the room for huge tool chests consider installing peg board on all your walls and hanging the hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, etc. on the walls.
You can also install shelves on the walls to make use of vertical space. Or if you have a few feet of space you can install industrial shelving units to create your own plastic tote drawer system.
- Home improvement stores sell different storage systems that can be utilized for the garage. When you visit your local store, be sure to discuss your needs with one of the employees so they can point you in the right direction.
TIP: Move storage to the ceiling to keep things off the floor. Large items like bikes, snow tires and canoes are perfect for ceiling storage. You can store them above the ceiling joists in the garage.
- Another gravity-defying storage method is to create a track using two-by-fours and plywood flanges to hold plastic bins in place. You can then mount the tracks directly to your ceiling joists and you'll have convenient overhead storage.
Put everything back
Once you've installed your
organizational system, begin putting everything back in its new home.
- Keep the things you will use more often (hand tools, hardware, etc.) in the easiest to access places.
Seasonal items can be placed in the overhead storage where it will be up off the floor and out of the way, but still accessible.
- Create designated areas in the garage to help keep it organized once everything is back in place. If you frequently garden, then keep all the gardening tools and equipment together in one section of the garage.
- Make sure that everything is labeled and that the label is clearly visible, so that no one will have any questions as to where things go and no excuses for having a messy garage.