If your house is bursting at the seams, or simply short on storage options, the solution is usually your garage. Unfortunately, it can build up over time to seem somewhat overwhelming at a glance.
Thankfully, there are great ways to tackle the beast that is the ever-piling junk in your garage. Here are some quick tips on how to sort through the items and transform your garage from a messy catch-all to a well-organized space.
Are you going to use it?
First things first: Get rid of anything you no longer use. It may be the hardest part. Once you take the contents and sort them into groups, try the ‘yes, no, maybe’ strategy. Make sure you keep items separated by use as well. Tools should go with tools, old clothes with old clothes and so forth.
Where to put it?
Efficient use of space usually depends on storing items in a strategic, thoughtful way. If there are tools you use more frequently, ensure they are more easily accessible. Some items you use twice a year perhaps should be at the back of the garage.
Organization
Here’s the fun part. The key to storage solutions is getting everything off the floor. Try taking advantage of wall space to enable further storage. Pegboards, open shelving, cabinetry and other systems are perfect for storing bins, hooks and more.
The ceiling
It may not seem like it, but if you have many items that you don’t use frequently, the ceiling provides huge potential for out-of-the-way storage. Beams and other shelving is perfect, as long as you ensure you don’t interfere with the operation or tracks of the garage door.
Safety
As it should be number one priority, safety is something you need to consider at every level of organizing your garage. Gasoline/propane should not be kept in the garage, as a single spark could lead to disaster. In the same vein, hazardous materials like fertilizer, pesticides and the like need to be far out of reach in case of children or pets. Locked cabinets and other protected storage are good solutions for these, in addition to storing power tools or other sharp implements.