Organizing your garage is never easy. The challenge is how to bring together all your tools, toys, and sporting equipment, along with your cars if there’s room, in a way that is functional.
There’s also a tendency for people to store items that don’t belong in the garage. A cluttered garage is certainly the norm for most people, so don’t feel bad if your garage isn’t exactly pristine.Your garage is probably nowhere near as bad as expert garage organizers have seen – dead animals, termite infected furniture, spoiled food, you name it.
Here’s a few things to gather before you start organizing your garage:
- Heavy-duty trash bags
- Strong vacuum like a shop vac, or a broom
- Catch-all basket for odds and ends
- Organize Garage Clutter
Start out by doing a basic cleaning of the floor with a brook or shop vac to avoid spreading dirt during the project. Also look out for:
- Nails and other small items on the floor
- Oil or chemical stains
- Cobwebs
- Any evidence of furry or winged creatures that may have taken up residence in your home
As you clean, you can start decluttering by tossing anything you know right away belongs in the trash. That way you don’t have to deal with it later during the actual decluttering process. This is just like any organizing process, as you need to get rid of the clutter first. You can divide items into familiar categories:
- Toss
- Keep
- Donate
- Trash
Ideally, you should pull everything out of the space it’s in. Putting everything out on the driveway and sorting into zones will help you see how many of one item they may have, how many items are broken, outgrown or not used. You may be amazed how many items are actually stuffed into your garage.
Plan Garage Storage
Figure out your garage storage space and start storing items where they belong. Here’s some ways to create more storage space:
- Utilize vertical space
- Use what you have, or purchase the right products
- Make sure and dangerous items are stored in a locked cabinet if children are in the house
- Don’t go out and buy an organizing system and install it to see if it fits all your stuff. Start with the basics. Use basic organizers and shelves, then go up from there as you see fit.
Maintain Garage Organization
Once you’re organized your zones, you will feel a well-earned sense of accomplishment. Step 4 is to keep this organizing scheme going by doing a quick sweep as often as you need to: Seasonally, monthly or even weekly. Garages are a high traffic area so the more often you organize this space, the less time it will it take.