It often happens that people use their garages as places to dump the stuff they do not need at the time or that does not have a place in the house. If your garage has the same purpose, then perhaps you should think about doing a serious overhaul. Instead of gathering the strength to clean all the garage clutter from time to time, you should follow a certain organization system so to prevent things from piling up once again. Restore the order and reclaim your garage with a few simple organizational tricks.
- First of all, this project requires enough time for its completion so that things that are being sorted do not have to sit around in piles for long. You will have to pull many items out of the garage, so plan a few back-to-back days (such as weekends) for this project. If your garage is big and you cannot handle organizing it by yourself, hire some help or call a few friends to assist you. In that way, you will finish it more quickly and will less likely abandon the project halfway through.
- All the items in your garage should be categorized. Sports and recreational equipment, automotive gear, garden gear, camping gear, and tools are some of the typical categories. If there are certain things that do not really have to be stored in the garage, make sure to find another storage space somewhere in the house and relocate them. Many garage items can actually be relocated once you determine the purpose of the storage inside your house.
- After you decide on the categories of items that will be stored in your garage, start grouping the contents. Group the in the center of the garage or outside in the driveway. Get yourself some cardboard boxes and label them correctly, because it will help you with grouping. Do not rush into buying boxes, baskets and containers just yet, because you might miss the correct sturdiness and sizes.
- It might happen that you find random items or parts that you do not need or know what to do with them. If you decide to keep them, put them in a separate category or in a visible place in order to remember that you have them. Otherwise, think about donating, having a garage sale, or simply throwing them away (in case they are not functional or usable in any possible way).
- Now, determine the best possible garage layout. How do you decide on the best place for each item to live? Well, it all depends on the available space and its frequency of use. Tools should be placed on the wall near the workbench (where they’re out of the way but still accessible), while the best place for recycling is near the entrance to the home.
- Be sure to free up the floor space as much as possible. Think about all the possible shelving solutions, mounting built-in cabinets and modular storage. Metal garden gear can be held and organized on strong magnetic bars that are strong enough to hold the weight of your tools.
- After you have determined how much space you have and what you are keeping, you can know what kind of containers to buy. Mount a pegboard on the wall and use wire grids to hold various items or baskets, and make the most of the vertical space. You can set up shelves on the ceiling and take the advantage of overhead space.
- When you are supplied with everything you need, start relocating items to their new homes.
After you are finished with the project, make sure to maintain the garage, put things away promptly after using them, and avoid making further clutters and piling things up again. A well-organized garage can save you money, energy, and time, so get up and get to work.