Your garage can easily become one of your home’s most frustrating spaces to navigate if it’s disorganized and full of clutter. We all know the struggle of having to spend way too much time rummaging through boxes and tripping over things, just to find the one thing you’re looking for. With the summer months approaching, you’ll be using your garage more than usual, so it’s time to organize it after a long winter season. Luckily, we’ve found seven tips to help you organize your garage and maintain it all summer long.
1. Start by Decluttering.
The first step to an organized garage is to get rid of the things you don’t need. It’s easy to banish all the belongings you can’t part with to the garage, but after a while, it all adds up. Before you start organizing, determine what gets to stay and what needs to go.
2. Utilize Wall Space.
There are so many ways to create storage using your garage walls. Wire baskets, shelving, and hooks help keep your garage floor less cluttered. If you have bicycles, use a wall mount to hang them when not in use. A pegboard is a great, easily installed option to hang lightweight tools and supplies.
3. Deal with Long Handles.
Long-handled tools, sports rackets and sticks are hard to store without them falling and taking other things to the ground with them. Secure your long-handled tools by sticking them in a large bin filled with sand. This weighs them down and protects them from damage. To hang up other long-handled tools and equipment, slide them in PVC pipes cut and attached to the wall and keep things upright, secure and organized!
4. Create a Ball Corral.
If you have loose sports equipment like helmets, mitts and balls, a ball corral is a practical and space-efficient storage solution that allows for easy access. All you need are three to four bungee cords, some wood—and a working knowledge of power tools.
5. Use Ceiling-Mounted Shelves.
Ceiling-mounted shelves are a great place to put bins with seasonal items you don’t need often. Your garage ceiling is also a useful place to store long and flat items like ladders or fishing poles. Just make sure you hang your shelves high enough so they don’t interfere with your garage door opening or hit the top of your car when it’s in the garage.
6. Keep the Mudroom Clean.
If you use your garage as a mudroom, keep a space near the door with baskets, shelves, and bins to toss your most commonly used items. You can also use old lockers as personal storage and assign everyone their own. Add a laundry basket for dirty or wet clothes to stop them from entering the house and a shoe rack to keep footwear in one spot and you’re all set.
7. Pack Smart.
Put things you don’t regularly use in harder-to-reach places and keep items you use more frequently in the front. Store things that belong to the same category together so you can find things faster. Create more space by getting rid of oversized or unnecessary containers. For example, pour leftover paint into mason jars to rid your garage of those clunky cans!
Follow these tips and your garage will be more organized than ever. If you still don’t have enough space, self-storage is a great option! Contact the storage professionals at Secure Self Storage and find the perfect place for all your things today.