Tips for Organizing Your Garage
Most people use their garages to protect their vehicles from harsh weather and theft, but your garage can actually become a storage space for everything from tools to outdoor gear like bikes, skis, and sports equipment.
You can use your garage to declutter your home by maximizing your indoor storage space. With a garage, there's no need to store outdoor equipment inside, freeing up your indoor space while reducing clutter. Unfortunately, many people don't know how to create an organized garage. With our help, you can organize your garage and begin using it to store items with minimal effort. Keep reading to learn our garage storage ideas:
1. Empty Your Garage First
You organize your garage the same way you'd organize your storage unit. Before you can begin using any of our garage organization ideas, you must see the space you're working with. Unfortunately, you can't do that if your garage is packed with stuff. On the other hand, emptying your garage can help you take stock of all the things you want to store, including cars, tools, sports equipment, and so forth.
When emptying your garage, you'll have an opportunity to go through all the items you currently have and decide whether or not to keep them. If you find lots of items you haven't used in years or completely forgot you had, they're better off given away to friends, family, neighbors, charities, or tossed in the trash.
Completely emptying your garage gives you a clean slate, which will make organizing much easier.
2. Clean Your Garage
Once all your belongings are out of your garage, you should clean it to remove any dust, debris, and mold. Your garage is an extension of your home, but it doesn't have the same climate control abilities, so it's prone to things like mold and mildew. Additionally, your garage probably gets opened multiple times a day, letting in dirt, leaves, bugs, and other pests that may be trying to find shelter.
You should clean your garage by sweeping it, removing debris, and addressing any signs of moisture. If you have rugs or carpets in your garage, vacuum them, or you can use a stiff broom to get rid of leaves and dirt.
Meanwhile, if you have shelves, you should wipe them down to remove any dirt or dust that's built up over time. Starting with a clean slate will give you more motivation to keep it that way as you organize your garage.
3. Create a Floor Plan
Everyone has garage storage ideas they want to implement, but before you start adding shelves, you should create a floor plan. Having a drawing of your garage and where you want to put different types of storage solutions can help you determine whether you have enough space and keep everything organized.
Your floor plan will allow you to set zones and add shelves, hanging cabinets, and pegboards to save on floor space and hang items like tools and gardening equipment. You should also have a section dedicated to sports and outdoor equipment like bikes, skis, basketballs, baseball bats, etc.
Of course, there are some items you shouldn't store in your garage. Storing furniture in your garage makes it susceptible to damage and takes up too much space, so unfortunately, you're going to have to find another storage solution for couches, sofas, and tables, such as a storage unit.
Once you know what you want to store in your garage, you can create your own categories and zones based on your particular needs. What's most important is that you have a plan for categorizing and grouping different items you want to store.
4. Add Shelving and Cabinets
One of the best ways to organize a garage is to add shelves and cabinets to maximize your vertical space. Most likely, you want to continue using your garage for your vehicles, so you won't have a ton of space in a two-car garage and will need to use the wall space. Adding shelving gives you a place for everything from sports equipment to tools.
You can also use containers to keep smaller items together; just remember to label them so you won't forget where you put things.
5. Hang Pegboards
Pegboards are boards with small holes in them for pegs where you can hang just about anything. These boards are a necessity for any garage-turned storage unit because they allow you to hang everything from tools and gardening equipment to nuts, bolts, and other small items on the walls. You can also add baskets, hooks, and other items for organizing your garage.
Many peg boards can hold at least 100 pounds, so don't be afraid to hang your equipment like shovels, rakes, and power tools on them.
6. Use Storage Containers & Bins
Every storage solution, whether in your garage, basement, or storage unit, needs storage containers and bins to help you keep similar items together. You can put everything from sports equipment and shoes to seasonal items in a storage container and stack them to maximize your vertical space.
As a best practice, make sure you label your storage containers and bins so you can always find what you're looking for.
Wondering how to organize your belongings in bins? Read our tips for packing smarter for organization ideas you can use in your garage.
7. Install Overhead Storage Racks
Overhead storage racks allow you to take advantage of your ceiling space by hanging items above your head. Storage racks are ideal for items like bikes and other large equipment like kayaks, sleds, and skis. You can also use overhead storage for bins to keep items away from children. Overhead storage racks are suited best for items you don’t need access to on a daily or weekly basis.
8. Designate Room for Garbage & Recycling Bins
If you're like most homeowners, your HOA and community don't allow you to keep your garbage and recycling bins outside full-time. However, most garages are large enough for these bins if you know how to optimize your space. Always designate a room for garbage and recycling bins that are in an accessible and easy place.
For instance, if you prefer to be able to open your door and toss a garbage bag in your bin, you might want to designate space as close to your door as possible. Meanwhile, if you're more interested in being able to roll your bins to the curb easily, you might choose a location closer to the garage door.
Additional Garage Organization Ideas
One thing to keep in mind when determining which garage organizing ideas are best for you is what you use your garage for. If you want to use your garage space as a workshop, you need storage for tools and other equipment. Meanwhile, if your garage's primary function is to protect your vehicles, you'll have less floor space and will need to optimize vertical space. Here are a few additional ideas for organizing your garage:
-
Hang magnet strips for small metal tools: Magnet strips are a straightforward way of storing your tools without having a large, inconvenient toolbox.
-
Invest in a hardware cabinet: If you want to use your garage to store tools or as a workshop, you'll need a place to store hardware like nuts, bolds, staples, washers, nails, and screws. Since these things can be detrimental to your car tires, you might invest in a hardware cabinet that keeps your smaller hardware organized and off the ground.
-
Use retractable reels for extension cords: Unfortunately, cords can be messy, and they're not as flexible as other types of cords. If you have multiple extension cords, you might benefit from retractable reels that will prevent them from taking up too much space or getting tangled.
-
Family storage lockers: Active families have tons of outdoor gear that can make for a messy, cluttered garage. Getting storage lockers for each member of the family allows everyone to store their gear and equipment in the garage without creating a mess or trip hazard.
Key Takeaways: How to Organize a Garage
Organizing your garage allows you to maximize your storage space while still using it for your cars. When organizing your garage, you'll have to focus on vertical space unless you want to park your car in the street or driveway. Unfortunately, most garages don't leave enough space for tools, workshops, sports equipment, or seasonal items.
Key Storage provides additional storage options to free up space in your garage. Choose from one of our convenient locations and begin storing your items to free up more space in your garage.
