Garages are often a catch-all for items that don’t get used a lot, are seasonal or you just don’t have anywhere else to put them. Without proper organization and planning, items in your garage can start to pile up, making it look messy and unappealing. Moreover, a clutter-filled garage can make it difficult to use for its intended purpose, whether that be storing your vehicle or working out.
Here, we’re inspiring you to get organized and keep clutter off the garage floor with these seven garage organization tips and ideas.
The Benefits of Having Organized Garage Storage Space
A clutter-free garage not only looks nice, but it has tangible benefits that may help make your life easier:
- Efficient use of space: Implementing intuitive storage solutions and getting your items organized helps you maximize your garage space. If you’ve found yourself running out of places to store things but your garage is piled high with miscellaneous materials, there’s more than likely some wasted space that could be put to better use.
- Time savings: Are you constantly rummaging through piles of parts and pieces, and giving up before finding what you’re looking for? Chances are you could benefit from more organization. When everything has its place, it makes finding a particular power tool, a piece of equipment or another item a lot easier, helping you save time.
- Improved safety: Disorder has multiple definitions for a reason. A messy garage can lead to disorder in your life and may even cause injury. Cleaning things up can minimize the risk of accidents and injuries that could be caused by tripping over clutter. Particularly, an organized garage space ensures that potentially hazardous items such as sharp tools are stored properly.
- Heightened appeal when selling: According to one realtor’s survey, 80% of buyers say that the garage is a big factor when making a buying decision. So, keeping your garage organized and appealing may help it do well on the market.
What Items Are Best Stored in the Garage?
Using a garage as a storage room is common, but it also begs the question: What exactly should you be storing in there? While the garage may not be the best place to store items that are valuable, easily stolen or could be damaged by moths, it is a great place for most everything else — as long as you keep it organized. Here are just a handful of items that are appropriate to keep in the garage:
- Tools.
- Sports equipment.
- Seasonal items.
- Outdoor equipment (lawn and garden; bicycles, etc.).
- Vehicle supplies.
- Camping gear.
- Recycling and garbage.
7 Garage Storage Ideas for a Clutter-Free Space
These seven garage storage ideas can help you create more floor space, save precious time spent searching for small items and even ease your stress.
1. Utilize Overhead Space
A garage ceiling, especially if you have an A-frame roof, offers a lot of great storage space. If your garage allows, try installing overhead storage racks for larger or less-used items. Not only does this provide a safe space for your prized possessions, but it also gets them up off the ground, freeing up valuable floor space. Seasonal stuff, or large, bulky items are great candidates to be stored high and dry in your garage.
Need bike storage ideas? Drill hooks into your garage ceiling and hang bikes upside down by the front or rear tire!
2. Install a Wall-Mounted Cabinet
If hoisting heavy items high overhead isn’t a practical option for you, you can try utilizing vertical wall space by installing wall-mounted storage racks and pegboards. This will free up floor space and provide easy access to smaller items. These shelving solutions are ideal for smaller garage spaces and operate on the same principle as overhead storage: they keep items off the ground to free up garage floor space.
With wall-mounted storage, you get the added benefit of accessibility, so you can store items that you may need to access more often. Plus, a well-installed wall storage unit looks sleek, which may make it easier to want to keep the garage clutter-free!
3. Consider Wire Shelving for an Affordable Storage Option
Wire shelving is typically lighter on your wallet than other storage options while still providing an easy, secure way to organize your items in the garage. This storage solution could be wall-mounted or freestanding and is a great first step to an organized garage for the cost-conscious consumer.
4. Include Tool Storage
If you consider yourself something of a craftsperson or otherwise have a lot of valuable tools, they should be stowed away when you’re not using them. There are plenty of great toolboxes, storage cabinets and workbenches out there that are designed to keep your tools safe, secure and accessible.
5. Create Zones
If you’re looking to get a little more granular with your organization than simply building storage solutions into your garage, try creating zones.
Designate specific zones for different activities or categories. For example, keep all your gardening stuff together in one area, sports equipment in another and car cleaning supplies somewhere else. This will not only make it easy to retrieve particular items when you need them, but it can make keeping your garage organized easier, too — since you know exactly where items belong.
6. Label Everything
Labels can go a long way — especially if you’re storing items in opaque plastic bins and containers. If you have a particularly good memory, using a more generic label, such as “camping items,” would suffice. However, if you prefer to be a bit more thorough, there’s nothing wrong with listing out exactly what’s in the storage bin on the label.
To make things just a bit easier on yourself, make sure to use a consistent labeling system so that when it comes time to find something, you know exactly where to look. On the other hand, if labeling isn’t your jam, you can opt for transparent storage containers to quickly identify the contents without opening them.
7. Keep Up With Maintenance
Life happens and sometimes it’s easy to fall out of a routine (or into a different one). However challenging it may be, try to hold yourself to regular decluttering sessions. This can help to prevent the accumulation of garbage and/or unnecessary items in your garage. On top of that, always try to put items back in their designated places after you use them to keep the garage spick and span.
Consider a New Garage Door To Complement Your Newly-Organized Space
The outside of your garage, and your home in general, deserves just as much attention as the interior — so don’t stop the tidy once you get organized on the inside! Keep working your magic and consider complementing your freshly-organized space with a new garage door to suit.
New garage doors offer better durability and security than older models, which helps keep your organized items safe and secure.
Amarr offers a range of garage door styles to fit your unique design preference. Ready to find your dream garage door and keep the cleanup going? Then build the perfect garage door that would complete your garage organization project.
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