Organizing a garage

I’m usually not in charge of the garage. It is not my domain.  I do projects in there sometimes, and I am the one who deals with the trash and the recycling and who sweeps the floor now and again. But the garage just isn’t that important to me.  We can always park our cars in there, and we can easily find the things we need.  In the grand scheme of things, our garage is spacious and orderly.  But sometimes, it looks like this…

And this...

And this...

And then I start to get heart palpitations, and I can’t take one more messy second.  As always, when conquering an organization project, the first step is to take everything out.  This helps you see what you own.  First things first, pull everything out.

The next step is to look at what you have. Are there any doubles (or triples) of things you can get rid of? I might have owned nine paint rollers when I started this project.  Are you ever going to rollerblade again?  Has your son outgrown his bike?  What do you need to keep?  What can you donate?  What needs to go in the trash?  If you want to park your cars in the garage, but have never been able to fit them, you probably need to purge some items in order to use the garage for what it is intended.  

After that, measure your storage space.  How much can you fit?  Do you need to buy some storage bins?  Do you more pegs for your pegboard?  Do you need hooks to hang bikes or sports equipment? Shelves?  Go out and purchase whatever supplies you need.

Now, it is time to put everything away in its place. Put like items together and label them. Everything should have a home, and you should be able to find things easily when you need them.

Storage cabinets store a lot of supplies, and it is very nice to be able to close the doors.  Also, overhead garage storage is a huge space saver.  Make sure to save an area for larger items like lawnmowers and wheelbarrows if those need to be stored in your garage also.