Organizing Your Garage - Easy Tips
Your home can be immaculately clean and organized, but a lot of times it is the garage that has to suffer. It suffers because all of the items that are removed from the home to keep it nice and neat are usually stored in the garage. Then again, the garage simply becomes a catchall for tools, toys, and everything imaginable. Eventually, these things become a hazard, so it is good to get down to business and start organizing your garage.
Start sorting
The first step to organizing your garage is to sort through the items in it. You need to categorize everything that is in it. For example, you will have a pile for tools, one for toys, and another for sporting equipment. If you have stored any clothing in the garage, make sure you have a pile for that as well.
Once you have all of these items in piles, you need to take anything that shouldn't leave the garage and place it in its proper place. That way you and anyone helping you know that those items stay.
Seasonal items
Once you have your piles, you now need to make new piles by sorting them out by season. This will help you to place your items into storage bins. For example, you find summer sporting equipment and winter sporting equipment. You can place each within their respectable storage space. The same goes for clothes, toys, and other seasonal items.
If you have to, you can install more storage space. This means building shelves, purchasing portable closets for tool storage, and purchasing storage bins that you can label. You can even build cabinets to make everything easier to find. If you have everything stored away, you are left with considerably more floor space so that you can move around in your garage.
Getting rid of the unwanted
Once you have organized all of the things that you want to keep, it is time to get rid of those things that you don't want to keep. As for how you pull this off, there are several ways. You don't have to drive your unwanted items off to a dump somewhere and you don't have to overburden the garbage man.
First of all, you can have a yard sale to sell those things that are in decent condition. People love it when others sell their junk because they are quite likely to find a treasure. However, you will find those things that cannot be sold in a yard sale, but need to be disposed of. You can then sort the trash into items that are recyclable and not recyclable. The recyclables can be delivered or picked up by the local recycling center, whereas the items that cannot be recycled can be picked up by a junk removal service. Even if you can't find something to do with the junk that the junk removal service can remove, they may be able to find someone who can refurbish the items and donate them to charity.
Better efficiency
When it is all said and done, you have a larger workspace that is more efficient. If you want to build things, you can do that. If you want to actually park a car in your garage, you can do that as well. Most importantly, you'll feel a lot better about the space that you are occupying. Even if your garage turns into your catchall, it will be an organized catchall. That will make it easier to sort through things in the future and even find those items that you can actually use. This makes life a lot easier.
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Garage Organization - Need More Storage in Your Garage, Look Up
Did you know that garage organization has become the fastest growing segment in the multibillion dollar home improvement industry? "The garage is the new frontier," says Barry Izsak, author of Organize Your Garage in No Time. The average American home that has a two-car garage still has so much stuff in the garage they don't have room for the cars. And while millions and billions of dollars are spent every year on the inside of the home, the one room in the house that has the biggest opening and shows all your neighbors your unsightly mess, gets a fraction of the remodel budget. It has become the family dumping ground, the place to put your stuff you don't know what to do with. However all that is changing. The garage organization is now a $3billion dollar industry. And one of the hottest garage-organizing products on the market is overhead storage racks.
For those homeowners in need of more storage but who don't want the hassle of a major remodel, the perfect solution is the existing ceiling in your garage. Almost every homeowner has wasted space in the garage that is not being utilized, their garage ceiling. Garage overhead storage racks take advantage of this wasted space and can provide and abundance of storage space.
These racks are perfect to store seasonal items, holiday decorations, legal boxes, suitcases and bulky items that won't fit in cabinets. Made of high-quality industrial steel, the racks are depth adjustable to maximize ceiling space and come in a variety of sizes and colors to meet your needs. The largest units measure 8' x 4' and can hold upwards of over 100 cubic feet storage and upto 600 lbs of weight. The better racks are framed units with 12 points of attachment to the ceiling to prevent the units from falling or sagging in the middle. Most units are powder-coated to protect against rust and corrosion and have lifetime warranty. They even have wire-grid decks to help see your items from below. Some even have add-on accessories to hang items from underneath; e.g., a ladder, folding tables, bikes and skis. And make sure your overhead racks come with safety/cargo netting to wrap the racks and keep your precious items from falling out. The last thing you want is a $20 suitcase falling on your $100,000 Mercedes.
So the next time you need of more storage, just walk out into the garage, look up, and think "overhead storage racks!"
About Gus Gougas: Gus Gougas is presently an partner and president of OrganizIT!, a Chatsworth based business that provides products and services within the garage remodeling/organization industry. After 20+ years in Corporate America in outside enterprise sale/marketing/management for companies like; Symantec, Unisys, Logica, Lanier, Gus started OrganizIT! Inc. Gus has appeared on TV programs about garage organization on NBC, HGTV and KCAL9. Gus published numberous articles on garage organization and has recently been featured in new book, "Big Book of Garages", by Tina Skinner. You can contact Gus at gus@organizitco.com or 818-232-7683 or for a free design consultation, go to; http://www.organizitco.com/
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Garage Organizing Ideas
Imagine an organized garage for a moment. What do you see?
More play time because you have easy access to your toys?
Easy home repairs because you know where the tools are?
Never having to scrape ice or snow off your windshield?
Excitement for your new garden because all your supplies are ready to go?
Sounds pretty nice, doesn't it! You will be amazed how much an organized garage will influence your daily life.
PURPOSE Before we begin, I suggest you take time to explore what the purpose of your garage is for you and your family. Write down all the purposes and keep them handy.
* Is it to park your cars?
* Toys (adult and kid)?
* Storage?
* Recycling?
* Sports?
* Home repair?
* Band practice?
* Workout area?
* All of the above?
* Label on at least 3 sides - This allows you to rearrange the bins/boxes and you will always know what is inside.
* Only stack like items together and only two high. This allows you to get things easily AND put them back.
* Do it on a nice day so you can bring out items to create space in your garage for sorting.
* Plan to get dirty.
* Have snacks and refreshments available.
* Make it easy to get in and out of the garage (ie: path, key-less entry, etc.)
* Find out about your city dump: when is it open? what is accepted?
* Create a path for lawn mower, snow blower, trash, etc.
* Do NOT store photos, movies, or any items that like room temp.
* Properly store hazardous waste.
* Take a pre-organizing snap shot to see what is naturally collecting where. Maybe this is where the new home needs to be?
* Evaluate if it is worth it. It is tempting to go out and buy new shelving and storage bins before we even begin. However, it is worth taking time to evaluate if the items you are wanting to store are even worth the potential hundreds of dollars you are going to spend just to keep them. I know, that is a tough one to swallow. Just think, this could be a huge money (and space) saver if you decide to let go.
ZONE
Zoning is the best way to think about your space. Looking at your "purpose" list mentioned above, you will be able to see what zones are needed. You may also want to map out your garage with the zones in mind so you have an idea of the best home for each area. Here are some suggestions of potential garage zones.
* Seasonal: Could include holiday decorations, winter sports, summer sports, etc.
* Tools
* Sports: You may want to break this into mini-zones based on the sports you participate. Maybe even create zones for the different seasons.
* Gardening
* Car: This can included car maintenance or car wash supplies.
* Camping: We have a bin for back-packing and car camping. It is a lot more fun to get ready for camping when you know it only takes 10 minutes to load the car!
* Recycling
* Yard Sale: Only have this zone if you are seriously going to have a yard sale soon.
Now that you have your zones, create a space outside in your driveway or yard to allow the sorting process.
You will also want to include items for donation, trash, or recycle. Once sorted, you can bring each zone into their new home.
ODD SOLUTIONS
In my research for this article, I found a few odd solutions that I thought you would enjoy.
* Toilet paper holder for big rolls of tape
* Shoe bag for items that would get lost in a "junk drawer" or even gardening tools
* Kitchen cabinets for storage
* Hampers to hold bats or other sports equipment
CHECK FOR ENERGY DRAINERS
Make a list of the energy drainers in the garage. Is it a squeaky door? Not enough lighting? Decide which one you will act on first and feel better about your space immediately!
GARAGE FURNITURE
My hubby, DeWayne, said that one of the benefits of living with a professional organizer is my immediate support for garage furniture. We made sure it was the modular kind that allows us take it when we move and freedom to rearrange the garage. I highly recommend finding garage furniture that you will love using. A garage is just like any other room of the house. Isn't it time we treated it like it?
BONUS
I urge you to not forget about your garage and make it another pocket of order in your life so you really can live in all of your space. And here's the bonus...you can apply anything and everything you learned about your garage to the rest of your home.
Marlo Nikkila is The Organizing Coach. Would you like a simple and meaningful life? Receive your free gift of "7 Powerful Ways to Simplify Your Life" Action Plan and begin receiving inspiration with the Let's OrganizeTogether e-zine. You will love the tips, resources, and opportunities available for subscribers only!
Claim your free action plan by visiting The-Organizing-Coach.com.
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