The garage, initially intended for vehicle storage, has evolved into a multipurpose area for tools, household items, and more. Tackling its organization is a diverse endeavor, as there’s no universal solution. Familiarizing yourself with garage storage solutions serves as a solid foundation for embarking on this project.
Before you begin, there are numerous factors that you need to consider. First, you must clean your garage and sort through your junk. Decide which needs to stay and which ones you can let go. Doing this will save you a ton of effort. You are sure that you are only finding solutions for objects that stay, which you will need soon.
Another essential facet is to determine your garage’s primary purpose. Is it merely a parking lot and storage for your supplies? Perhaps it is a workshop where you do repairs for your vehicle and other things. Are you planning to use it for other activities such as working out? After finding answers to these questions, you are well on your way to making your garage more organized and easier to use.
Now, let us take a look at your storage options:
Garages come in different sizes. Other than your car, they contain an assortment of materials. You have to find the best combinations of containment types that will be suitable for your car, belongings, and your lifestyle:
Cabinets
Cabinets are a common way to house different materials. You may already be utilizing it for your clothes or silverware inside your home. Depending on your garage space, you can decide which cabinets work best. A freestanding base cabinet will be fine if space is not an issue. Otherwise, wall-mounted cabinets may work better. You can also employ a combination of these types.
This storage box comes in diverse colors and coating. A protective coating is crucial, especially from rust and scratches. What kind of environment does your garage have? If there are no issues with temperature and moisture, well and good. Keep this in mind when choosing the type of storage containers. Some materials cannot withstand the weather or climate as well as others. It would help if you also considered your cabinet’s thickness. Plan what items will be placed in it. If you are putting heavy items, you will want one with thick, heavy-duty shelves.
You might also require safety cabinets. These are made to store hazardous substances such as flammable liquids, pesticides, corrosives, and firearms. Remember, federal laws, local codes, and state regulations may vary. Review the ones in your state and abide by them.
Shelves
Shelves are another great storage option and are pretty standard in garages. Similar to the cabinets, you can choose wall-mounted shelves or a freestanding unit. In addition, you can also opt for ceiling-mounted shelving.
Like the cabinets, shelves are available in various types of materials. Keep its weight capacity in mind. Before purchasing, you should know the materials that these will carry. This knowledge should influence what kind of shelves you want to install. Freestanding shelving units come in different sizes. They can either be fixed or adjustable.
Wall-mounted shelves are ideal for small garages with limited floor space. This maximizes floor space, provides a safer and larger working environment, and increases garage storage capacity. Ceiling-mounted frames are excellent in utilizing unused space overhead. They are usually placed between the ceiling and garage door, but you can also put them in other areas. Remember to store rarely used stuff here. Because you may need a step ladder to get to them, it may become a hassle to retrieve them each time you need them.
Racks
Racks are specially made for your things and equipment that you don’t know where to put. These can be your bikes and kayaks, snowboards and skis, surfboards and paddleboats, and other sports equipment. Find the specific rack that gives you the mounting option that best fits your space. Like the shelves, racks can be freestanding, wall-, or ceiling-mounted. Sometimes, the shelving unit itself provides an attachment for a rack.
Tool Chests
Most of the time, tools comprise your garage clutter. Some individuals have more tools than they know what to do with. Finding a home for these tools will benefit you mainly if you use them often. There are many kinds and sizes of tool chests to choose from. It can be a top chest, middle chest, or bottom rollaway chest.
Top chests have one to twelve (or more) drawers. Choose depending on how many tools you own. These chests boast feature options, including handles, wheels, and a locking mechanism.
Middle chests are smaller than top chests. They have anywhere from one to six drawers. Feature options include handles and a locking system, but not wheels. This is the best choice if you do not have many tools to store.
If you want more options, bottom rollaway chests offer feature variants of wheels or no wheels, handle or no handle, lock or no lock, one to three drawers, or more than twelve drawers. This type of tool chest is the most customizable and offers the most room for tools.
Pegboard System
An alternative to the tool chest is the use of pegboards. By installing a pegboard on a free wall, a couple of pegs, and some hooks, you can organize tools, miscellaneous accessories, and tons more. There are countless ways to customize this versatile system. Fit in the items you usually need and situate them on the wall facing your working table. It makes your tools easily accessible and ready to use every time.
Bins
Plastic storage bins are one of the most popular and utilized garage storage. Being able to stack them while segregating your equipment is a hit feature. One of the downsides, however, is that it makes getting to the bottom bins difficult when you stack them against the wall by themselves. Combining them with cabinets and shelves is a straightforward remedy to this dilemma. There are also easy-to-build storage towers. This is an attractive and clever way to provide easy access to your bins. Label them or designate different colors of containers to your materials to make finding what you need a breeze.
Canvas Storage Bags
For a more affordable option, large bags made of canvass can be used for seasonal household objects. You can tuck away your bulky decorations like artificial trees and wreaths in your garage and protect them from dust and dirt by storing them in these bags. Drop a dryer sheet in before zipping to deter insects and critters.
Ramps and Mesh
For miscellaneous materials, mesh or net spreads that are easily hung come to the rescue. Families with kids undoubtedly have balls. Basketballs, soccer balls, rubber balls, and other circular objects can be kept from rolling around by using ball ramps or mesh bags hanging on the ceiling or walls.
Are you thinking of giving your garage a facelift? Organize your stuff and give them a good home. Total Garage can find the best storage solutions for your private or commercial garage. We also install epoxy and polyurea garage floor coating systems.
For any inquiries, call us today at 208-585-7171. You can send us an email at thetotalgarage@gmail.com to get a quote, or visit us at 12783 Orchard Ave. Nampa, ID.
