Do you have a garage at home? Take a good, long look. What do you see? If you can’t see your car but see loads of clutter then that’s no garage. That’s a dumping ground. Don’t let this precious space go to waste. Here are some awesome tips to improve your garage and turn it into something more than a place to keep your car.
Declutter
The simplest way to improve your garage is to declutter. This may be difficult for packrats but letting go of some unnecessary stuff will do you a lot of good. As Marie Kondo tries to teach people through a TV show and her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, tidying up is life-changing.
Take everything out from your garage. Don’t just dump your stuff outside, though. You should sort them out and group the like items together.
Normally, you’d group them according to what you want to keep, donate or sell, and throw away. The KonMari Method requires you to focus more on choosing the things that you want to keep as opposed to choosing what to throw away. The latter has a negative feel to it and that almost always keeps you from decluttering successfully.
Letting go is always hard to do, so they say. However, you need to determine if an item “sparks joy.” Don’t just hold the item, take a good look at it. Hug it even. If it still doesn’t spark joy, it’s time to do an Elsa and let it go.
One way to convince yourself to let go of some stuff is to hold a garage sale. The thought of earning money from things that were just lying around should be a good excuse. Now a garage sale would be a brilliant idea if not for the coronavirus pandemic. Ideally, you don’t want people coming over to look around and hopefully buy your junk.
One option is to sell the stuff you’re letting go online. Set up an online garage sale and invite friends and neighbors to take a look at what you’re offering. Make sure you take pictures of every item and to add as detailed a description as possible. Once you sell an item you can ship it to their address after they pay through online means.
For neighbors and anyone who wishes to come over, you can arrange for them to pick up the item. Set a time and date so you can just leave the item in front once they’re near. The buyer can pick up the already paid item, wave hellos and goodbyes, then drive away. No direct contact means less likelihood of getting COVID.
Clean Up
Since your garage is now empty, you should take this opportunity to clean up. Grab you broom or vacuum cleaner and give the place some thorough sweeping. Get rid of cobwebs and scrub the walls, too.
It’s a good idea to clean up inside your home before embarking on your garage improvement project. That way, you can free up some space. Some of the things you decide to keep may find a place inside the house where they belong.
Categorize
Remember the pile of things to keep? You’ll need to separate them into more piles. Categorize the items so the like ones are together. Make a pile for car tools, accessories, and other car stuff. Another pile should be for hand tools, wireless tools and other items you use for repairs, woodworking and such. Garden gear and other gardening materials need to go in another pile. Toys, sports equipment, holiday decorations, old clothes, and everything else should be separated into piles, too.
Make A Floor Plan
One garage improvement tip is to set aside enough time for your project. Cleaning out your garage and categorizing its contents will likely take some time. You may need a couple of days so make sure to set aside a whole weekend for this. Once you’re done with those tasks, it’s time to figure out your floor plan.
Make a layout for your new and improved garage. Determine where each pile is best suited. Consider the foot traffic. The things you use most often should probably be near the garage door.
If you have a large garage, you may want to use some of the space for other purposes. Set aside space for your workstation. You can do some woodworking projects and gadget repairs here. You can even turn one corner into your personal space if you like.
Most importantly, you should figure out how to make the most of your garage. You will need proper storage spaces lining the walls and even hanging from your ceiling.
Organize
I’m pretty sure you’ve experienced looking for something and failing to find it only to stumble upon it when you no longer need it. Annoying, right? That’s what you get for being disorganized.
This problem happens not only in the garage but practically any place that you leave messy. Obviously, this will be a non-issue of you learn how to organize and keep yourself from dumping things anywhere. When it comes to tips on how to improve your garage, being organized is at the top of the list.
The key to drastically improve your garage is to have enough storage space to organize your stuff. It’s pretty simple but extremely effective. After cleaning up and getting rid of clutter, you need to organize what’s left in shelves, containers and other storage spaces. You’ll be surprised at how different your garage will look after doing this.
Use cabinets and shelves. Freestanding shelves like the 4-Tier Bookshelf by Sunnydaze is a good start. The industrial style open bookshelf features powder-coated steel frame with MDF shelves covered in wood veneer. This gives your garage a mix of modern and rustic feels.
Mount cabinets and hanging shelves on your walls. The Sunnydaze Decor 3-Tier Modern Wall Hanging Bookshelf compliments the bookshelf with its black pipe frame and veneer-covered MDF shelves.
Make use of that space just above your head. Install overhead storage racks on your ceiling. The Fleximounts 4×8 Overhead Garage Storage Rack can withstand a weight of up to 600 pounds. As long as the ceiling is sturdy and you screw the rack to the stud (you’ll need a stud finder for this), there should be no worries about it falling on your head or on your vehicle. Aside from providing additional storage space, overhead racks protect your items from flood.
Another way to make use of your ceiling is to make overhead storage using plastic bins. As seen in the video above, this simple DIY project only requires some wood and plastic bins like the Iris Stack & Pull Boxes. You’ll also need your tools, screws, and wood glue.
For the little stuff like screws and nails, use craft cabinet or stacking containers. Slightly bigger items that you usually use while doing your DIY projects can be stored in a rolling storage cart like the 6-Drawer Multipurpose Rolling Utility Cart from Seville Classics. You’ll find the 10-drawer version in the video above.
Woodworkers, crafters, artisans and anyone who loves to do things with their hands are pretty familiar with pegboards. It’s one of the most brilliant ways to organize your stuff if you utilize it properly. They’re also pretty easy to install. Check this out to see how to install a wooden pegboard.
If you prefer not to use wood, you can use the Galvanized Steel Pegboard by Wall Control. The all-metal pegboard panels are more durable than the regular pegboards. You don’t have to worry about termites or the holes eventually fraying like with wooden pegboards.
You can purchase the galvanized pegboard on its own if you want to use your old pegs. A better option would be to go with any of the sets that include accessories such as metal pegs, hooks, or brackets.
Another garage improvement tip is to use a rolling storage container for your tools, particularly the ones you use often. The Keter Rolling Tool Chest is the perfect companion when you have to do some repairs on your car or bike. It goes wherever you need it to be with just a push or tug. That makes it easier to grab the tools you need. The Keter Rolling Tool Chest comes with drawers and removable bins to keep your tools organized.
If you don’t have a garden shed and there’s no other choice but to keep your garden gear in your garage, you’ll need to designate a space for them. You don’t want your garden tools to get mixed up with your woodworking or car repair tools.
Use something like the Rubbermaid Deluxe Tool Tower. This tool rack can hold more than 40 tools including space-eating ones like rakes, hoes and shovels and smaller garden tools such as trowels, shears and gardening forks. The Tool Tower comes with lockable casters so you can easily move it when you need to.
Put Labels
Take your organizing goals a notch higher by putting labels on things. This will make it easier for you to remember where you put things. Other members of the household that are not familiar with how you organized the garage will also find it difficult looking for something. Explaining your layout to them may work at some extent but it’ll be a lot better if they can see the labels.
Invest on a Cricut machine for your labeling needs. The Cricut Explore Air 2 is an arts and crafts fan’s dream come true. It can write on and cut more than 100 materials including vinyl, cardstock, iron-on transfer paper, bonded fabric and even cork.
The Cricut Joy, meanwhile, is smaller and more portable than other Cricut machines. It’s also more affordable. If you’re looking for a machine for small labels and designs or other simple DIY projects such as postcards, this certainly fits the bill.
Garage Restoration
Before installing your cabinets, pegboards, and overhead storage racks, you may want to restore your garage to its former glory. Once you’ve emptied your garage, take a closer look. There may be damages that need to be repaired first.
Look for holes and cracks on the walls and floor. Check for stains and leaks. Make sure the garage door is still functioning smoothly. Check the electrical lines, too. If the damages are beyond your DIY capabilities, don’t hesitate to hire a professional.
Aside from fixing damages, you should also consider repainting your garage. This will give it a fresh new look. Your floor may need a new look, too. Check out Race Deck garage Floors. They offer modular garage flooring that will turn your ordinary garage into a showplace.
The RaceDeck Diamond Plate Garage Flooring does not only look good, it is also slip resistant. Even if it looks shiny and all, you don’t have to worry about slipping. The non-toxic flooring is also easy to clean. The interlocking design makes it easy to install. In fact, you can do it yourself. This is definitely a fun project to help improve your garage. It comes in yellow, graphite and alloy. You can combine any color and arrange the tiles anyway you want to give your garage a more personal touch.
Secure Your Garage
All your hard work cleaning organizing and renovating your garage will be for naught if string winds can easily blow off your garage door. Intruders can also easily get in and steal your stuff or trash your place if you don’t secure your garage properly. You also don’t want them to get anywhere near your family.
Reinforce your garage door by installing a sturdy metal post or brackets that can withstand the strongest winds. Use screws at least 3 inches long to secure the garage door frame, brackets, and other parts. Protect the garage windows from natural disasters and break-ins, too.
Most modern garage doors have their own locks. For older models, you may need to use padlocks or combination locks. If you’re using padlocks, make sure you have duplicate copies of the key. Check if they’re properly locked, especially before going to bed.
Check your garage door regularly. Make sure it runs smoothly and closes completely. Install flood lights and an alarm system to further protect your home from burglars.
If you’ve been stressing out about your garage thinking you’re wasting valuable space because of all the clutter, it’s definitely time to take action and improve your garage. Just a couple of days or so of cleaning, organizing and maybe a bit of renovation should rid you of that stressful feeling. Don’t forget to follow Gentleman Pirate Club for more home improvement tips and other useful homesteading hacks.
