5 Tips To Organize Your Garage The Pro Way!

Cars are a significant investment for most of us, and quite often it might be the most expensive purchase you have ever made. But the bitter-cold, unpredictable weather out there, can literally make you spend more dollars on your car. So, what can you do about this?

Take preventive measures!

And when we say preventive, the very first and the best investment you can make for your car is to build a garage. If you already have one but unfortunately it is transformed into a cluttered maze, it’s time to de-clutter it all.

From old furniture, and sports equipment, to everything in between, you can keep all of this in your garage, but can still make awesome space for your car. In this article, I will help you discover how!

How to clean your garage from scratch?

Did you know that just 30% of car owners keep their cars in the garage? Yes, that’s the Harsh reality, while the rest don’t keep their cars in the garage because there’s no space there. And if you fall into the latter group, it’s time for you to clean up your garage.

Take a day off from your work, because initially with too many clutters around, you will find the task a bit daunting. To speed up the process, make cleaning a family task or call all your friends out to pitch in. Next, walk around every corner of your garage, check out the boxes, and unpack the ones which you haven’t unpacked for years.

Make sure to go through absolutely everything and segregate the items into three piles: store, donate, or dump. Items that you are going to store must again be categorized into different sections. For example, hand tools must be kept in the garage itself, but sports equipment needs space in your house.

What to not store in your garage?

Now that you have categorized the essentials and the non-essentials, the next step is to check out which items to store, and which ones to not store in your garage. For safety reasons, you must never store paper goods and pet food in your garage. The reason is, papers are a magnet for roaches and pet foods can attract other animals.

You should even keep paint boxes away from your garage because extreme heat or cold can ruin the paint. Additionally, if you have stored propane move it out as quickly as you can because even a little bit of spark can ignite massive fumes.

5 Tips to Organize your garage the pro way

After throwing out the nonessentials and keeping the essentials, next comes the organizing part. Below are a few tips that you can follow to organize your garage in the best way:

1. Keep bulky items in the corner

I am not saying not to store anything in your garage. Your car definitely will take up limited space, the rest is now for you. For example, if you own a lawnmower, you can keep that in your garage. But even this comes with a twist, items that are as huge as mowers must be kept in corners. If there are any seasonal products or rarely used items you want to keep in your garage workshop, keep them all in the hardest-to-reach spots.

Also, if you want to keep your bike along with your car in your garage, keep it close to your garage door and not in the corners to avoid scratches.

2. Declutter the garage floor

Keep the items off your garage floor, because garage floors are for cars not for your scraps. The more space there will be on the floor, the higher the chances your car will stay safe. Also, when it comes to space, avoid keeping sloppy and scratchy items around your car.

If you are thinking of purchasing ready-made shelving units, make sure they don’t stick to the floor, so that you can clean the surface beneath them easily.

3. Buy a few must-have storage products

Your garage is not just a huge horizontal box, instead, it is a great space for you to store items. The floor would definitely be occupied by your car, but what about the walls? Here’s where garage shelving comes into the picture. Now there is a variety of garage shelves available to choose from. You can simply install garage shelves on any wall of your garage and keep clear jars of different sizes over there. You can store hardware and small items in these jars.

If you are thinking of installing cabinets, know that shelves are more affordable, easier to install, and accessible.

4. Watch out for the overhead space

Remember that cars will always be on the surface area of your garage – you always have the overhead space empty, so make the most out of it. If you want to hang any long, flat stuff, ceilings are the best option. For example, you can hang a ladder there or any seasonal sports gear which you might not need quite often.

However, while hanging, do remember that any of the objects is not interfering with the window or the door lock. Also, there should be enough clearance distance so that the object doesn’t scratch out the roof of your car.

5. Invest in door locks and windows

The reason why your garage always looks dirty is that your garage windows are not closing the right way. Also, you might have kept your garage door open and all the dust might have swooped in. Hence, always make sure to keep your garage windows and doors locked.

Try installing a garage-door lock that bolts the door to the sidewalls, and keep the doors locked when you are out of town for an extended period.

Wrapping up on Tips To Organize Your Garage

Now that you have made necessary room for your car, you can stay rest assured knowing the fact that no freezing temperatures, snow, or ice can damage your car even a bit. Plus, the shelves you have installed will give you more space to add up more stuff to your garage. And let’s not forget the peace of mind that comes with protecting your vehicle, your car will literally thank you for it!