For most of us, the garage is much more than just a place for keeping the car — it’s a man cave, a garden shed, a bike rack or an extra wardrobe or two. But sometimes the multiple functions of a garage can get out of control, with excess stuff piled so high that getting to the car is an exercise in orienteering.
To help you make the most of your garage space, we’ve come up with some simple ideas for organising and de-cluttering that won’t break the bank or take up too much of your time.
A place for everything and everything in its place
Plastic storage containers are an easy solution to most storage issues; they’re watertight, stackable, you can see through them and, if you shop around a bit, they’re not too costly.
Make sure the containers are strong and durable, so you can pile them up, with less used things on the bottom row. Label the boxes clearly and store them in sections – camping gear, documents, old toys, etc. You’ll be amazed at how satisfying your new wall of containers is, and how much more space you’ll have in your garage for more enjoyable activities.
Do it yourself!
A neatly ordered workshop seems to send some men into a frenzy, yet it’s not that hard to achieve. Probably the most important element is a clearly defined area of the garage that is set aside for tools and DIY. It doesn’t have to be big, particularly if it’s well organised.
Using pegboard to store tools has been around for generations and seems to define the orderly workshop. It’s still readily available from hardware stores, along with a host of accessories, such as hooks, detachable containers and shelving, and comes in stainless steel, aluminium and the traditional Masonite.
The big advantages of a wall set aside for storing tools is that it doesn’t take up floor space, you always know where things are and, more importantly, if they’ve gone missing.
Break the vicious cycle
Nothing clutters up a garage more than bicycles, particularly if you’ve got kids. Plus, there’s all the outgrown bikes, old bicycle parts, helmets and the other bits and bobs that go along with cycling.
There are some ingenious bike storage solutions, such as the one pictured above, which uses a simple wall-mounted wooden rack with knobs, set on an angle so the top tube slots neatly over them.
Other methods include specially designed pegboard attachments that hold bikes, helmets, spare rims and other accessories. Even installing a proper bike rack into the floor when you build your garage is a neat solution to the perennial issue of bicycle clutter.
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure
If, once you’ve organised your garage, you’re left with a pile of stuff you’ve outgrown or you’ll never use, have a garage sale, send it to the op shop or take it to the local recycling depot. There’s nothing quite like that feeling when you stand in your garage and you know where everything is and you can actually see some clear space on the floor and the walls. Who knows? — you might find space for a drum kit, or a ping-pong table or any other hobby or craft that takes your fancy …
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