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Garage Organization: How to Make the Most of Your Space

A Step-by-Step Guide to Organizing Your Garage and Keeping it Clean.

For many of us, our garage has become nothing more than a giant junk drawer. A catch all for things we may have forgotten or just don’t want to deal with. If disorganization is making your garage a cluttered disaster, have no fear. Overhead Door™ Brand has been in the garage door business for more than 100 years and we have been around our fair share of garages. Here are all the tips and tricks you need to clean out, get organized and stay on top of your garage aesthetics. With the right plan, you can take back your garage and make it into a highly functional space for your home.

Step One: Clean Out

First things first, you must clean. This is the part of the process that can feel most overwhelming. Looking at everything all at once can make the project feel too big. It can be helpful to break it into smaller pieces.

Set aside blocks of time each weekend or once a month and work through a designated section. Within that section pull everything out. Open every box. Look at every piece of paper. Leave no stone unturned in your pursuit of organization. This will take time, but the end results will be well worth it. You might be storing items you could actually use, as well as things that are ready to be passed on to someone else or discarded.

While you clean out, place items into actionable areas: things to store, things to sell, things to donate and things to trash. Sorting through your belongings and deciding what to do with each item will provide you with complete peace of mind, knowing that everything is either well-organized or ready for its next chapter.

Step Two: Sort and Store

Now that you have gone through everything in your garage piece by piece and only kept the things that need to go in the garage you are ready to sort. Things should be grouped and organized in such a way that you can find them when you need them. How you do this is totally up to you. Make a plan that makes sense to you. Do all the holiday things go together? Do you separate items by what season you use them in? Do you mark out sections for outdoor things vs. house things? Do you organize by the color of the item? There are a million ways to sort your belongings, but it will only work if you pick one that works for the way you think. Spend some time understanding what plan works best for how you live and go from there.

Once you have your plan in place, it is time to store your belongings. The best rule of thumb is to keep it visible. Clear boxes, open shelves and peg board storage are all ways to organize your things while keeping them visible. Once something is put out of sight it can quickly become out of mind and you run the risk of forgetting about it and letting it go unused. The more visible you can make your things, the higher the chance you will not lose track of them.

Step Three: Label Everything

It may seem like overkill, but labeling will take your organized garage to the next level. Invest in a good labeler and go to town on all your boxes and storage systems. If you plan to hang your watering can on your peg board, put a label above its spot and then you will not be tempted to leave it someplace else when it comes time to put things away. If all your holiday decorations are in one box, put a label on it. If everything has a clear and labeled home, it makes the job of keeping up with the organization that much easier. It can also help your whole family get involved. If everything has a label, everyone is capable of putting those items back where they belong, and one person is not left responsible for knowing where things go.

Step Four: Go Vertical

Even after all the cleaning out and sorting, you may still be lacking for space. If you are running into this issue, go up. Look to the walls and ceiling for extra room. Install peg boards on all open walls to maximize space for things that can be easily hung, like tools. Install open shelving to store and organize things that need to go in boxes. You might even find space to add storage in your ceiling rafters, an excellent spot for items you only use occasionally, like holiday decorations.

Step Five: Keep it Secure with the Right Door

Once you get your garage into tip-top shape, protect your perfectly organized space with a new garage door. Installing a high-quality garage door can help maintain the climate inside your garage, offering protection against weather-related damage in storm-prone areas and keeping moisture at bay if you live near the ocean. The right garage door can enhance multiple aspects of your garage, allowing you to maximize the space.

Ready for a new garage door?

Step Six: Make it a Habit

No matter how well you use your organizational system, things are bound to slip up. No one is perfect. Set aside time each season to refresh, reevaluate and reorganize your space. Staying on top of it in small, manageable amounts of time will keep things from becoming so overwhelming and help you make a habit of staying organized.

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