Unclutterer Workspaces / Discuss

LouAnnSchafer says:

As the marketing manager for Gladiator GarageWorks, I would like to share a few tips on how to tackle the garage for clutter...

1. Figure out what you have out there.
- You've got to sort and purge. If you take everything out and sort it, don't put everything back in the garage. Even an organized space won't stay that way if you have things you don't use, don't need or don't work any more. Donate items you don't use, toss items that are broken, keep only the things you need. I guarantee you'll find duplicates of things because you couldn't find it the last time you needed it so you went and bought another one and now you have two (or more).

2. Look at how you use the items you keep. Do you usually take the item into the house to use but store it in the garage? Put it in a space near the door to the house. If it's an item you usually use outside, store it next to the garage door or other outside door. If it's an item that only gets used during certain times of the year, store it up and out of the way during non use times. Does it sit on the floor when it could hang from the wall or sit on a shelf? Get it off the floor and take advantage of the vertical space in your garage.

3. Who else uses the garage? If you are like most people, there are usually multiple family members using the garage. Keep kids toys in one area or zone of the garage and away from long handled garden tools. This will help protect kids and other items in the garage from them being knocked over when the kids reach for their toys. Provide a basket for each child to put small toys in. If they know which one is theirs, they will be more likely to put things away. Do you keep chemicals in the garage for the lawn or household cleaners or automotive work? Keep it in locked cabinets away from the reach of kids.

4. Provide a home for everything. If you designate a specific space for each item you keep, you will know when it's missing or not been put away because you will see a hole (in the cabinet, on the shelf or wall or in a drawer) and will likely go find it and put it away. When you see something sitting out that needs to be put away, you'll have a space all ready for it - making it easier and quicker to clean up.

5. Choose appropriate garage storage items that can handle the job. If you need to store some paint cans, a plastic or melamine shelf might not be able to handle the job. If things start bowing, you know it won't hold up. Choosing the wrong item for the task can actually make your garage look even messier.

6. Make sure the items you choose provide flexibility for expansion and contraction. As your needs change, you want products that can change with you.

For ideas or inspiration you can check out www.GladiatorGW.com
Posted at 1:02PM, 7 October 2009 PDT (permalink)