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Seven Deadly Sins of Garage Disorganization

Yourhome.ca Editor’s Blog.

Jennifer Wilson writes for ‘yourhome.ca’ and published the results of a survey done by Gladiator Garageworks in April, 2010. Now this survey was done in Canada and has a unique Canadian spin on the matter.

Excellent insights into the unseen components of how our garages get so outa control.

1. Procrastination: Almost one third (29 per cent) of Canadians are garage organizational procrastinators. Ontarians (35 per cent) and Atlantic Canadians (31 per cent) are the most likely to put off the chore, while 47 per cent of Ontarians and 56 per cent of Atlantic Canadians say they don’t have the time to clean.
2. Frustration: Almost a quarter – 25 per cent – of Canadians get annoyed and frustrated when they can’t find things in their garage.
3. Abandonment: More than 20 per cent of Canadians say they use their garage as a dumping ground for unwanted items.
4. Envy: Seventeen per cent of Canadians admit to being envious of their neighbour’s garage.
5. Hoarding: Seventeen per cent of Canadian males fess up to keeping so much stuff in their garage that there isn’t even room for their car.
6. Despair: One in 10 Canadians have given up on having the garage of their dreams, with 35 per cent of Ontarians saying it would take more than a weekend to get theirs organized.
7. Stink: Only two per cent of Canadians admitted to finding an unidentifiable foul odour in their garage at some point (we can link ours to the garbage strike!).

Garage Solutions – where to start?

Unused Overhead Space Is Ideal for Seasonal Storage

Today’s garage is more than a place to house the family car or store our garden tools. For many of us, it’s also become a dumping ground for things we seldom use or don’t know what else to do with. As such, it’s easy for the garage to become cluttered and unorganized. But it doesn’t have to stay that way! With overhead garage storage racks, you can conquer the clutter and make the garage a neat and organized space.

If you have a garage with fairly high ceilings, overhead garage storage systems are a great way to get items up off the floor and out of cabinets. This can free up space in which to park additional vehicles or create a hobby center or work bench. Garage overhead storage is also ideal for keeping hazardous substances away from children and pets.

Like the name says, this type of storage is installed in the ceiling or high on the walls in the unused space. Before shopping for a garage storage system, you’ll need a careful plan. How much overhead space do you have? Are the items you’ll be storing bulky, smaller or flat? Will you need to access the space often or just once or twice a year? All of these factors will affect the type and design of the storage system you select.

One solution is simple: Just install hooks along the walls above head height. These can be used to hold long items like rakes and shovels. A more ambitious project is to install a suspended metal rack system. These come in different sizes and create a suspended loft area that is ideal for supporting a collection of bins or boxes. Decide whether you want to make use of the whole ceiling for storage, or only part of it.

One popular placement for this type of storage is directly above the garage door. Be sure to measure carefully, so as not to interfere with the movement of the door as it opens and closes. It’s critial that you check the load-bearing capacity of your garage’s ceiling beams before installing any overhead garage storage system.

Be CERTAIN that, for any overhead garage storage system, you’ve securely fastened the shelving hangers solidly into the ceiling joists. An avalanche of stuff is the last thing you need in your newly-organized garage.

Garage Solutions – where to start?

Garage Storage and Optimization Ideas

With so many options to choose from, garage shelving ideas is a good place to start. Get a feel for the different choices available for garage storage.

In this Lowe’s video, Mike Kraft walks us through the different types of garage storage solutions and how to use them to organize our stuff. Good video – well done and good info.



Here’s my pick list from Amazon…7 Best Garage Organizers

Garage Solutions – where to start?

Sport Gear Storage

Sports gear always gets scattered about…balls, bats, sticks, guards, mitts, gloves, nets, shoes…all a garage storage problem. Gear is scattered everywhere. From frisbees to fishing gear – it’s hard to keep it all in order.

At our house, we have track ball rackets, soccer balls, snorkel gear, river boots and all sorts of odds and ends that get used a few times a year.

This garage storage solution is great for holding all our small sport/recreation gear. The GREAT thing is – we don’t have to be organized about what we put in it.

Just throw all the loose odds-n-ends into the baskets and stand up the skinny stuff in the racks….DONE!!!

This is but one of the easy ways to get started on reclaiming your garage without taking on the whole job at once.

Garage Solutions – where to start?

Overhead bicycle storage

Bikes are always in the way, especially the kids bikes. During good weather that’s not a problem – they get used and so are not really, ‘in the way.’

But when the season changes, they need to be put away – out of the way. You need a bike rack for the garage.

Here is a really neat bike storage system that not only puts the bikes up and out of the way, the rack makes it easy to maneuver the bikes in and out of the storage rack. I suppose they would work as well with a lower ceiling or you could hang the bikes by one tire.

This Video from Youtube on the Veloglide system, now called the Saris Cycle Glide.

Garage Solutions – where to start?

Best Motorcycle Storage

I just couldn’t pass this up as I was doing my research for this blog. This is simply the coolest garage storage system for motorcycles I’ve ever seen. (And it works for lawn tractors, too)

With a lifting capacity of up to 1,200 pounds and a deck size of 4′x8′, Loft-It® is strong enough and large enough to hold a full size motorcycle! Fully motorized, Loft-It® is as easy to raise as inserting the security key and turning the switch.

Yep…it’s an ELEVATOR built into the wall!!

Garage Solutions – where to start?

Creating Garage Storage Solutions

If you’re like the majority of people, you have plenty of things in storage in your garage. This can include gardening tools, lawn tools, and items used for cleaning the house, in addition to hobby wood working, metal working, or other tools.

It’s important to be able to keep any tools clean and stored out of the way while they’re not needed. However, if you don’t have a system to keep things under control, your tools can quickly take over. Fortunately, there are plenty of options for garage tool storage that can make life a lot easier. There are even garage storage units designed specifically for storing your tools.

Standalone garage storage units are a great solution for storing tools and supplies needed to clean the house. Brooms, dust pans, mops and buckets, as well as cleaning chemicals, can be placed inside. Access them when you need them, and put them away when you’re done.

If you don’t have a broom closet, these garage storage units act like one, but with one major advantage. They can be easily moved around the garage for more flexible storage. However, they do take up floor space, so they might be unsuitable for very small garages.

Gardeners also have plenty of tools that are hard to store. The above storage units work for some items, but others don’t do so well. Think about getting a wall mounted rack for garage tool storage if you have large, cumbersome tools that tend to fall over or tangle. A rack keeps them neatly in their place until you need them. Of course, you’ll want to measure the tools and your available space carefully before you buy or build a rack for garage tool storage.

Power tools can be controlled using tool organizers. These can help keep you leaf blowers, chainsaws, lawn edgers, weed whackers and other bulky, space hogging items off the floor and out of the way. Since these are one of the principal sources of garage floor space problems, getting them under control is important.

Hobby tools, like wood working supplies, screwdrivers and wrenches, and similar items can be stored on wall racks. It’s actually pretty easy to make a rack to hold these tools. All you need is some pegboard and a way to mount it on the wall. Add hooks, easily found at the hardware store, and you’ll be able to hang up almost anything. While this style of rack won’t hold up to most heavier tools, it’s fine for scissors, snips, pliers, wrenches, files, chisels, and lots more.

Garage Solutions – where to start?