Garage Organization Tips
Organizing your garage starts with you getting organized for the cleaning you’re about to do. Most of us with disorganized garages look at the process of garage organization as so big and complicated, that you just don’t want to tackle the task. You probably don’t want to spend all Saturday trying to clean up your garage.
But like any unpleasant task, garage organization requires having a plan, good decision-making and a little bit of hard work. Having help from friends and family never hurts. Here are some tips for organizing a garage, to help you get started on this messy job.
1. Plan Ahead for Garage Cleaning
Buy and organize all the supplies you’ll need to clean up your garage. You’ll probably need bins or containers to hold garage items you want to keep. You’ll want trash bags to collect everything you don’t want to keep. Even if you’re collecting household items for a garage sale, you might need something to cover your household goods until the day of the sale.
2. Don’t Be Afraid To Put It In the Trash
One reason you get garage clutter is you’re hesitant to throw your old stuff in the trash. When you want to clean up your garage, you want to go into it with your mind made up that you’re going to throw away much of what’s so disorganized. Don’t be afraid to throw it away.
Generally, if you can’t decide, you probably should trash it. The fact is, you either need these items or you don’t. If you don’t, you’re only keeping them for sentimental reasons. Keep pictures, photo albums and those items which belonged to beloved relatives. But if this item has no intrinsic value and isn’t something you normally would attach sentimental feelings to, throw it in the trash.
3. Get Your Family Involved
If you have a number of children, assign them duties they can perform. You’ll get the job done quicker, perhaps bestow a little work ethic in them, teach them why you keep household clutter from happening in the first place and spend a little extra time with them. Decide to tailor appropriate duties for each.
4. Get Friends To Help
Get the kids involved first. Get your spouse involved, if that makes things easier.
Then move on to old friends and neighbors. You want people you won’t feel like you’re imposing on. You also want people you won’t feel embarrassed seeing your mess.
Don’t get acquaintances, though. Having friends organize your garage is a bit like that Seinfeld episode, where Jerry felt uncomfortable when his new friend asked Jerry to help him move too early in their friendship. You don’t want to overstep bounds, so ask people who have recruited you for a project before. Tell your neighbor you’ll help him or her organize their garage next weekend.
5. Work From the Outside
Once you start cleaning your garage, start at one corner on the outside of the garage and work your way into the big pile of junk in your garage. Don’t dive into the deepest part of the mess and be throwing stuff out.
