How To Get Your Garage in Shape

 The garage is often the black hole where the disregarded stuff from your house disappears to. If only it were an actual black hole and not a space where your junk and storage items were visible: the piles of old tools, lawnmowers, clothes, plates, a dining table (in my case) and other items you never got around to sorting or bringing into your home, live, making the place, not only look untidy, but virtually unusable for anything useful, right? A garage gym? An office conversion. Oh no. It’s a junk yard!

If you can relate and you’re sick and tired of your garage being a wasteland, there are lots of simple steps you can take to return it back into good shape, as you will see below…

 

Begin with a Proper Reset

Before you can even think about getting the garage organised, you’re going to want to obtain a better understanding of exactly what it is you have to work with. So, first and foremost, start by taking a deep breath, and then when you’re ready, you‘re going to need to pull everything out of the garage and place it on your lawn or somewhere neutral so you can see exactly what you’re working with.

Chances are you’re going to be in for a big shock, but this is the best way to gain a clear picture of what you have in there and if there are any issues like damp, damaged flooring, or long forgotten items you no longer need lingering around. By pulling everything out, you can get the full picture, not only of your stuff, but of the space you have to work with too.

As you go through your belongings, ensure you separate what you’ll keep from what can be recycled, donated, or thrown away. Garages often hold items that haven’t been touched in years, so be honest with yourself. If something is broken, has missing parts, or is no longer relevant to your life, this is the moment to let it go. Decluttering is completely free but will instantly make the garage feel lighter, cleaner and much easier to shape and you’ll feel like a weight is lifted from your shoulders too. 

 

Work Out Your Why

Next, you’re going to want to take a little time to work out why you are taking on this mammoth project and what you hope to achieve from it. As mentioned, garages and conversions can provide you with a useful additional space to your home. 

Some people, of course, simply want their garage to house the car and keep it sheltered from the weather while others would prefer a workshop space, a home gym, or simply a well-organised storage area. The garage doesn’t need to serve a single purpose, but knowing your priorities will determine the layout and will prevent the space from becoming a dumping ground again.

For example, if you want to park your car inside, measure the car and ensure there is still a comfortable room to open the doors and move around freely and safely. A clear purpose helps you design zones that work naturally rather than forcing storage into awkward corners.

 

Start Creating Zones

If you want to use your garage in a multitude of ways, and you want to make sure it stays organised, then zoning the area so that you have separate spaces whether it’s a workshop area, a storage area or something else completely, will keep things clutter free. 

When it comes to using your garage to store items, each group should have its own area, making finding things simple and returning them even easier. For example, garden tools might live along one wall, DIY supplies along another, and sports equipment in a separate area. Seasonal items can be stored higher up or further back and out of the way until they’re needed.

Basically, you should try to think of your garage as being a bit like a small warehouse where everything is organised for efficiency and ease. When everything has a clear home, you’ll no longer waste time searching for a spanner or wondering where the camping stove went last summer.

 

Use Storage That Actually Works

Storage is where an awful lot of garages go wrong. Many people settle for placing items in cardboard boxes on the floor, which often means the garage will become full and messy pretty quickly, and the stuff that is stored in there is at greater risk of being harmed by damp, flooding and other dilemmas.

Instead, consider investing in proper shelving and functional storage solutions that make sense for the volume and weight of your belongings. Strong metal shelving is ideal for heavier items, while cupboards offer a safe place for chemicals, paints and sharp tools.

If you prefer clear and easy-to-stack containers, installing shelves for storing plastic boxes is a game-changer. It keeps items off the floor, protects them from damp, and makes your system look neat and intentional. Overhead racks are also a pretty good solution because, as the name suggests, they will take up the space above you, rather than the space on the floor, to store anything you need them to.

 

Reclaim Your Floor Space

As alluded to above, a tidy garage is one which has as much of the floor space available as possible, so whatever you can do to keep the floor free of things is a must.  Once items are up on shelves, hooks or racks, the space becomes far easier to navigate. You shouldn’t have to squeeze past clutter or trip over bikes every time you go in to fetch something, and that is so freeing.

If you have a lawnmower or bike that needs to stay on the ground, that’s fine, as long as you don’t leave everything there.

Your garage deserves some TLC, so whip it into shape, and you and it will benefit.