Give your garage a spring refresh with these 5 storage and organization solutions
Spring is finally here — and the change in season is a perfect time to refresh and revitalize your home. From simple home updates that will make a big difference to deep cleaning tips, Everything Awaits you at Canadian Tire.
As a kid, you might have “cleaned your room” by way of shoving your mess in the closet and under the bed. Out of sight, out of mind, right?
For some of us, not much has changed — except that maybe instead of your bedroom, you’ve transitioned this mantra to the garage. Anything you don’t quite know what to do with along with seasonal items, greeting cards and clothing you forgot you owned tend to find their way into this room of forgotten belongings.
While it’s not inherently bad to use your garage as a storage space, many of us don’t take the time to organize as the seasons pass — and that’s where we run into problems. All of our hastily-stored items not only get lost in the mix but they can also become damaged from being incorrectly stored.
If your garage has been giving you grief, spring brings a welcome opportunity to give your space a seasonal refresh and tackle a garage overhaul. Enjoy some fresh air while you clean and organize your garage with our tips and tricks for making the job fun and manageable.
Lay it all out
The best part about doing this in the spring is you can take advantage of the nice weather and spread out all your belongings on the driveway to organize. This way you can easily see what you have and start eyeballing items that need to be thrown away.
We recommend grouping similar items and start thinking about the most logical way to store them. Eventually, when you come back to find your craft bin or extra biking gear, everything will be there.
Make some hard decisions
As hard as it may be to let go, you have to give yourself hard and fast rules when it comes to deciding if an item is a keep or a toss. Otherwise, you’ll justify keeping everything. We understand, you might think you'll have a use for old tools, equipment or electronics again — but if you haven't used something in a few years, it probably doesn't warrant a place in your garage.
Ask yourself if the item in question will impact your daily life if it wasn’t around or simply set a rule that if you haven’t used it in a year, it automatically gets binned.
Strategize on storage solutions
If you want to maximize your space, have a plan in mind before you execute. Storing items on open shelves in clear plastic totes along the wall is a great place to begin. For this task, it’s imperative to make sure your totes fit well on your shelves. The MAXIMUM 4-Tier Heavy-Duty Storage Rack and the Sterilite ClearView Tote with Latch, 26-L are the perfect dynamic duo for this task. If you happen to have high ceilings in your garage, take advantage and install an overhead storage rack. The Mastercraft Ceiling Storage Rack is large enough to store suitcases, sporting equipment and additional totes.
Another great way to maximize storage space in your garage is to think vertically. Moving anything you can from the ground onto the wall is a great way to free up space and make the garage look more streamlined. Bikes take up alot of real estate when they’re just stored on the floor, but if you hang them up on a wall hook, they’re out the way, but still easily accessible. You can also apply this storage solution to your garden tools and cleaning supplies.
Keeping your tools organized and accessible is also a good way to reduce clutter and make things more handy. The Mastercraft Rolling Cabinet has drawers lined with non-slip rubber grips to hold tools in place and protect drawer bottom from scratches, and it also features a durable, powder-coated steel frame and scratch and corrosion resistant finish. Another strorage option is the MAXIMUM 8-Drawer Chest, which features a raise and release latch system that keeps drawers secured. It also has a deep top area with access to power, which makes it an excellent place for storing and charging your battery powered tools and accessories.
Deep clean
When you’re satisfied that everything is in a spot that makes sense, it’s time to give your garage a deep clean. Use a broom and sweep out any debris on the ground and a vacuum to suck up any dust or cobwebs on the walls and in corners. The Miele HX1 3-in-1 Cordless Stick Vacuum is the perfect cleaning partner for your garage overhaul.
Your garage floor may be in a state as well if your car has leaked oil over the winter or its just tracked in a lot of dirt. Laundry detergent, water and a good scrubbing should do the trick but if you have tougher stains to deal with, consider trying a concrete degreaser like CLR Grease Magnet Degreaser.
Airing out your garage should remove any lingering odours but if it still smells questionable, put out a few boxes of baking soda.
Sell, donate, toss
Your final task is to decide what you want to do with all the fruits of your decluttering. If certain items are resellable, host a big spring garage sale and recoup some money. Anything leftover can be donated, tossed or recycled.
