Solutions for Garage Clutter
I live in Northern Illinois and I can tell you that people here start to feel an urgency to organize their garages this time of year! No one wants to be parking on the driveway once the snow and the temps start to fall! I can also be pretty confident in saying that very few of us are actually looking forward to organizing their garage. It’s overwhelming to begin working in a large, disorganized space like a garage and the best steps to get started may not be clear. Yet, garages are one of my favorite spaces to organize for clients because a systematic process to declutter and organize gives my clients fast and lasting results. In fact, for many families, organizing in the garage helps keep the whole home more organized. My tips in this blog are examples and solutions to some specific types of clutter that I see in many of the garages I work in.
Breakdown and Recycling Packaging
Boxes and bags are a good thing to have on hand - to a point. However, I frequently see a huge amount of space in clients’ garages devoted to storing empty boxes and plastic bags. Of course, we all need some extra bags and boxes, but that packaging inventory is a problem when it is preventing us from enjoying and using that precious garage space. In a recent, garage organization, over a fourth of the garage was taken up in excess packaging. Once we cut down and recycled boxes and tided the excess bins and bags, the client was delighted to see how much space she actually had for her car and other essential things!.
Solution - determine a reasonable amount of boxes and bags to keep based on the space you have to store them in and then recycle the extras.
Complete Recycling and Return Errands
I find a lot of good recycling intentions in garages – paint, electronics, batteries, and bags of plastic bags. The recycling tasks pile up because people may not know how and where to recycle or they may not have the time or energy to take care of those recycling errands. Because there is almost always a huge portion of garage space taken up by items that need to recycled, I include recycling errands in my garage organizing service. By taking care of these errands, I’m freeing up physical space in the garage and calendar space for the client.
Solution - Make a recycling staging area in the garage to keep all these recycling tasks grouped together. The best location is one that is visible and convenient for loading into a car.
Be Realistic with Home Projects
The table that needs to be painted, the picture frame we mean to glue, the broken flower pot - they all end up in the garage because it is the most logical and appropriate place to do these projects. These projects become a problem when they take over the garage and prevent more necessary activities - like parking the car. I recently worked with a client who had been storing the to-do projects in their garage but they were also in the middle of some major life transitions. We discussed how they already felt overwhelmed and they had no expectation of having the time to complete these many, many projects. Based on his available time, we edited his projects down to a more manageable group and set up some next steps to help him get started.
Solutions - If you are dreading doing those projects, use that as your motivation to reduce these tasks. If you dread starting that project, you probably will not feel any different about it next year. Let it go and enjoy the benefits of getting in and out of a warm car every day this winter!
Sort, Then Declutter - Duplication
Sorting is the organizing super power. Putting like with like gives us a complete understanding of what we actually own and gives us the context we need to make our best decluttering decisions. It often gives us insight into how why buy things because we can’t find what we already own. This was the case with a recent client who hired us because he was frustrated by how disorganized his tools were. Actually, his wife was frustrated with how disorganized his tools were because he would buy new tools rather than search through the tools he already owned. I spent a few hours sorting ALL of tools onto folding tables and categorizing them into groups. Seeing his tools grouped like this helped the client realize that (his wife was right) and the VOLUME of duplicate tools were getting in the way of actually finding and using a tool when he needed it. We worked together to identify specific zones in the garage for his tools. Fortunately, he already had a number of tool chests so we used his existing storage to create categories (plumbing, electrical, screwdrivers, saws). We then stored and labeled every tool category so he could see at a glance where to find tools and make it easier to put tools away.
Solution - Owning extra is not the best use of our space resources. Sorting and putting like with like gives us much needed context to see that we have enough, allows us to make better decisions to declutter, and prevents future clutter by stopping us from buying what we already own.
Declutter - Life Changes
Our stuff my not reflect the life we are living now. Instead the objects we are storing are often associated with our habits and activities of the past or a future we intended (referred to as aspirational clutter). This is the stuff that is HARD to let go because we have to acknowledge those changes. For example, wonderful memories of long ago camping trips may create such a strong emotional connection that it’s hard to see that tent for what it is NOW - a musty space waster. I personally struggled with this category in my own garage cleanout. Some of my old sports equipment is gathering dust as I work to rehab a hip injury. To be honest, I’m not going to be wakeboarding or rollerblading much anymore. Two things have helped me part with the equipment for these activities – I’ve embraced hiking and paddleboarding. Solution - Acknowledge that letting go of the old equipment may be painful, but it will provide the space – mentally and physically - to do new activities and to better meet current needs.
Storage - Get things off the floor
No one, even professional organizers, enjoys organizing their garages but the benefits are huge. For many of us, we enter our home through the garage and it’s incredibly calming to have this space organized and tidy. It’s motivating, as well. I’ve been procrastinating my writing but organizing my own garage has provided with a burst of creative energy. Organizing garages is not as time intensive as other spaces - a few hours can give us a big factor worthy of an organizing show. I recently worked with the sweetest lady and we had her car in the garage and functional storage in less than 2.5 hours. She thought we would be working for days. The final benefit - we won’t be scraping snow off our cars while our clutter is warm and toasty in the garage.