By Laura Souders, Owner of Healthier Spaces Organizing
As the long hot days of summer have given way to crisp fall days—now is the perfect time to tackle your outside storage areas.
The garage, shed or an off-site storage facility are all common dumping ground when you don’t know where to store something that doesn’t quite fit in the house. These places become a “catch-all” for a lot of broken and outdated items.
Determine Your Goals for the Space
The first step when you decide to organize your storage spaces, is to clarify your goals for the space. What do you want to be able to do here? What do you want it to become? Your goal may be to organize your garage so you can park your car inside during the colder months, declutter the shed to create room to more easily store your patio furniture or reduce (or eliminate completely) the size of your off-site storage rental facility.
Purge Unneeded Items
Next, you’ll want to evaluate the contents of this storage area. You might be tempted to haul everything out onto the lawn or driveway only to put it back in again, later. This can be time-consuming and often contents like a snow blower or lawn mower will only fit in a limited number of places. To save time, simply move enough out so you have room to work.
As you look through everything, really consider when you have last used the item and when you see yourself using it in the future. Chances are, the more you decide to keep, the less likely you are to remember it!
Set up cans to use for trash and recycling; gather boxes and bags for donating unwanted or unneeded items. Extra supplies and tools would be appreciated at Habitat for Humanity ReStores, local garden clubs, or my favorite option is to label them with a “free” sign and place them outside on our sidewalk, so a neighbor can benefit from my decluttering.
Conscious Placement
Once you have removed what you no longer need, it’s likely you’ll need to rearrange the contents to make “zones” or items that are used for a related purpose. Some common zones are tools, gardening, sports equipment and automobile.
Consciously placing the same type things in an area eliminates having to remember where everything is located!
Consider how often each item is being used will help you to decide if it should be front and center or can be in a less convenient spot, because it’s rarely needed.
When possible, look to use any vertical space that’s available. Plastic shelving units increase your storage capacity. You’ll want to get a shelf that can hold the weight you need.
Balls, bats, and cleats are less likely to end up on the floor if children have a designated place for their sports equipment.
Maintainence
Once zones are in place, it’s important to label and containerize everything. Labeling can take a little bit of time and effort, but the process will help you find what you’re looking for and make it less likely you’ll repurchase what you already own.
Stackable bins Plastic Storage bins help contain small pieces and make them convenient to put away.
Conclusion
Whether you want more space to park your car, store your wheel burrow until it’s needed again in the spring, or downsize the storage unit you pay for, taking time to evaluate and organize what you have in your spaces can save you time, energy, and money in the long run.
Do You Need Help Organizing?
Healthier Spaces Organizing (HSO) can help you create a healthier space in your home or office. Laura Souders, founder, and operator of HSO, is an expert organizer who has worked with clients for over 9 years. She specializes in residential and business organizing. She also offers public speaking engagements where she discusses how organizing can help people lead happier lives.
Contact us today to know more!
