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52 Garage Organization Ideas You Never Thought Of
Modified: December 6, 2023
How cluttered is your garage? These 50 garage organization ideas could spark inspiration to finally do something to make the garage easier to navigate.
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It’s tempting to stash everything you don’t need in the garage—from rarely used items to sports equipment to anything. And when things start looking too cluttered, you panic and start looking for the best garage organization system to have some semblance of order. Since every garage is unique and their contents vary widely too, we compiled these garage organization ideas (e.g. garage storage systems, garage tool organization ideas, DIY garage organization ideas) to help you. And some of these work for other rooms too!
Cabinets are always the most convenient way to store items in your garage. And if you have old cabinets lying around, you may want to use them for your garage. Fresh paint could give the cabinet a new look and you can also add a pull-out shelf.
Using steel cabinets is not one of those novel tool storage ideas, but it fits the garage vibe. It saves time and effort too. You can mount the cabinet on the wall or place it on the floor. Meanwhile, the top surface can serve as a workbench.
Speaking of cabinets, you can also try using pantry shelves to maximize garage space. These pull-out shelves could house tons of items while keeping everything organized. It’s better and sometimes cheaper to have custom made cabinets for your garage. But you can give ready-made pull out pantry shelves a try if you want.
The slight gap between a cabinet and the wall could still be useful with slim cabinets. Slim bathroom cabinets with wheels and pull out drawers could fill this gap. You can use toilet paper dispensers to hold plastic bags too.
The garage can be a haven for tons of small items. If you’re out of space, consider a behind the door storage. This can be one of your DIY garage storage projects, but you can also buy one and just install it on your door.
A mesh net is another garage storage idea to help you with limited space. This storage could hold items that you don’t want to mix up with other things.
Bins make most garage organization ideas work, and you can never go wrong with AkroBins. Since these organizers come in different sizes, you can use them for everything from rubber bands to paintbrushes. You can stack these bins or find a more creative way to use them.
If your cabinet’s doors are sturdy enough, you can mount AkroBins bins behind the door. You can buy cabinets with hooks to hang these bins. But you can also customize older cabinets so you can hang bins on the door.
While doing DIY garage storage feels like an achievement, it may be troublesome to buy the rack and the bins separately. If you’d rather spend more time organizing than finding perfect shelf and bin pairs. This shelf which comes with bins, dividers, and a place to add labels could be the shortcut you need.
Baskets are all-time favorite storage whether it’s the bathroom, the bedroom, or even the garage. Hanging baskets make items visible and they’re perfect for items you take out all the time. Moreover, items like your children’s toys, gardening items, and cleaning materials would be perfect for baskets.
Like baskets, hooks are always a must-see in a garage. You can transform the appearance of your garage by installing a hook for everything from brooms to bikes. You can also attach the hook to a sturdy cabinet, on plywood, on the wall, or directly to the garage wall.
While hooks are easy to find and install, it’s not always the best option. For items you’d rather hang, choose a GearTrack organizer like the one from Gladiator. You can install the tracks on the wall and buy the hooks you need. When the track is ready, attach the hooks on the tracks and start organizing.
If you find it troublesome to assemble a track system on your own, buy one that comes with hooks and other attachments. Here’s one set from Gladiator which is perfect for those sporting gears and cleaning materials. You’ll have a mesh bag for balls and other small items and hooks for everything else.
Bikes could take up a lot of space in the garage if you just leave them lying around. And hanging them on a hook is one of the easiest options to save space. This bike storage rack allows you to store your bike vertically and it doubles as a storage rack. Use the hook to secure your bike and flat small surface on top for light items.
When your ceiling is too high, or you’d rather not waste muscle power to put your bike back in its resting place—pulleys are the way to go. With the pulley system in place and the hook to secure your bike, you can store your bike up there and out of the way. And, this tool could work for other tools too.
When everyone’s looking for something in the garage at the last minute, it’s easy for the whole room to get cluttered. But there may be a way to solve this problem—have a storage locker for each family member. This way, someone knows where all their stuff should be. And, there’s no need to ransack all bins, boxes, and drawers.
Basketballs, volleyballs, and beach balls could go inside a box that takes up more space than necessary or inside something more ingenious. One of our favorite garage organization ideas is this vertical ball rack with bungee ropes. You can also DIY and use bungee ropes to secure those balls and create a place just for them.
When you have tons of sports equipment in the garage, it’s useful to have one place for all those things. For your sports equipment section, you can use a rack like this. It comes with various hooks and attachments so you can hang bats and other things and place balls on the shelf.
Most of the time ladders lean on a garage wall. But this storage method is not ideal if you want to maximize space. After all, the area that the ladder is leaning on could hold several items. Save more space by hanging ladders vertically or horizontally depending on which way is more convenient.
If there’s no place for your ladder on the wall, look up. This is one of the most brilliant overhead garage storage ideas if you have limited space. All you have to do is install ceiling brackets that are wide enough to fit the ladder and sturdy enough to hold its weight.
Miscellaneous items like wood sticks, rods, and pipes are difficult to organize. You can place everything on one side, hide them in some corner or try this overhead garage storage hack. First, you have to tie a concrete form tube on your ceiling in any way you want as long as it’s secure. Then you’re done. Start using this overhead storage for long length items you have no idea where to store.
Another one of our favorite overhead garage storage ideas involves PVC pipe racks. PVC pipes are perfect for storing overhead items due to its smooth surface. You have to assess where to install the pipes first and make a plan. Then, cement pipes and fittings together and bolt the straight pipe to the ceiling. Don’t forget to stabilize the rack by attaching the angled wye connector to the cross base.
Here’s another overhead storage hack for long length pieces in the garage. Screw cleats to the ceiling and screw the lattice on these cleats and on the wall studs. When you’re done, you can gather all those miscellaneous pieces and arrange them to your liking.
Storing cleaning items can be a struggle since you need easy access to them. Brooms and mops are not exactly accessible in a cabinet either. For these cleaning tools, a metal tool organizer could do the job. This saves you from installing individual hooks and it should have enough space for your cleaning tools.
Hanging your tools saves space, but it’s not always practical. You can make a box for your tools and group the same items together. If you’re not into DIY garage storage ideas, grab a tool tower designed to hold different items from brooms to rakes and shovels. Although this takes some floor space, it provides easy access and your garage will still look organized.
What if the only vacant space in the garage is right in the corner? You can just let brooms and other tools lean to one side, but it’s better to have a rack. And to use that space, get one of these corner tool racks. It should fit in that corner while providing a friendly space to store your brooms, mops, and more.
When you have a smaller space, it makes sense to store things off the ground. If you have no more space on the wall or its impractical to do vertical storage, you can go even higher—the ceiling. Overhead garage racks are like the mezzanine floor for your garage. Just be sure to check the weight capacity of the rack and err on the side of caution.
Bins are another staple in garage organizing. You can buy bins of different sizes online or in a local store and put labels on them. To make bins more accessible, create a storage tower with partitions between storage bins to make it easier to pull out the bin you need. You can also use bins for sliding storage.
No matter how many genius garage storage ideas you have, it’s impossible to find a place for some items at home. Rather than leaving those items lying around and making your garage look cluttered, hide them behind a curtain. Simply install the curtain rod that fits the space and pick a curtain that fits your garage.
Tool storage ideas will always include pegboards. And these boards come in a lot of colors too! Pegboards provide convenient vertical storage for paintbrushes, hammers, and other tools you want easy access to. You can also add small baskets and organizers to a pegboard.
Wheelbarrows are among the most bulk items in the garage. Unfortunately, this thing is a must for any home-related projects. One of the best garage organization ideas for a wheelbarrow is to install a cleat to keep it off the floor.
When you’re renting the home, installing built-in cabinets may not be an option. In this case, you can go for metal garage shelving ideas like the one above. Look for a heavy-duty metal shelf since some garage items are heavy.
If you’re using metal shelves, and there’s no place for a pegboard, don’t worry. The metal shelves can act as your pegboard. Install strong magnets on storage cans or tools and stick them on a metal shelf.
Here’s another idea with magnets! Screwdrivers, pliers, hammers, and other metallic things would stick to a magnet. And with a magnetic strip, you automatically have a rack for these metal tools.
A proper garage needs to have air, power, and lighting and you can get all those things with a power station. Find a garage power station with a long power cord, light, and pressure so you’ll have easy access to electricity and an air pump. You won’t need any extra space for this tool—you can mount it on the ceiling.
A garage wouldn’t feel complete without a free, flat surface where you can place what you need and start doing your thing. But what if you have limited space? If you have a small garage, go for a foldable workbench.
Tool cabinets keep your garage organized. If you’re a handyman who needs to drag a workbench along with the tools to one place, a wheeled workbench that doubles as a toolbox could be useful.
If you want a portable bench but your space is not enough, get something foldable with wheels. This way, you’ll get a bench and stow it in a corner when it’s not needed.
Hanging shoe organizers could be a lifesaver when you’re organizing the garage. You can use this to store paint spray bottles, cleaning materials, and gardening products.
A portable standing desk may not be one of those genius garage storage ideas but it’s convenient for some people. And it’s easy to install. Just add a hook for this standing desk and you’re done. You can also create a foldable standing desk and mount it on the wall.
You also need an organizer for small items for home improvement projects and crafts. You can stash nails, screws, hinges, buttons, and snaps in bins and place them in a drawer. Or you can get an organizer with lots of mini drawers like this.
If you have nowhere else to stash another organizer, look under your shelves. As long as there’s nothing down there, you can use the space for storage. Gather old jars or buy new ones first and screw the lid under the shelf. These hanging jars look great too.
A fishing enthusiast’s garage could include all things fishing. For those rods, it’s better to get a rod organizer like this one. Fishing rod organizers usually come with a horizontal and vertical mount option. So, it’s easier to find the right spot in your garage or in another room in the house.
There are many ways to store a hose but one of our favorite garage organization ideas is this hose reel with a storage tray on top. Getting the hose when you need it and putting it back is easy with this tool. And you can store extra nozzles on the storage tray.
Sometimes, looking for the right tape in the garage takes up so much time. To make it easier to find those tapes and know right away which tapes you have at home, create a tape dispenser. This is one of the best DIY garage storage ideas and all you need is a hacksaw blade and a few pieces of wood.
Christmas decors can be a struggle to store. If you have no other place for these decorations, use cloth storage bags. This way, your decors will all be in one place and they will not gather dust while in storage.
Hooks are versatile and here’s one of those genius garage storage ideas if your garage serves as a drop off zone for everyone’s stuff. Leave some hooks hanging on the wall for helmets, gloves, practice gear, and other stuff. While hooks can’t get rid of the stink, airing out these things might help.
If the garage is close to your laundry room, it would be nice to have an area to stash used clothes or other things. And tilt-out hampers are great for small space and your dirty laundry is not in plain sight.
The garage ends up as a place for everything. Among our favorite garage organization ideas is to include a drying rack for your rain gear. You could store umbrellas in this rack on normal days and it would be a dedicated area for your rain gear. This way, your house will stay dry.
If you don’t want anyone tracking mud in the house, find a space where you can leave shoes outside. You can use vertical shoe racks, a boot rack, or stackable plastic shoe boxes for your footwear depending on the available space. To make it even more convenient, add a basket or a hanging pocket for indoor slippers.
When you’ve done your call to organize everything in the garage but there’s still too much stuff, an outdoor shed could be the answer.
Made from high-quality plastic, these translucent containers help to simplify your life with their ability to be stacked on top of one another. Space is limited, so why not opt for vertical storage over its horizontal counterpart? We definitely see no reason not to.
With these 52 garage storage ideas, you should have some clues on what to do with the clutter in your garage. These hacks could transform your garage but it’s always better to get rid of the items you don’t need or want. Throw useless things in the trash, donate some items to charity, and don’t forget to recycle.
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