When you live in a neighborhood within walking distance of most necessities and public transportation, you often think twice about using your car and wasting that gas money unnecessarily. As a result, your car often sits in the garage taking up floor space, making it difficult to store miscellaneous items and walk around your garage with ease.
Our recommendation: Find a home for your items off the floor. The walls and ceilings of your garage are often underutilized and can be thought of as four blank canvases to work with when it comes to finding storage options for your things. Buying or installing shelving units will give you three to five times more storage space for the same amount of floor space. Check out some shelving unit options from Home Depot here.
It is also a good idea to use your garage’s wall space to secure all of the random items that might have otherwise sat on the floor, such as brooms and shovels. Attaching these items to walls will make it easier to walk around your car in the garage and also ensure that your larger items don't accidentally tip over and cause damage to your vehicle. If you have tools or smaller items to store, one idea for wall storage would be to attach a peg board or other free-form shelving option (pictured below) where you could hang your items from. Use a pencil to make an outline of the outer edge of each tool so you know where it goes after you use it.
Look up! Aside from your garage door’s rigging system, you have ample ceiling space to use for storage. Some overhead storage shelves are great for storing items seasonal items (i.e. winter coats, gloves, beach gears). You can also use pulley systems to store larger items, such as bikes, so they do not damage your car or make it difficult to walk in the garage.
To keep a garage organized and utilized effectively, everything must have a place. It takes great effort to keep your garage clean, but having ample storage space for both your car and miscellaneous items will make the hard work worth it!