Picking the Right Organizing Products for Your Garage

One of the most commonly asked questions we receive is "what products should I use to actually keep my things organized?" This is especially true in a garage. This part of the home often becomes a catch-all for anything you simply don’t want inside your house, so getting it organized and keeping it that way can seem like a real challenge. Since there are often lots of large and bulky items you are storing, finding the right products for the garage can have a big impact on your organizing success.

This series of blog posts is dedicated to explaining why we pick the containers that we do for each space. Organization products are great for creating systems because at the end of the day, they’re the things that keep your inventory compartmentalized and create a true system. To get a basic understanding of why you might opt for certain products, read this deep dive into the benefits of different materials, shapes, and functions! Also, we’ve already covered picking the right products for your kitchen & pantry, closet, and bathroom in detail, so be sure to check those out for more!

For the fifth post in this series, we’re focusing on garage product. To find the best containers for lasting systems, it takes some time. Going into organizing your garage, you should first think long and hard about the intention behind your garage. What is it currently serving as? What would you like to optimize the space for? To get there, will you have to let some items go? To make it functional, could shelving storage be helpful? Will simply getting items off the floor help you reach your goal? Basically, it’s most important to evaluate what you want to get out of your garage, and then figure out how you can build an organizational system around that. We’ve worked in thousands of garages, so we have a deep understanding of which products work best to serve any and every need.

As you begin yourself, start by asking these questions about your garage inventory:

And some guidelines to help you pick the right organizing products for your garage include:

For continuously evolving or on-the-go inventory, opt for open, structured bins. Sports, beach, pool, and household backstock are all examples of categories we organize this way. Unless something needs to be protected by a lid, we recommend using see through, hard bins without lids. This way, the items constantly in use are easy to get to and easy to put away, making the system more intuitive to maintain. We’d also suggest storing these items on open shelving if you have it. If you don’t, and you want to incorporate some, we love using Intermetro shelving units because the shelves are adjustable so you can really custom tailor.

For items that are only stored once a year or less, like holiday decor and memories, stackable, weathertight bins with lids are the way to go. These things can be of sentimental value, so it’s important to ensure they are protected. Weathertight bins can be on the pricier side, but they’re a worthy investment to keep cherished inventory safe in the garage. This is one splurge that we recommend clients move forward with, as it’s an investment that should last a lifetime. If you have concealed shelves, storage on the ceiling, or really anywhere that you wouldn’t have easy access to, these items should go there.

For tools and smaller household utility items, there are a few different options. Regardless of how many tools you store in the garage, and their sizes, we like to use lidded bins on shelving, and compartmentalized organizers for drawers if you have them. We typically use a variety of clear bins with lids to really customize the system to the space and the inventory. Depending on how much of something you have, and how detailed you want to get, you can even micro-sort with smaller bins inside of larger bins. If you have drawers, using drawer organizers to categorize screws, screwdrivers, furniture pads, command hooks, and other small items by type is a great way to keep them accessible and orderly.

For bulky garage items—strollers, golf clubs, coolers, weed wackers, ladders, and so on—the greatest method we’ve found to store these is hooked on the wall. There are a couple different ways to go about this: utility tracks with various hooks are the most affordable and easy to install, but slat walls are the most flexible and efficient. We like to install both on walls with plenty of space, and depending on how high the wall is, we’ll sometimes double install utility tracks on top of each other to make the absolute most of the wall. Both slat walls and utility tracks come with a variety of hooks, baskets, and storage options so you can mix, match and customize to your needs.

Lastly, on all bins (or shelves/drawers) in the garage, the best thing you can do to keep the system maintained is label. If you’re worried about the inventory changing and having to re-label, think bigger. Label as generic as possible in case of change, but specific enough that everyone in the household can easily contribute to keeping it organized.

In every space we do, we marry organization & aesthetics for a beautiful and functional end result. But at the end of the day, function should always take priority! No matter how you decide to organize your garage, what’s most important is that you choose products that are going to work for your needs daily. It’s important to really think about the intention and purpose the products will serve in your system when you roadmap the garage space. Finding the absolute best products for lasting systems might require flexibility over time, but when you set the right foundation, it should be a one time investment.

Don’t forget to check out our other posts in this series to pick the right products for every space in your home!