With the recent weather and longer daylight hours, you can tell that summer’s just around the corner.

Now is as good a time as any to get those home projects out of the way.

Whether it’s getting rid of creepy-crawlies around your home or a spot of garden revival, there’s probably a project that you have been putting off.

Few places around our homes are as messy as the garage, (second only to the garden shed). In our defence, modern garages seem to have gotten smaller, while cars have gotten bigger. These days, even brand new homes are built with garages where cars barely fit.

This turns the garage into a ‘dump’ for the dryer, some filing cabinets, the lawnmower, and those boxes you keep promising to sort out. It always starts with a few odds and ends, but over the space of a few months, the place becomes packed. You also tend to waste time when you are looking for anything among that chaos.

Home renovation experts claim the garage is one of the most underutilised spaces in the house; claiming its better than the attic for storage purposes. Let us give you the quickest ways to fix the clutter and reclaim your garage.

Before you complain about the lack of time required, the Monarch Shelving Way involves only three easy steps – Declutter, Allocate, and Improvise.

We’ll kick off the garage organisation by dividing the existing space into divided zones, e.g. sports gear, bikes, gardening, and tools.

De-clutter.

With a tentative plan drawn up, it’s time to empty the garage. This is done to avoid keeping junk and also to help relocate some of the tools to other parts of the house where they may be better stored. The plan should help determine what goes and what stays.

Allocate.

When allocating space to what you decide, consider the following:

• Use of tall cabinets for storing supplies and cleaning chemicals.

• Steel shelves can be used to hold heavier items, such as tools and bags of soil.

• A wall system comprising of a slat wall, hooks, and hanging baskets can be used to store smaller tools individually.

• One way to store a large number of tools in a small space is by using a bench with lots of easy-to-reach drawers.

• When allocating storage pace, let the frequency of use determine how out-of-reach you store the tool. Store the least frequently used stuff farthest away.

Improvise.

Who said all the storage must be conventional, wall lining shelves? Think outside the box and see what unique storage solutions you can create in your space.

• If you find you have hidden spaces under a workbench, or up a wall, use them in creative ways to increase storage space.

• Bicycles can be racked vertically against walls or even strung up to dangle from the ceiling.

• Stackable bins can be stored on wall shelving. This keeps them off the floor and away from mildew, while making use of the vertical space available.

Don’t forget to record where you stored everything; this will come in handy when you need to find something in a flash.

The process of organising your garage can be as extensive or as simple as you choose to make it. By following the three broad steps and our recommendations, any messy garage can be made spick and span in practically no time.

Monarch Shelving is a supplier of storage supplies for any garage organisation task; we stock bins, adjustable shelving, wall mounted racking, and more. We aim to please our customers and we’d be glad to help you free up space in your garage this summer. Call us today.