How to organise your garage

A garage can take up a significant slice of a home’s square metreage, so you want to make the most of it. The first step is to figure out how much space you need and how much room will be leftover to create additional nice-to-haves, like a gym set-up or a workbench.

It’s important to address the clutter and not just move it around – you want to convert your clutter into extra space. Take a look at what you’re keeping in the garage and decide whether it needs to stay where it is. Be brutal about what you’re hanging onto. Once you know what you want to keep, sort it for storage. Sell, bin or donate the rest.

Concrete floors are standard for garages, but unsealed concrete can look shabby quickly, picking up stains and tyre marks. An epoxy flooring finish is a great way to give your garage a fresh look. The one used here is Dy-Mark epoxy garage floor finish in “Slate”; it gives a smooth, professional finish in a stylish speckled grey.

You can easily D.I.Y. this high-end look – the process is similar to painting a wall. Start with a clean and acid-washed surface, carefully follow the instructions and wear the appropriate safety equipment.

Once you’ve sorted through your clutter and organised what you want to keep, take an inventory and plan your storage. Make use of clever solutions like storage crates which allow you to group things together.

Much of what ends up in the garage are heavy or bulky items, so make sure your storage units and shelves can handle the weight of paint cans, power tools, etc. The Pinnacle shelf unit used here has a capacity of 200kg per shelf, which makes it ideal for garage storage.

A good workbench can be an essential element of a garage, and a tidy workbench makes D.I.Y. tasks so much easier! Find logical homes for larger items and add pegboard storage for smaller tools that you use regularly. A small lockable storage cabinet offers an extra layer of security for storing tools and keeping chemicals or any other dangerous items out of the reach of children or pets.

Mudrooms are so handy. Having a dedicated space to remove dirty shoes, wet clothes, and coats, and to wipe off muddy paws and to store pet toys and leads will save a ton of space and cleaning hassle.

It’s easy to create a mudroom area in a tiny corner of the garage. Organise with a simple arrangement of hooks and baskets, and create a bench seat by pairing a Clever Cube storage unit with a foam cushion.

Sports equipment creates a lot of clutter in the garage. It’s a good idea to get bikes up off the floor so they don’t take up valuable floor space – or get knocked over. Look at how you want to hang your bike – vertically or horizontally – and choose a bike hook to suit, checking it meets weight requirements and is appropriate for your type of wall.

This homeowner also wanted a gym space. Adding a flat wall-mounted mirror and some rubber matting was all it took to turn this corner of the garage into a mini home gym and yoga studio. A plywood wall panel forms a storage wall with hooks for everything from helmets to racquets to yoga mats, and wire baskets are great for storing smaller items like tennis balls, small weights and exercise bands.

Need more advice on maximising your garage space? We're sharing some tips: easy ways to create a multi-use garage.

 

Photo credit: ‘Before’ image courtesy of homeowner, all others Brigid Arnott.