School me on garage storage/organizing

[Misplaced_Canuck]

My garage has been a terrible mess pretty much ever since I started doing mechanical work on my Jeep(s) a few years ago. Lots of dirt, lots of clutter, lots of junk in the middle of the place, which makes going through somewhat difficult.

I have a couple of large toolboxes, and a few "floor tools" (stuff that can't be put up in a cabinet).

I've been tinkering with the idea of getting some of the fancy-ish storage that most big box hardware stores sell, in an effort reduce the clutter and make the place comfortable. In other words, I'd like to have a clean, shiny garage where I can brew, where I can entertain my buddies occasionally (when I brew) and still be able to do a little wrenching every now and then. Parking one (or even two!) of the cars in the garage would be a nice touch, too.

I'd like to repaint the walls (they are a bit grungy) and paint the floor with an epoxy paint.

Has anyone gone from "grunge to chic" in their garage?

The stuff I'm looking at using is this: http://www.lowes.com/Cleaning-Organization/Garage-Organization/_/N-1z11pei/pl

I'm shooting for metal (diamond plate or stainless) as the high humidity in SC will likely deform/sag any kind of pressed wood.

Thoughts, ideas?

One thing that's a positive is that my garage has 12-ft+ ceilings. The rest is a standard 2-car garage, 2 doors.

MC

 

[Homercidal]

I'm in to lurk this thread. Same situation, but lower ceilings and I need cabinets to keep the dust off my stuff since I cut/grind metal and also do some woodworking in there too.

My wife says I just have too much crap...

 

[fuzzy2133]

Check out what people do to organize the larger items in a race trailer. My Floor jack has always been a pain to store. I am stealing some race trailer ideas for my garage when I get back to rearranging it.

 

[Misplaced_Canuck]

I'm in to lurk this thread. Same situation, but lower ceilings and I need cabinets to keep the dust off my stuff since I cut/grind metal and also do some woodworking in there too.

My wife says I just have too much crap...

If the wife says you have too much crap, get rid of the wife. Problem solved.

I've started filling the urby-curby every week to the gills. It's a good start. I threw away 2 cassette car radios just last week. I also disposed of 16 gallons of used and unused oils. Yes, 16 GALLONS not quarts. Another good step forward I reckon. [Yes I did dispose of it appropriately].

For instance, this has a lot of appeal to me:

(minus the floor - I'd rather go with epoxy)


MC

 

[Homercidal]

If the wife says you have too much crap, get rid of the wife. Problem solved.

I've started filling the urby-curby every week to the gills. It's a good start. I threw away 2 cassette car radios just last week. I also disposed of 16 gallons of used and unused oils. Yes, 16 GALLONS not quarts. Another good step forward I reckon. [Yes I did dispose of it appropriately].

For instance, this has a lot of appeal to me:

(minus the floor - I'd rather go with epoxy)


MC

Getting rid of the wife would also get rid of something I desperately enjoy often. On top of that, she is very close to the only organization I have in my life!

And I could never have a garage like that. That's not even a garage, that's a display room.

 

[Misplaced_Canuck]

Getting rid of the wife would also get rid of something I desperately enjoy often. On top of that, she is very close to the only organization I have in my life!

Then you're SOL

And I could never have a garage like that. That's not even a garage, that's a display room.

Agreed, I was mostly trying to go with the general wall system. I'm trying to find something that's ALL on wheels and can be moved around, except perhaps the wall cabinets. Moving around stuff that's on wheel isn't too hard in a pinch.

I'm going to try cramming all this floor stuff: plasma cutter, MIG, TIG, ARC, Oxy-acetylen cart, upright compressor, drill press, pressure washer, lawnmower, wheelbarrow, floor jack, transmission jack, 2 medium size 5-ft toolboxes, a shop-vac.

Yeah, that's a lot. I have a challenge ahead of me. Will prob need to spend some coin on all those cabinets.

The tallest upright cabinets I can find are only 6-ft tall. I have another 6-ft of space above that I can use. Uhmn.

MC

 

[jmendez29]

I subscribe to the Family Handyman magazine. In the September 2013 issue, they detailed several garage storage and organization ideas that I think may be right up your alley. There is a space saver work table with shelves and a couple drawers, a top that half of it can be folded down for storage, and the whole thing is on wheels. There's a foldout tool rack, a shelving system for storage totes, and a set of storage "cubbies".

If you go back to the September 2012 issue, they have a wall storage system that they made completely from plywood. It's a modular type setup that you can rearrange to your particular storage needs. I did a smaller version of that one for my basement work area and it worked fantastic.

I'm pretty sure just about all of us are DIY types, so if your into working with wood, then this is perfect. Let me know what you think.

 

[grathan]

Been working on organizing my garage for the past year or so.

Can you build a shed for the lesser used stuff? Wheelbarrow, pressure washer, lawn mower are good candidates for removal.

I am not a fan of cabinets because you can't see what's in there without opening. That to me means a lot of stuff you forget where it is or that you even had it still.
I like open shelves and that pegboard. I have a whole wall of pegboard. I doubt it will warp in humidity. You can use many screws and spacers when installing..

Shelves should be organized by what they hold:
I have one set for chemicals (paint, oils, caulks, pool chemicals, cleaning stuff, etc..)
One set for homebrew stuff.
One shelf under my workbench holds all power tools
One shelf for gardening stuff
A shelf for electrical and misc parts
A shelf for fasteners (screws, nails, washers, and misc hardware)
A shelf for air-powered tools

A rolling ladder would be good if you end up using the full 12' height.

The biggest thing for me is getting rid of stuff. If it has sat for 2 years untouched. Ask yourself why you keep it. Is it worth tripping over? Can you replace it fairly easy if you ever did need it?


Post a pic of what you've got.

 

[Onkel_Udo]

If you have 12' ceilings, make a loft over one bay for fun things you will never really use but you cannot part with. Just make sure to either verify the exiting ceiling joist size or better yet sister a 2" x 8" (or larger) every other joist to support the loft.

Alternatively, make a 4' deep shelf at the height of the door trim and run it the entire width of the garage. You can use a single LVL on a post at either end and a ledger board to support it all. You would be shocked how much stuff you can fit in 4' x 24' x 6'. Heck, I think that was bigger than my hooch in Iraq!

 

[ChuckO]

I have been making pallets to go under every floor standing tool and storage cabinet. I bought a used pallet jack a while ago and now am able to rearrange the garage for projects as they get worked on. If a tool on a stand didn't come with castors it gets placed on a pallet.

 

[Homercidal]

One idea that I saw in a magazine some years ago is to make wooden boxes that fit between the joists. Then you bolt one end to the joist on each side so that it can flip down. The premise is storage that flips up between the joists when you don't need the items inside, and can easily flip down when you do. You use a pivoting piece of wood to keep them up. The area between joists is often just wasted.

EDIT: Here is the example:

 

[jflongo]

One idea that I saw in a magazine some years ago is to make wooden boxes that fit between the joists. Then you bolt one end to the joist on each side so that it can flip down. The premise is storage that flips up between the joists when you don't need the items inside, and can easily flip down when you do. You use a pivoting piece of wood to keep them up. The area between joists is often just wasted.

EDIT: Here is the example:

Not sure I would want to try this, could you imagine flipping it down, and having some mice fall on you :rockin:

 

[jflongo]

My wife and I spent two weekends this summer, cleaning out our two stall part of our garage, mudded the walls and taped them, then we painted the walls. Then hung up a bunch of wall hanger systems, to hang our bikes, etc. Then moved our storage racks into our 3rd stall. I'm hoping I can clean out the 3rd stall a little better and start brewing in there. Otherwise I currently take my van out of the garage and brew in 1/2 of the garage in the 2 stall part.

 

[Homercidal]

Not sure I would want to try this, could you imagine flipping it down, and having some mice fall on you :rockin:

Oh man, I just thought of my wife doing this. She HATES mice! I'd love to rig up a practical joke, but I can't think of how to do it. Maybe with a fake mouse. I got a fake mouse that looks and sounds like a real one. Of course I told her it was for the cats, but it was really for me.

 

[Misplaced_Canuck]

My garage is fully "finished" (for a garage, that is). No exposed joists nor studs or anything like that. Above the garage is a "FROG" (that's what it's called here in the south).

The ceiling has popcorn-type ceiling.

I do prefer having stuff "hidden"/enclosed as that's what I'm trying to do, hide all the crap and make it look tidy.

I may shoot for elevated storage (cabinets/tall cabinets) that are elevated off the floor, so that I can "hide" some of the lower items under the cabinets. I'm 6'4" so fetching something 8-ft up isn't a big deal for me.

I'd LOVE to have a garden shed but our HOA is pretty darn tight. It would have to be a brick construction, and since I'm on an unfenced corner lot, it would be difficult to position it properly (but not impossible).

I'm definitely getting rid of the engine-hoist and engine stands. Not sure when I last used them, much less when I next plan on using them. I need to sell the Dune Buggy and the Pepsi Machine.

I had been using open-air shelves (wooden) but with dirt/oil/grease, they have become pretty nasty looking.

MC

 

[fuzzy2133]

I had been using open-air shelves (wooden) but with dirt/oil/grease, they have become pretty nasty looking.
MC

A sheet of aluminum folded over the sides of a shelf can solve that issue.