Meta-Description: Learn to declutter and renovate your garage with these nine helpful and budget-friendly tips.

Your garage is one of the most spacious and usually cluttered areas of your house. Just like an unorganized closet, having a cluttered and untidy garage may give off visual chaos that can cause more stress for you when working on your car, DIY, and repair projects.

If you’ve finally decided to reorganize and renovate your garage, here are nine tips that will help you achieve that ideal and aesthetically pleasing storage and workspace.

Start with a Clean Canvas

Clear your garage first so you can map out how you will reorganize it and which parts need to be repaired or renovated. Remove all items to sort out which to keep and dispose of. Label boxes or bins with “to keep” and “ to throw away” so that you can keep track of your cleaning process.

Starting with a clean, empty garage is also ideal in decluttering and reducing any visual chaos that distracts you from productively working in your garage.

Repaint Your Walls and Floor

Before putting every to-keep item in your garage, consider repainting your walls and floor. Repainting adds a fresh new look. Neutrals and cool hues such as blues and greens are often recommended, as these give a relaxing and soothing vibe.

Repainting your walls is also perfect for covering scratch marks and unsightly stains, especially if you are reorganizing and renovating a garage in your foreclosed property. As for your floors, seal it off with epoxy coating to make it easy to clean any spilled oil, paint, and other liquids. Keep in mind to thoroughly clean surfaces in your garage before repainting it. Doing so will help you check for any damages that need to be repaired before being coated.

Organize Items Depending on How Often You Use Them

Now that you have decided on which items to keep, organize them depending on how often you use them. For example, store tools that you use often on shelves or areas where you can easily access them. You can use utility carts for your tools so you can easily wheel them in whenever you need them.

Consider organizing your tools depending on where you use them, whether they’re for gardening, car repair, or home decor. By organizing your garage depending on how often you use tools and what these tools are intended for, you will easily find what you need without rummaging through the whole garage. 

Safely Store and Remove Hazardous Items

You may not know it but many of the stuff you keep in your garage may be toxic, corrosive, or flammable. These items can range from cleaners to pesticides and fuels. Keep pesticides in areas out of reach from children and pets. Never store them close to pet food, medical supplies, and anywhere that is prone to flooding or water leakage. When storing fuel, make sure that it is stored in no-spill fuel containers to avoid any leakage. Keep them in a well-ventilated area as much as possible, and away from flammable items such as electrical tools, power outlets, grills, and even your car.

When throwing out hazardous items, seek help from your community’s hazardous waste management committee. Do not throw these in your drain or in your trash as these items pose a threat to other people’s health and the environment.

Maximize Vertical Storage Systems

Utilize your garage wall to expand on storage. Install wall shelving to store boxes of your items. Label the boxes so you’ll know what’s in them and where to reach for what you need. Consider mounting a pegboard to hold power tools, step tools, adhesives, and gardening tools. Store paint on bottom shelves for easy access and to avoid any leakage by keeping them upright.

If you plan to install wall shelving in your foreclosed home’s garage, check for any damages that need to be repaired. You might have to fix any cracks or replace broken tiles or wood panels before converting your walls as storage spaces. This is crucial as you don’t want tools or liquid items to fall on you or your car and cause fires and injuries.

Build a Fold-Down Work Desk

A fold-down work desk is where you can work on your smaller DIY and repair projects. This is where your wheel-in tool cart comes in handy, as this conveniently holds all items that you need for your craft. A folding work desk is ideal for you to keep your workspace and garage clutter-free. Likewise, a fold-down desk is also suitable if you want to have more space when working on your car or bigger projects.

Install Door and Window Locks

Your garage is one of the places that hold valuable items. To avoid any robbers from taking away your expensive drills and power tools, install door and window locks in your garage. If your garage is in a foreclosed property, change faulty door knobs, broken windows, and window locks to ensure that your car and your items are safely stored.

Seal Any Openings and Cracks

Because items such as paints, oil, varnishes, and pesticides may react with moisture and changes in temperature, it is better to seal any cracks in your walls and ceiling. You also don’t want rainwater leaking from your ceiling to damage your car and power tools.

Sealing any openings and cracks is crucial before you repaint and install new shelves and storage in your foreclosed property’s garage. Doing so will strengthen your walls and ceilings and reduce any further damage and accidents.

Install Proper Lighting

Strategically place fluorescent lights on your work table, storage area, and near your parked car so you can clearly see what you are looking for and what you are working on. Consider installing LED lights as these are brighter, more affordable, longer-lasting, and more sustainable compared to halogen and fluorescent tube lights.

Renovating and reorganizing your garage may seem like a lot of work. But having a safe, clean, and clutter-free storage and workspace will be worth all the effort.