ORGANIZING 201: AROUND AND IN THE GARAGE AND HOME. Sharing ideas and thoughts for all

[drivesitfar]

I started a thread on ORGANIZING 101 a month or so ago and included my daily stuff which didn't always fit so starting a new thread we can all put our ORGANIZING SKILLS to work and for some of us to get new ideas. since most of the members here have been ORGANIZING for years they are well past the 101 class and decided to give it an advanced name.

of course some of us wake up and have everything in it's place because we put things back when we use them. for those members i'd like your comments on how you do that and post lots of pictures. some of us have a continuing flow of new STUFF to ORGANIZE so may be like me with FLAT SURFACE DISEASE where if there is one i'll set something on it almost immediately instead of spending a few minutes to put things away. I'd really like to cure FSD and also when i mention ORGANIZE or ORGANIZING to my bride she won't think that i'm swearing at her.

i'm still having issues with my old laptop, but will try to pull out a few before pictures as i show my after pics. if any of you have before after pictures to post while telling a few of your thoughts on how and why you organized like you did I (we) would all appreciate it.

Let's have fun with this and if somebody is brave enough to show their messy shop or yard and asks for help let's try to honestly help them and not make fun of them because some of our stuff means more to us than other's might think.

here's a few ideas i'm hoping this thread covers:
1) shelving
2) cabinets
3) bins
4) landscaping
5) ceiling storage
6) how to make things for your stuff
7) how to do different things around the house like plumbing, wiring, building, etc...

CHEERS ALL and hope we learn a thing or two or for those that just want to share PLEASE DO if you are ORGANIZED!!

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: i'll start with a project that was maybe on my HONEY DO and TO DO list for our house for maybe 25 years. so as with some TO DO's there are several things TO DO before you can get to the one you want TO DO. so first off i needed to move the gutter's downspout next to my little 2 car garage. took 24 years to get that one done when we finally replaced the new gutters on the back and side of my flat roofed home.

ok next step is to figure out how to put a brick planter in because i've never used mortar with bricks even though i've done a lot of tile and cement work. read up some, watched a few YOUTUBE videos and thought ok i'll tackle it.

STEP 1: cleaned all the junk, weeds and stuff laying in the area i want to put in a brick planter for my wife to plant whatever she pleases in. also needed to fill in one area on end of planter so we didn't have to make the corner part of the planter too.

STEP 2: grind off the top maybe 1/8 inch of a sidewalk i installed 27 years ago. then drilled holes about every 2 feet so i could put 12 inch pieces of rebar in them and up through the bricks i'm using that have holes in them. (gathered bricks anytime i found for a good price or free and obviously prefer morter free clean ones, but have removed some mortar too).

STEP 3: buy 3 bags of mortar at Lowes, but i'm sure any hardware store carries them.

STEP 4: since we do a lot of cement work just finding the tools i already own or buy a couple, wheelbarrow and we are ready to lay some bricks.

STEP 5: the directions for the water adding are on the bag and since i was doing the job with my bride (she has finished more cement work than a lot of guys and is good at it), we decided to do a bag's worth of mortar and stop there each day. we added more water than the directions because we liked the mix a little better so don't get it too runny or too dry and you should be good.

STEP 6: i put the mortar down on the edge of the sidewalk and put the bricks with holes on them down and some had rebar sticking out. tried to make sure i wasn't leaving any gaps or holes on the edges and my bride was following behind me doing a very nice job. when we finished the first day i still had my doubts, but with 70 degree weather a month or two ago when we did the job the next day the bricks were there for good. We repeated that the second day and the third day i put on the rest of the bricks with holes on them and i had some thinner inch thick bricks we used as tops so we could keep the planter and dirt about 6 inches below the siding. (NOTE: you don't want dirt or plants up against or growing on your siding so we'll have some trellis behind plants to protect ours). since our home is cement brick under the siding that is mainly cosmetic it's not quite as big of a deal so when putting planters next to your house make note not to give the bugs an easy route into your home.

STEP 7: had 3 yards of topsoil delivered because it wasn't that expensive, but i could have rented a Uhaul for $20 for the day or waited until i built sides for my trailer. in any case the planter maybe only used 1.5 yards so the rest of the topsoil went in our garden.

STEP 8: my wife had me bring up a few metal trellis that i had stored to place in the planter and she planted a few tomato plants and flowers and few squash. as you can see from the picture the plants are doing well after a couple months of 80 degree weather here in the PNW.

STEP 9: CHECK OFF HONEY DO AFTER 25 YEARS (and the fence is coming soon that i built 20 years ago and tore down to replace and make a taller one.)

pictures are sort of in order and you'd never believe all the STUFF/**** i've put up against the garage on that side over the years.

YES MY BRIDE SMILES WHEN SHE'S WATERING HER PLANTS (side benefit is i love fresh fruit and veggies)

 

[drivesitfar]

More pictures of brick planter:

 

[drivesitfar]

more pictures of brick planter 2 months later:

 

[Lyndon]

Drives

Good to see you back in here....

I like this pic :

Aside from looking like a great result for a first time brick layer, it's always good to keep the bride happy....

And.... from the shadow, it looks like you've got a very funny shaped head.....



Lyndon
Looking in from my corner of the world.

 

[oldironfarmer]

Drives

Good to see you back in here....

I like this pic :

Aside from looking like a great result for a first time brick layer, it's always good to keep the bride happy....

And.... from the shadow, it looks like you've got a very funny shaped head.....



Lyndon
Looking in from my corner of the world.

That's not a funny shaped head, just a normal truncated cone head.

I do lie in my bed, whenever she asks: what did you accomplish today?

 

[oldironfarmer]

Maybe I can learn from this thread.

I've already spilled my guts with my before pictures.

I also realize it may not be too smart to show real time build pictures, but oh, well!

 

[drivesitfar]

Old Iron: when you posted real time build pictures was the progress going to slow and that is why you are upset or where members razzing you to do things faster or different?

Lyndon: if you have any tips about organizing or pictures that would be great. you run a fleet of cars and i think you maintain them all yourself so i'm guessing you have a white board or a nice pad or calendar to make your TO DO LISTS on. post them up when you get some time.

ALL: while i'm working on my ORGANIZING and getting a few more old before pictures out of my ailing computer please post up your ORGANIZING methods so you can help some of us from buying things we already own because we can't find them. also some of you have very efficient garages so guessing you have a rule that you don't leave the shop until the tools are clean and put back in their place. tips, tricks and how to do efficient TO DO or the famous HONEY DO LISTS would be appreciated.

I didn't take the picture with the post behind me to make my head bigger in the shadow on purpose, but i did notice it before i posted it and thought i might get a smile out of a few of you keen observers.

BTW when i look in the mirror everyday i see me and not my STUFF, but dang it's not easy not to think about our STUFF when it's not ORGANIZED

cheers

 

[1/2 Cup]

drives, looking great.

Never fear organising stuff is always a moving target I have found. Small things can make a huge impact in achieving your goals..

Have a good one..

 

[oldironfarmer]

Everyone on GJ have been quite cordial and complimentary, and complementary!

Posting your build in real time exposes you to each and every screwup becoming public

 

[Ol'WhiteCap]

Again, you people are a BAD influence. Doing brickwork, in only 24 years

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: here are a few of the metal cabinets i'm using to store my STUFF in. i bet a lot of you have something similar so post them up if you have time.

1) Cole 33 drawer and i have 2 of them in my 10x15 garage
2) Hamilton letterpress will hold some of my "OLD SCHOOL" wrenches
3) Hamilton blueprint cabinets are 4 cabinets so 20 drawers high and each drawer is about 53x41
4) Old bread maker's cabinet metal with wood like grain finish
5) Equipto nuts and bolt bins
6) small cabinet on top of a little larger one and both 1930's vintage or in that ballpark i'm told
7) Army parts bin

just to name a few i'm using in my little space

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: speaking of TO DO and HONEY DO LISTS i just started reading a thread and thanks to SLIMPICKENS a GJ member who posted this one some of you might have read:

It reminds me of the famous "To Do List":

To Do List:
1. Make a to do list.
2. Check off the first thing on the to do list.
3. Realize you've already accomplished 2 things!
4. Reward yourself with a nap (in progress)

I will share a short (philisophical) story... I used to have a neighbor that had the cleanest yard and house imaginable. His secret was to throw everything out! He would buy a broom to sweep his driveway, and it would be in the dumpster the next day. He'd buy a new bike. Old one is in the dumpster. New garbage can, new ... whatever. Old (whatever) is in the dumpster. Like you, I just don't understand that mentality!

Unfortunately, the stuff didn't stay in the dumpster. I rescued it. And I still have a lot of it. ... do you see where this is going? I've built shelves and sheds and places to store more of this "stuff that's too good to throw away". I no longer live next to that neighbor. I had to move a lot of the junk (good stuff) that he threw away.

I sometimes think back to the method to his madness and sometimes wonder if the cost of storing and building storage for "all that good stuff" isn't more expensive than just throwing it away and buying what you need when you need it?

Well I'm still not convinced which way is better but, just for good measure, last weekend I've been building more storage shelves and started sorting through a lot of stuff I inherited from my dad after he passed away several years ago.

pretty funny and a lot of truth or soul searching to see what we really need to ORGANIZE. i've thought many times of filling up my trailer with STUFF i haven't used in 5 years and dropping it off at the local Thrift shops, but as i do that some project or my wife asks me for something that i actually own and found.

ALL: Yes there are some tough decisions are to be made to truly ORGANIZE that is for certain.

anybody have STUFF to show how they organized please do!!

cheers and hope you all have a great weekend.

 

[Ol'WhiteCap]

I've gotten started in my new to me garage.
I started organizing some of the "stuff" that maybe should be in the dumpster. This is a start

 

[drivesitfar]

OWC: as 1/2 Cup posted you just need to start. you'll figure out better ways to store stuff and keep what you use and get rid of STUFF you don't need or can't use in the future. for now you have some of your STUFF off the floor which is a good thing.

ALL: I finally had a little time to spend on my garage yesterday and i brought out an old Army/Navy or Boeing steel bench to wire wheel off the layers of lead based paint on top of it. it might have took me 4 hours using both my 7.5 inch Milwaukee hand grinders with wire cups on them, but i eventually got R done. i put a couple coats of BLO on it and I was planning on putting some bins i have that are smaller until i realized these blue Lyon bins might work. how do they look? i'll fill them up with big nuts and bolts and supplies and it should weigh down the bench nicely so once i put my 6 inch 135 pound Rock Island vise on it (I think that's the one i'll put on it) i bet it won't move. the bench already weighs about 300 pounds empty and I'll try my best to leave the top clean and ready to use.

should i use the small bins and build a cabinet for them in the space next to the 3 drawers on the old Army bench or should i go with the blue Lyon bins that leave me a few inches of unusable space? i'm leaning towards the Lyon and the color clash isn't an issue with me, but i'm sure it might bother some of you.

i just realized the little space the Lyon bins isn't using i could make a nice little cabinet that is facing outside and have access to it from the end when the garage is open so the Lyon cabinets it is for now.

have a great weekend everybody

 

[jdoe213]

Just remember, It is worth it in the end.

 

[Ol'WhiteCap]

Now, I can see, where I'm looking for what it is that I can't find!

 

[bczygan]

Organizing isn't a be all or end all for me. More and better storage solutions, aren't the whole answer.

It cannot be done alone.

It must be done in conjunction with other things such as sorting and deciding what you need and don't need.

And it isn't something you do, and it's done. It's a moving target that you are always adjusting for.

Nothing is ever static.

Bill

 

[Thumper68]

Okay I'm brave (Or just don't give a **** what others think here are the before during and after pics.

As others have said it is not a do it and it's done thing, every day you need to do it again and I am getting better at it, I try and clear the main work table and the tool bench each time before I leave the shop unless I will be back in less than a day to resume the same project.

In fact I was just taking a break before heading back out to clean up a bit before bed.







Here is a shot from last fall, there is a vehicle in the shop being worked on.



New hand tool storage


Before the SS top



Some of the nut, bolt and small parts storage.



More nut bolt and small parts storage



I don't seem to have a finished pic of the shelving I built along one wall of the shop but here is the first section going up, in the end it is 26' long and 14' tall.



The real trick for me at least was changing the way I worked and the way I want the shop to function, right now I am working on 4 small projects and the shop is completely usable, I am not tripping over ****, I can find what I need for the most part.

Before I buy or acquire anything I know where it is going to go in the shop. If I don't have a place in mind then it can wait until I know where it is going.

 

[bczygan]

Okay I'm brave (Or just don't give a **** what others think here are the before during and after pics.

As others have said it is not a do it and it's done thing, every day you need to do it again and I am getting better at it, I try and clear the main work table and the tool bench each time before I leave the shop unless I will be back in less than a day to resume the same project.

In fact I was just taking a break before heading back out to clean up a bit before bed.







Here is a shot from last fall, there is a vehicle in the shop being worked on.



New hand tool storage


Before the SS top



Some of the nut, bolt and small parts storage.



More nut bolt and small parts storage



I don't seem to have a finished pic of the shelving I built along one wall of the shop but here is the first section going up, in the end it is 26' long and 14' tall.



The real trick for me at least was changing the way I worked and the way I want the shop to function, right now I am working on 4 small projects and the shop is completely usable, I am not tripping over ****, I can find what I need for the most part.

Before I buy or acquire anything I know where it is going to go in the shop. If I don't have a place in mind then it can wait until I know where it is going.

I like it!

Not a "look at me" shop, but a working space, modified as needed for the job at hand.

Bill

 

[Thumper68]

I like it!

Not a "look at me" shop, but a working space, modified as needed for the job at hand.

Bill

Bill, That is it right on the head. I built my shop to serve me, to give me a year round place to work on whatever project is at hand. It is not or ever will be a place to park a vehicle, but then again I am not a car guy, cars/trucks are a useful tool and at times a work of art but I am not an art collector.

My shop was designed and built to serve a few basic needs,

A place to store parts, tools and equipment.

A place to use those parts, tools, and equipment to create, repair and enjoy working.

Of course the fact that it makes me money helps as well.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Guys, An interesting discussion so far.

I have a relatively small shop and I have found that being able to move stuff around to suit what ever project I am doing works for me.

I still have a number of areas to get better organised but by and large it not to bad.

Regards

 

[drivesitfar]

Thumper: i'm sure to some those pictures look like CHAOS or that you own a lot of STUFF. by your remarks it sounds like you know where most things are which is a good thing so keep at it because as has already been mentioned it's a moving target. i'm a bit like you where i probably should let some of my STUFF find another good home, but only you will know when that time is and what you want to sell or give away.

thanks for sharing

BTW i just put some 1.5 inch rubber mats built for kids playgrounds in my little garage to help my back and if i recall correctly you have a shooting pain in your leg or back so you might want to buy a few for a few areas in your shop where you stand a lot. it might help. my wife bought a few pads designed for the kitchen which you might also buy for your wife and you that she put in front of each sink (we have two) and the stove and her back and feet are not nearly as bad as they were years ago. good luck with that or if your pain is gone congrats.

BCZ: yes ORGANIZING is a MOVING TARGET especially for a lot of us that tend to buy and sometimes sell stuff that is different. i know you've been trying to get ORGANIZED and i hope you are getting closer to being satisfied that you can at least find your STUFF.

JD: small or baby steps and everything that is checked off the TO DO list is a good thing. now i need to get the cabinet spiffed up to hang above the bench, but i took the casters off and put in the Lyon bins so just need to mount a vise. i think my REED 2C will be my choice for my little garage.

OWC: the garage wall looks great and stay tuned and i'm sure there will be plenty of options for you to choose from if you don't already have some in mind.

1/2: you might be one of the better organized members i know of so if you want to post up some pictures of all your good ideas and even post some of your problem areas i'm sure we'd all love to see it. the last time i looked at your Shed Downunder you had an amazing rebuilt engine you were working on that looked like a commercial kitchen and you could eat off the bench tops.

thanks for stopping in again

ALL: anybody have small areas of ORGANIZATION TO SHARE or if you want to put before and after pictures of your garage please do. or if you need help just post up pictures of what you have and tell us what you want to do with the space and maybe we can help.

cheers

 

[Lyndon]

Thumper

Um, not wanting to be picky, and maybe it's just me, but in that last photo the wooden shelves don't seem to reach the right hand brackets....?

Or is it my eyes?

Lyndon
Working up to a post on this thread soon (I promise D ).

 

[Thumper68]

Thumper

Um, not wanting to be picky, and maybe it's just me, but in that last photo the wooden shelves don't seem to reach the right hand brackets....?

Or is it my eyes?

Lyndon
Working up to a post on this thread soon (I promise D ).

You are 100% correct they don't reach the brackets on purpose, they are connected to the next section of shelving with glue, screws and a backer board. I didn't want to have the shelving meet in the middle of the bracket and only have 3/4" supported, this way it is more like a continuous piece and no chance of the fasteners pulling out and the shelf failing.

Hope that makes sense.

Drives, This fall or early winter we are going to be doing a major re organization of the shop moving most of the bigger equipment around to make some room and make work flow better (at least that is the hope) part of that will be reworking the parts storage using many ideas found all over this site, hopefully there will be many more ideas from this thread to help.

My biggest issue is that I do so many different kinds of work in the shop so everything needs to be somewhat fluid. This afternoon I am starting on a project for a customer, new bumper, front shocks and brakes.

 

[bczygan]

Thumper: i'm sure to some those pictures look like CHAOS or that you own a lot of STUFF. by your remarks it sounds like you know where most things are which is a good thing so keep at it because as has already been mentioned it's a moving target. i'm a bit like you where i probably should let some of my STUFF find another good home, but only you will know when that time is and what you want to sell or give away.

thanks for sharing

BTW i just put some 1.5 inch rubber mats built for kids playgrounds in my little garage to help my back and if i recall correctly you have a shooting pain in your leg or back so you might want to buy a few for a few areas in your shop where you stand a lot. it might help. my wife bought a few pads designed for the kitchen which you might also buy for your wife and you that she put in front of each sink (we have two) and the stove and her back and feet are not nearly as bad as they were years ago. good luck with that or if your pain is gone congrats.

BCZ: yes ORGANIZING is a MOVING TARGET especially for a lot of us that tend to buy and sometimes sell stuff that is different. i know you've been trying to get ORGANIZED and i hope you are getting closer to being satisfied that you can at least find your STUFF.

JD: small or baby steps and everything that is checked off the TO DO list is a good thing. now i need to get the cabinet spiffed up to hang above the bench, but i took the casters off and put in the Lyon bins so just need to mount a vise. i think my REED 2C will be my choice for my little garage.

OWC: the garage wall looks great and stay tuned and i'm sure there will be plenty of options for you to choose from if you don't already have some in mind.

1/2: you might be one of the better organized members i know of so if you want to post up some pictures of all your good ideas and even post some of your problem areas i'm sure we'd all love to see it. the last time i looked at your Shed Downunder you had an amazing rebuilt engine you were working on that looked like a commercial kitchen and you could eat off the bench tops.

thanks for stopping in again

ALL: anybody have small areas of ORGANIZATION TO SHARE or if you want to put before and after pictures of your garage please do. or if you need help just post up pictures of what you have and tell us what you want to do with the space and maybe we can help.

cheers

Drives,

I have been moving things around the house and yard for at least a year. Gathering like things and putting them in a place, or space, or room, designated for that class of stuff.

I'm finally at a point where I know which shed or room to look in for a particular item. Not everything is so well organized. I couldn't find the anti seize today. But tools generally are right where I expect them to be. That is more a matter of putting things back when you are done with them, which I need to do in the morning.

Still don't have everything exactly where I want it, but it is so nice to be able to lay my hand on almost every tool I need for a job.

Garage isn't as clear as I need or want, but will be when I get some kitchen cabinets out of there and do some other things.

A work in progress as always.

Bill

 

[Blue Frog]

I have a nice saw till where all my users are stored, but I continue to accumulate hand saws and I needed an out-of-the-way place to store them. I resurfaced some pine boards from the 1950's:





Made a box with dividers for the saws:








Looked for a place to mount it and found this open:





Loaded the saws and placed foam rubber on the end to protect the wooden handles:





And mounted it.





I'm not happy with the chains hanging down, but the saws are out of the way.


Blue Frog

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: so i picked up a few things to help me GET ORGANIZED today. anybody here have anything they want to share either big or small that helps them find their STUFF please do.

that is an 8 foot tall 2 foot deep commercial rack inside my Honda Pilot. yes i put down a 1/2 inch thick rubber mat on top of the seats after folding them down and i can fit a few things in my Pilot as you can see. there is also an 8 foot ladder under the rack.

my trailer i just picked up needs some de rusting and paint, but it's made out of 1/4 inch angle iron so pretty stout.

cheers

 

[Ol'WhiteCap]

Blue frog, I like your saw box. And I agree with you not liking the chains hanging. Maybe some magnets would keep the chains out of the way. Just an idea.

 

[drivesitfar]

Blue; i really don't know where to put my saw either other than a hook so great idea.

ALL: i have a flat surface that is empty for a moment (hopefully longer) and had to snap a picture. i also hung a nice old cabinet i bought from a nice young guy a couple years ago and after i got to his house found out he is a member of GJ. it has some great storage inside, but i don't have it loaded yet for pictures so will do that later. i love these old Army nuts & bolts or parts bins and i'm going to put up some shelving on each side of the cabinet to put a few more up there for parts and bits and pieces so i can hopefully get rid of FSD (flat surface disease).

as some of the members say it's a start, but if you just keep at it eventually you'll get there and BE ORGANIZED.

 

[Thumper68]

Drives the pics of your workbench got me up off my *** and out to the shop to take pics of a few of the things that I have done in the last week to help clean up the shop.

First off here is a shot of my tool box bench, video of that on the youtube channel in my sig,



Needed a place to store the bigger pipe wrenches, saw this open space on the end of the bench, Fabbed this up out of stuff I had around.



I've had this Lawson style drawer unit around for ages, but after building the new shelves I had no place to put it, so the boxes were on shelves and the case was out in a shed, cleaned it up and put it under the fab table, out of the way but accessible.



And last is a shot of some of my clamps and 4 1/2" grinders, angle on the back of the fab table, easy to reach and use and most importantly easy to put stuff back.

 

[drivesitfar]

Thumper: great progress and your clamp idea is what i want to do with my steel bench so since i don't weld i'll drill and bolt on a couple supports and hang some of my clamps on the end.

keep up the great progress. WELL DONE!!

 

[Thumper68]

Thumper: great progress and your clamp idea is what i want to do with my steel bench so since i don't weld i'll drill and bolt on a couple supports and hang some of my clamps on the end.

keep up the great progress. WELL DONE!!

If you notice the pipe wrench rack is mounted with self tapping screws, no need to weld.

Video on the whole process coming next week.

 

[HiWind]

Great idea for a thread ... I watched this while preparing - guy must be a GJ member right?!

.... Oh well didn't find it yet but here's some basic neat idea - I like the magnet, the various uses of plumbing pipe and garden trellis etc

 

[slimpickins]

Blue; i really don't know where to put my saw either other than a hook so great idea.

ALL: i have a flat surface that is empty for a moment (hopefully longer) and had to snap a picture. i also hung a nice old cabinet i bought from a nice young guy a couple years ago and after i got to his house found out he is a member of GJ. it has some great storage inside, but i don't have it loaded yet for pictures so will do that later. i love these old Army nuts & bolts or parts bins and i'm going to put up some shelving on each side of the cabinet to put a few more up there for parts and bits and pieces so i can hopefully get rid of FSD (flat surface disease).

as some of the members say it's a start, but if you just keep at it eventually you'll get there and BE ORGANIZED.

OMG - I'll have to remember FSD. This hits way too close to home and is a close companion of RTI disease (Round To It) when you start using the top edge of a stack of plywood standing on edge, to hold ... something ... until you get a round to it. When you want to start a project but you realize you can't because every freakin' square inch of work bench space is stacked 3 layers deep with stuff. When you start stepping over boxes on the floor, and cans of paint. When your garage has gopher paths to get to the "important" things that you need. Then you have to build a gopher path to something else you need but there IS no gopher path to that "important" item... Yeah, you know you've been there too! And if you haven't been there then a big GJ "YOU ****"! Just kidding of course!

As for my contribution to the thread (besides the quote on the To-do list - Thanks Driveitfar!), may I suggest shelves, shelves and more shelves. I recently built some upper cabinets on my "2 garages and a shop" thread and when you do the math, a 12" x 30" x 36" (DxWxH) is equivalent to adding a 5 foot workbench surface to your shop! I added four of these, and a smaller one, and the effect was trans-formational. Just imagine what a difference an extra 20 feet of workbench space will do for you!

The other tip that I offer here is to have separate toolboxes for each type of work. Electrical, Plumbing, Body work, Locksmithing, etc. and when you need to do your electrical work you just grab the electrical tool box and you've got the stuff you need.

I'll come back and post some pics tomorrow of a few other things that may be of interest here.

 

[ClintNZ]

Here's a recent bit of organising I just posted up in my thread. Wanted to fill a couple of empty spaces under the workbench & add some storage.

These worked out really well, easy to make & efficient use of space. Particularly good as my workbench is relatively deep & these can use all of the depth without being hard to get to at the back.

No messy before pictures sorry. Luckily I developed some immunity to FSD before I got my own garage - I used to live above & have access to a friends workshop & while it was really well equipped & he was a very talented fabricator & mechanic, in it's normal state it looked like someone had recently tipped a bunch of random tools, swarf, engine parts & a stick of gelignite in a 44 gal drum & lit the fuse.

 

[drivesitfar]

Thumper: a video would be great so if you get time to make it and post it please do.

HIWind: Happy to see a member from about as far away from me to post here on this thread. lots of great information all over this forum and the internet and my thinking was to put as much of it on this thread as possible so thanks for posting that link. one day i'll own a house again where i can put my car in the garage, but for now it's either a shop or garage for car, but not both. keep posting and hopefully teaching us a few things while you learn a few from us.

SP: love your sense of humor and yes RIT is pretty close to FSD so we might have to go to the same meetings.

post up some of your good ideas or even that gate build to keep your Organized Stuff safer.

Clint: good tips from DOWN UNDER. i've got a few video and steel carts i'm using for my stuff that sits in front of my benches while i'm not using them and then when i need the bench i just roll them out of the way. or at least that is the idea once i cure FSD.

thanks for stopping in and please post more as you find the time to.

 

[Lump]

Great thread, Driveitfar. I really need this. Yet I suspect that my root problem is like, "20 lbs of stuff which needs to fit into a 3 lb bag."

I am a car collector and lover of old tools, equipment, antiques, and grandkids (who visit several times per week, and store their battery-powered cars, tricycles, swim toys, slides, etc, etc, etc in my garage.) I LOVE old hardware cabinets, and like to keep lots of old hardware at my fingertips. My garage is a 2.5 car size, but extra deep. Sigh. I'm doomed.

 

[Super Sport]

Good thread with some good ideas so far! I'm in the process of cleaning up my garage, and now I wish I had taken some "before" pictures. I do have two vehicles in a two stall garage, but stuff was piled in, around, and on top of the vehicles. Nearly all is cleaned up now, but I still have a few small things to get organized with. I'm almost ready to get back to working on the two cars taking up space in there.

Now I just need to move on to the back room on the garage and the basement! Both have gotten worse since I started organizing and cleaning the garage, but neither are as bad as the garage was.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUMP: you are not doomed. as some very wise men have said it just takes a little bit at a time to add up so we can get to see the light at the end of the tunnel. also so we can tell if it's daylight or a train running into us.

one suggestion that works for me is i rent a secure storage for some (most) of my my kids stuff and my duplicates or things i'm going to restore later or flip (to pay the storage). you'll figure it out because as long as you are healthy you have time and some energy to do so. or build a shed and tell them that is all the space they get (i'm talking about kids and grand kids)

SS: thanks for stopping in and hope to see some of your progress and ideas and maybe some of us can help you. i don't advise showing your before or during messes because some members are into making a joke of it, but that said if you do we might be able to give you some ideas. even the MOST ORGANIZED MEMBERS have the catch all spot.

ALL: so while i'm trying to figure out what to put in all my drawers and bins and on my shelves i'll show you part of the problem. if i happen to NEED something and there are cool things at the place or sale that i can buy cheap that i think i might be able to use later i just need to find a place to put them until the need arises. and the key is to be able to FIND them when it does.

so here's my wife's side of the garage which she has graciously loaned me (AGAIN) that usually should be where she parks her car. hopefully i'll show you a picture of her Honda crv parked in there next week because a lot of the STUFF on the floor will either go in my garage's area in a drawer or on a shelf or head to storage or sold.

if some of you only knew what was in those containers that look like GARBAGE or garage sale leftovers you might be surprised. anyway i wasn't going to show my UNORGANIZED STUFF because i have a plan, but some of you think ORGANIZING is easy once we show pics like some have shown or posted videos of. after i get my parents settled today because my dad is back in the hospital again after another fall in their home i'll get r done and post more pictures.