The REST of the hardware storage?

[Kaizen]

I have my fasteners and bolt stuff all figured out in storage things.
But what have you done with the rest of hardware stuff like hinges, casters, wire shelf parts, extra door locks, etc.
Basically extra or salvaged stuff that is in great condition and/or stuff I don’t want to toss in case I can use it - which seems to happen when I’m building stuff.
Leaning towards dedicating a few five inch drawers and making dividers but wondering if anyone has been down this path already?


Sent from my iPhone using Garage Journal

 

[niget2002]

Clear storage containers and a label maker.

Sent from my LM-G820 using Tapatalk

 

[logical]

Clear storage containers and a label maker.

Sent from my LM-G820 using Tapatalk

I do the same, most are about 18 x 24 x 5-6 inches deep, others 12 x 18 x 5-6 deep and stackable. Shallow keeps stuff from getting buried and they are on 24 deep shelves in my basement.

One is casters of all sorts, one is misc. brackets and hanging hooks, one is left over but still good wire...and so on.

The key is avoiding the big deep containers so you can just open it and see everything without digging. I do have an old card file unit that ends up hilding smaller "collections". A drawer of springs, a drawer of rubber pads and bumpers, a drawer of cabinet hardware, etc.

Sent from my garage.

 

[Kaizen]

Clear storage containers and a label maker.

Sent from my LM-G820 using Tapatalk

Problem I’m seeing with that is the parts either won’t fit or will leave a bunch of wasted space. I’m using dewalt clear top cases for the boys and bolts.



Sent from my iPhone using Garage Journal

 

[southalabama]

Akro drawers of varying sizes and depths progressing up to totes.

 

[signcrafter]

It all depends on size of stuff you storing. I have about 50 of the clear plastic "shoe box" size containers on a shelve that I keep most of my odds and ends in. Got one for exhaust clamps, small engine parts, hinges, handles, chain link fence parts, garden hose quick connects, closet organizer hardware, etc. The list goes on and on. I've found this size to be pretty good for general purpose. Isn't too deep were it becomes a bottomless pit. And when I fill one too full I can usually separate the contents into two different ones more specialized. For example I have one with pipe thread fittings. Started out with all sizes and got too full, now have one for 1/2" and one for 3/4". And if those get too full I'll have to break them down even further into two more containers. I also have a ton of bigger black totes from a box store that I keep stuff in. Have one for 1.5" PVC fittings, 2" PVC fittings, 3 and 4" PVC fittings, electrical boxes, sandpaper, wire harnesses I've pulled out of cars, casters, paint roller covers, etc.

Just depends on what works for you and the stuff you need to store.

 

[engineer2]

I have tote bins marked Electrical, Household Hardware, Audio/Video and a few others for stuff that requires big bins. Smaller plastic storage boxes for **** that can be stored on shelves. Wall-mount bins for larger nuts/bolts, springs, brackets, cap-plugs, electrical parts, automotive hardware, wall anchors, etc. Traditional pull-out-bins for screws, small nuts and bolts, shims, washers, brass fittings, small pipe fittings, etc. Plumbing stuff lives in totes in the basement.

I keep finding more **** and reorganizing my storage. Carpentry stuff will go to the shed and sheet metal and machine screws stuff will live in the garage. Figuring it all out is maddening and takes time.

 

[dimwittedmoose51]

I've resorted to grocery store telescoping apple and orange boxes that they give out for free once their empty. I set them up like a returns dept. in a big box store where all the returns are sorted by dept. I save one as a "Heinz 57" box for stuff that is really hard to label......lol. Once I retire, i'll get more **** about it.
DM&FS

 

[nadogail]

A variety of see through boxes with labels

 

[Tduby]

If it is just stuff that will be handy one day in a tote labeled hardware and on the shelf it goes. Small stuff gets put in an electric tape case and in the tote small rarely used **** just isn’t worth sorting much beyond that.

 

[SuperCat]

I use the HF organizer boxes for small stuff, clear plastic shoeboxes with lids for medium sized stuff, and big clear 11 gallon plastic bins with clip style lids for large stuff. I have a variety of Akro bins too, but since they don't have lids, stuff gets dusty/dirty. If it is too big to fit in any of those, it goes on a shelf or ends up on the floor in the corner. Most of the time that works fine, but over time it becomes a mess on the shelves with all these boxes and bins lined up on shelf after shelf, covering the entire wall. I am going through it now and discovering there's a lot of stuff that can go to the trash can, recycle can, and donation box.

Wish I had not kept so much stuff, all it did is clog up my garage for a long time.

 

[PFSard]

For relatively small stuff that I will use infrequently, I plastic bag the stuff to keep similar items together. E.g., hinges that are identical. Place these bags into containers. Label container with general contents. Store container in location that is not taking up valuable space.

For me, I tend to forget the location of those infrequently used items, so ....I keep track of the contents either on Index Cards or an Excel spreadsheet.

 

[Kaizen]

Thanks for all your input. Some ideas to consider


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NUTTSGT]

Akro drawers of varying sizes and depths progressing up to totes.

It's what I do, bigger bins for bigger junk.

 

[tarmy]

Cabinets...lots of them

 

[Kaizen]

Cabinets...lots of them

How do you keep track of what is in each bin without reading 20 labels every time?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Kaizen]

It's what I do, bigger bins for bigger junk.

Trying to get rid of bins as they accumulate and then I can never find.
So if I have to replace something that broke I want to be able to easily look and see without too much moving stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[tarmy]

How do you keep track of what is in each bin without reading 20 labels every time?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Each set of cabinets has a theme...boat stuff, truck stuff, tractor stuff, garden, water, sewer, electric...etc.


There are even more wall cabs...just showed some...

 

[niget2002]

How do you keep track of what is in each bin without reading 20 labels every time?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not sure about him, but if you always put the same container back in the same spot, you start to memorize the most used containers. Then you only have to read for the more infrequent stuff.

Sent from my LM-G820 using Tapatalk

 

[Rickster]

I have several of those black & yellow HF organizers too. I’m not convinced the snap locks will handle heavier stuff so I drilled a hole through the body and cover at the handle and use a zip tie to secure the lid closed. I have about 6 of these like this with heavier items not always used.

 

[loganb]

Each set of cabinets has a theme...boat stuff, truck stuff, tractor stuff, garden, water, sewer, electric...etc.


There are even more wall cabs...just showed some...

Would love to see more of your shop setup if you have pictures handy...drooling on that level of organization...in my plans but nowhere close to it yet!

Sent from The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[tarmy]

Would love to see more of your shop setup if you have pictures handy...drooling on that level of organization...in my plans but nowhere close to it yet!

Sent from The Garage Journal mobile app

The wifey says I am ****...I say I am obsessed...

 

[loganb]

The wifey says I am ****...I say I am obsessed...

I say you can be whatever you want...that looks awesome and I bet is a joy to work in! Much thanks for sharing the pictures!

Sent from The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

The wifey says I am ****...I say I am obsessed...

You're not ****....yet. You're a bit OCD though.

I love how your shop looks overall but may I suggest you don't need eleventeen hammers, screwdrivers or multiple face masks on the peg board? Minimize some of the stuff so it looks less like you're trying to put every-damn-thing on it and instead trying to have just the most used tools on it. If you accomplish this THEN you'll be **** ha ha.

Otherwise,

 

[Barnabas]

Lots of cardboard boxes marked on the end. They were free!
I have them on high and low shelves, and under counters, wherever there is space. They are grouped by catagory, like plumbing, vs electrical. After a while I know basically where they are.
When a box gets full, I find a larger box or split it between multiple boxes.
I am sure I have hundreds of boxes of various sizes.

 

[tarmy]

You're not ****....yet. You're a bit OCD though.

I love how your shop looks overall but may I suggest you don't need eleventeen hammers, screwdrivers or multiple face masks on the peg board? Minimize some of the stuff so it looks less like you're trying to put every-damn-thing on it and instead trying to have just the most used tools on it. If you accomplish this THEN you'll be **** ha ha.

Otherwise,

Sooo...I have another title...this is the bench in my attached garage (the photos above are a detached shop/garage).

 

[mepstein]

Each set of cabinets has a theme...boat stuff, truck stuff, tractor stuff, garden, water, sewer, electric...etc.


There are even more wall cabs...just showed some...

That's similar to my goal. Everything in a drawer or behind a cabinet door.

 

[bugnut]

Same question pops up again. Similar answers

I did this....

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=8615859#post8615859

 

[Kaizen]

Same question pops up again. Similar answers

I did this....

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=8615859#post8615859

Yea. I’m trying to get rid of my large tubs as they are not working out. Items too large to fit in the normal type storage like yours stacked. Also not worth enough to get deep clear boxes at 20 bucks a piece like my dewalt ones.
Think I’ve settled in sectioning a few drawers.
Gonna go through the bins and lay out what I want to keep and go from there. I’m in a tossing mood this week


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Kaizen]

Each set of cabinets has a theme...boat stuff, truck stuff, tractor stuff, garden, water, sewer, electric...etc.


There are even more wall cabs...just showed some...

Right but let’s say you need to go through a cabinet do you just read labels? Or have a cross reference chart or something?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[AngryBeaver]

Right but let’s say you need to go through a cabinet do you just read labels? Or have a cross reference chart or something?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

if you have that much stuff, that you cannot remember where stuff is and have to read labels, you are a hoarder and need to get rid of ****. I have a 48x40 shop full of shelves, cabinets and wall to wall tool boxes. It would take me a year to label everything, and another year to find it.

sure some containers have similar parts/hardware, but after using them once or twice, you should have an idea of what you have and where it is, or you don't need it

 

[LeeG]

I use the 15 quart Steralite clear tubs for miscellaneous storage.

View media item 109419
I keep them generally organized by "types of stuff". Within each tub, I organize groups of things into plastic bags. Quart sandwich bags and a variety of zip seal bags I get from McMaster. I keep photos of the contents in a folder on my phone so it is easy to flip through the containers. I typically update these photos annually.

View media item 109420

I have quite a few of these containers. They hold up well, keep dust out, and are not so big that they get too heavy or hold too much stuff to find what you are looking for.

View media item 95230

 

[tarmy]

Right but let’s say you need to go through a cabinet do you just read labels? Or have a cross reference chart or something?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This...

 

[astroracer]

Filing cabinets, totes, clear shoe boxes, flat file, file card cabinets, etc., etc., etc...
All of my cabinets are on casters so they can be rolled out of the shop for cleaning and rearranging.

Mark

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Following up with my own pictures. Wish I could say I planned it but the containers just happened to fit perfectly in this cabinet.

I made a mistake using clear label tape. At some point I need to swap it out for black or white.

 

[IMCA38]

I picked up this cabinet at an auction a few years ago. It’s 32” wide and 24” deep and about 6 1/2’ high on casters. 64 drawers.
I have it filled with pipe fittings, electrical parts, springs, bearings, collars, bushings, handles, eye bolts, hooks, etc.

 

[MushCreek]

It's the curse of tinkerers and hoarders. I have so much stuff, from tiny hardware to massive truck parts. I've had miscellaneous stuff that i haven't used in decades. I really need to get to work on selling/donating/scrapping some of this stuff so I can organize whatever is left. I must have a half a dozen clutch alignment tools for cars I no longer have. Car parts for cars I no longer have.

Like others, I have the hardware stuff under control with a number of HF organizers in a wall rack. I like that I can take the organizers with me for off-site projects. The bigger and less easily sorted stuff is still an issue, though. The biggest offenders are big car parts, and raw materials like wood and metal.

 

[jives]

Yes, the miscellaneous junk is a problem. . . too good to toss, you know you'll need it at some point, but it builds up. Most of my garage cabinetry are lateral file cabinets. I have dedicated drawers for steel scraps, plumbing fittings, electrical, etc. Smaller parts are kept in plastic nut containers. They are large with large openings, square so they fit together nicely, and we have tons.

 

[niget2002]

Following up with my own pictures. Wish I could say I planned it but the containers just happened to fit perfectly in this cabinet.

I made a mistake using clear label tape. At some point I need to saw it out for black or white.

I like how well this seems to go together. I have a bunch of larger totes in my shop and I'm constantly digging in them to find smaller items. I'm thinking it's time I break down the larger boxes into smaller ones like this.

 

[Jon_E]

May not be helpful but I try to balance the cost of buying new items vs. buying containers to store stuff in. I have cut way back on the amount of storage bins and totes I need because a lot of the **** I've been hoarding has either been tossed or donated to HFH Restore. There were cans of old nails, boxes of hardware and tools I'll never use, some of which were my grandfathers and he passed away in 1962. I don't need piles of stuff, I need open floor space and clear workbenches.