Looking for Organizational Ideas

[Mach5]

I've got a collection of seats from cars...about six sets. Right now they are kind of piled up between my tool box and one of the project cars. Not a very useful solution. I'm trying to think of a good solution, as floor space in my 20x20 garage is at a premium.

I have a pull-down ladder to the attic and could store them up there in the winter, but I'd have to bring them back down again in the summer as it gets quite toasty up there during the 115F summer days here in Phoenix.

Anyone have any ideas? This is but the first of many things I need to deal with as I try to maximize the utility of this space. I've also got many larger parts (e.g. 3-4 engines). Some are spares for cars I no longer have and really should be rid of, but I hate to just throw the stuff away and haven't yet found anyone who wants the bits. Others are spares for one the project cars I have right now. I need to get things organized to make it easier to find parts and to get more working space.

I'd also like to make more use of some of the wall space I have, which right now is consumed by lawn tools and such.

I'll add to this that I've got virtually no budget right now. I'm contemplating trying to pick up some shelving or cabinets second hand.

I will post up some photos, though I'm kind of embarrassed to do so right now because it's such a mess.

EDIT: Photos --

 

[SchillerM]

My first thought is one of these

with some of

on the bottom and, put appropriate sized washers on the frame mounts and hang them so the back is against the wall.
Hope that makes sense?

Matt

 

[Mach5]

Matt: I *think* I get what you are saying...essentially hang the seats upside down from the bottom of the ceiling rack? I only have 8ft high ceilings. I suppose if the backs were along the wall that would help, though it might take away some of the usable wall space. I like your creative thinking on this, though.

I could take the backs off the bottoms and then just store them up on the ceiling rack, too, I suppose.

 

[Jagmandave]

Boy howdy, I feel your pain!

Do you want to keep the seats for future use, or just make sure they go to a proper home?

If the latter, I'd advertise the VW seats on the Samba, I'll bet they'll be gone in a heartbeat.

Craigslist for the others, or........I've been wanting to make a nice frame kinda like on Top Gear, reclining comfy seats would be a treat in the shop!

If nice enough, one would make a cool office chair.

As to the organization part, don't you have an outside shed? I'd get all the non garage stuff out into the yard shed - that's what I did with mine - and keep the garage for "garagey" stuff. I can understand keeping the good bikes in the garage.....

Craigslist for the old engines if they have no real future use to you - again the Samba would be a good place to go with the VW parts. That said, I found a box of brandy new 1st gen Rabbit brake pads, advertised them for $5 on CL - nuttin. So not everything will go easily.....

Car parts are a tough call, you know there's someone out there who could probably use them, but finding that person might be harder work than what they're worth. In which case, there are guys who will pick up scrap metal for free, look in the local Pennysaver or even on CL for a phone number of someone who will do it.

Last resort, put it in boxes on the curb with a sign that says "Free scrap metal" and it will go away....that's how I got rid of my old BBQ grill. That aluminum body was worth a whole bunch of bags of pop cans!

I've got one advantage over you, I have a basement I can fill up with ****!

 

[SchillerM]

Matt: I *think* I get what you are saying...essentially hang the seats upside down from the bottom of the ceiling rack? I only have 8ft high ceilings. I suppose if the backs were along the wall that would help, though it might take away some of the usable wall space. I like your creative thinking on this, though.

I could take the backs off the bottoms and then just store them up on the ceiling rack, too, I suppose.

Yup thats what I was going for. If short ceiling you could do without the rack and just hang the strut channel stuff direct on ceiling too.

I like hanging stuff, my 8' workbench/desk at work has everything hanging from the cabinets above. Only things on desk itself are keyboard/mouse, pens, and all the **** I am working on..
I haven't started my garage yet, but plan to hang things when I can
Matt

 

[Mach5]

The seats:

Porsche 911 -- Original set to my car. Need recovering. I bought a set recovered in cloth for $100 and put them in for now. I can't decide if these are vinyl or leather. Recovering in leather is pricey. Eventually they'll be recovered and put back into the car, and the other set will likely be sold on.

VW -- came out of the pickup. Need to be recovered, too. No real use for them, but they are comfortable. Could make a decent chair.

FIATs --

X 1/9 set 1: Late model style. Came out of the 80. Replaced with identical set in better condition. Need recovering.

X1/9 set 2: Early set. Belong in the 74. Need recovering and rebuilding. These are keepers for sure.

124 Spider -- These are being replaced with historic style racing seats for a 74 Spider being built into sunny-day auto-cross car.

I think that's it. For the FIAT stuff I was going to put a bunch of it into a truck and take it out to CA for car show auto-jumble that happens out there on the first weekend in Nov, but I can't go this year.

As to putting stuff in the shed...it's full of **** from the house. I would get rid of 90% of that, but I have to get permission first, since it isn't my stuff. I think you know what I mean.

As far as selling the VW stuff -- I've listed it all before on The Samba, VW Vortex, and Craigslist. Nobody seems to want it, at least right now. Part of the problem is the cost of shipping. There is a guy I know in Wyoming who is restoring a Mk1 GTI. He wanted to buy the wing (vent) windows and side mirrors. Just to ship those UPS ground was over $50.

I'm sure I have other options. There is a VW parts place down by the airport...I could see if he'd want any of it. I'm sure he'd be happy to take it off my hands, but I doubt he'd be willing to pay me anything for it. I'm not greedy, but it would be nice to get a bit of money for it, since I could get some $$$ just from scrapping the metal.

Anyway, that's more of a long range goal. Right now the focus is on getting my garage back to a usable state.

I was hunting for storage on CL, and I found somebody selling "shelving" for plastic bins. I have tons of the bins but they tend to crush under the weight if you stack them. Anyway, they wanted $135 for a unit and from the description it appears they are just PVC pipe. Well, that got me thinking...if I can find PVC connectors (four-way connectors between "shelves") I could BUILD something like that. PVC is marvelous fun, since it is cheap and easy to work with. The only question is how strong is it. The advert said they'd hold up to 600lbs.

I've got three gorilla shelves out in the shed that hold tubs and boxes. If I could keep the tubs from becoming brittle, I could conceivably build a bunch of these PVC shelves and put the tubs in those, then reclaim the gorilla shelves to the garage for heavier stuff, like engines.

Anyway, I'm thinking this through.

As you can see in the photos, I removed the popcorn from the ceiling a few years back. I plan to spray up some texture and paint...eventually. But I still need to sand/smooth the ceiling a bit, or so I'm told by the contractors who've seen it. But to do any serious work to the ceiling (or floor), I need to get all the stuff out. Or at least the cars. I don't want to leave the 74 X outside overnight, though, because it doesn't have any paint on it.

 

[crewchief888]

i'll toss in my $0.02 worth.

the "stuff" from old projects, or anything you have no use for, take to a swap meet, and price it like you want it gone, and not return home with it.

the goal is to return home with an empty truck/trailer, nothing but cash in your pocket.

any money is better than no money, AND an overflowing garage.

open the overhead door, and start making piles, one for trash/garbage, one to keep, one for scrap.

clean up the mess, scrap/recycle what you can, then find a place for the stuff you want to keep.

"shopping" garage sales, flea mkts, restore may score some shelf brackets shelves ect for little to nothing. an occasional dumpster dive might get you some more usable storage.

every bit of storage in my garage, shelves, metal cabinets, acrobins, hardware drawers, with the exception of tool boxes, was salvaged or repurposed in one way or another.

 

[KPSquared]

Best organizational move you can make is to get rid of the **** you don't need. If you don't have an immediate use for it and it's not some "can't find it anywhere super rare" piece of machinery, then just get rid of it. The more **** your lose, the cleaner the space will get!

 

[Mach5]

Yeah, guys, I get the "if you don't need it, get rid of it philosophy." For the VW stuff in particular, that makes sense.

For the FIATS, I have a lot of them right now and keeping that stuff makes sense, even if I don't have an immediate use. Why? Because I guarantee the part I sell or dispose of now I will have to buy back at some point. And pay shipping to boot.

Most everything else in the garage belongs to a car I have or is a tool that I have used or will use. Or is a spare for something for the house. So, even if I get rid of "unnecessary" stuff, I STILL have a lot of parts to store -- much of it belonging to the 74 that's been stripped for bodywork/repaint.

 

[Daniel Dudley]

Develop separate storage for unused parts.

 

[70C-10]

Lateral file cabinets on CL.

Pallet racking

Metal shelving

 

[crf731]

If you are out of room, build a shed or rent a storage unit.

 

[Jagmandave]

My basement was overflowing with old **** that had been here since years before I moved in with my wife - most of it was leftover from when her parents (deceased by now) had moved into a smaller place and was just old junk and ****, but she couldn't let go of it. It took a long time but finally I was able to start throwing it all away, garage selling it, craigslisting it, Ebaying it and so on. It's still not all cleared out, but it's a lot better than it was.

You may need to do the same with your storage shed.....or build another one right next to it - "his" and "hers" so to speak!

I see them listed on the local Craigslist all the time for pretty short money, and some of them are almost brandy new.

One thing's for sure, getting all of that out of the garage will really open up some working room and make you feel better about your space!

Oh, and an easy, cheap way to texture your ceiling - they sell a fine sand at HD, mix it with ceiling paint and roll it on - hides all the sins and easy-peasy.

For the seats, how about a couple of pallets on the ground on the side of the garage behind the fence so the neighbors won't complain and wrap them up in heavy duty plastic bags (HD sells "contractor weight" big bags - they use them for site cleanup) to protect them from the weather, maybe throw a cheap HF tarp over them for extra protection? Same with the extra engines and transmissions? Run a cheap bicycle lock thru them if you're worried about theft, but if they're wrapped up tightly enough, who'll even know what they are?

Here's a 6'X8" for $300, NIB.... http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/grd/4097685864.html

$25 for 4 filing cabinets...... http://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/hsh/4076927029.html

 

[BDT/NWMN]

Y A R D S A L E

and tell family members and friends that your garage does not have corners..

six sets of seats would drive me nuts...There is no way in hell I would want to see those every time I went into the garage... There is enough stuff to drive a person nuts without a stack like that..... Work space= neat, organized, and uncluttered.
Storage area or shed= possibly cluttered but well organized storage... In other words, it is best to de-clutter your work area; and keep it that way.. Can those seats be stored in a spare vehicle?

 

[Mach5]

Going off topic in my own thread...I think that's permissible, right?

Anyway, I got a parts washer for free years ago, but it needs some type of solvent. It looks to me to be sitting on a 30 gal. drum. To refill that drum would be VERY pricey, and would likely be more solvent than I'd use in 10 years. Maybe not.

Any thoughts on what/where/how I can get decent solvent to replace the used stuff that's in the tank now? (There's maybe 2 gal in the drum and it's very old). My understanding is that the companies that deliver/exchange won't come to houses.

I also am starting to build a collection of hazardous chemicals left over from working on cars -- used gas and coolant, primarily. I can take the oil to the local auto parts retailer and they'll take if from me. I can take the hazardous chemicals to the city drop-off points that they have throughout the year, but they will only take so much and most of the time I'd have to drive across town to dump (they only do pickup in my neighborhood once a year). Anyone have thoughts on safe and legal disposal???

Thanks. Oh, and on the organization issue, for now I'm looking at (a) storage shelves for my parts bins and (b) getting a second shed for the side yard. I've considered building onto the garage, but I don't have the $$$ right now, and anyway that would require a permit and plans and possibly a variance, since I'd probably want to extend to the property line.

A few years back, when times were good (right before the bubble burst), I was seriously lusting after a vacant 2 acre parcel that was around the corner from my buddy's house. It had two drive entrances and was capable of being split, so I thought I could buy and split it in two lots and use the one. I also thought about having the buddy go in with me and building two houses and a 50x100 shop and we'd all just move there. But the property was held in a trust for an elderly lady and required court approval for the sale and they wanted way too much money for it. To this day I'm not sure it ever sold (but the old buildings have been knocked down and removed). In the interim, my business got hit HARD by the economic downturn and I'm still trying to recover.

Hope your weekend is going well, gentlemen. Look forward to your thoughts ideas.

BTW, you can see the parts washer and part of the drum in a couple of the photos above.

 

[jd_1138]

You said you have Fiat cars? And the seats go to them. Why not just put the seats inside the cars? Stack them in there.

An old shipping container would be cool to have. You could cut some doors into it.

 

[Mach5]

Here's a shot of the parts washer:

Photos from under the lid of the parts washer:

These may give me the clue to finding replacement fluid here locally...

 

[fatboy99]

If you have a tractor supply near you they have parts cleaner solvent in 5 gallon buckets. You should only need 15 to 20 gallons not a full 30 I put 15 in mine and the pump was covered well.

 

[beatcad]

I dunno if theres any "organization" that'll help you.
looks like you got 2 choices...
1-get an outdoor storage unit or shed or something similar
2-get rid of stuff.

I know the 2nd choice kinda *****, but do ya know how good it feels to take a truckload of(usefull) stuff to the dump? its like a huge weight off yer shoulders.
of couse it never fails a week after you trash something a friend is looking for it
for normal people a garage is for parking a car. for gearheads a garage is for working on cars. ya gotta have room to move around.

i'm sorry if I came across *** an ***, I've been drinking

 

[Mach5]

Fatboy99 - thanks for the suggestion. I just need to find a tractor supply reasonably close to home and find a way to get there when they are open!

Beatcad - several years ago I did just that...stayed home and threw out a ton of **** and took a few truckloads to goodwill. Thing is, probably half or more of the stuff in my garage isn't mine! A bunch of the seats and stuff I plan to get rid of, but I'm holding onto them for spares for other cars at the moment.

I'm thinking I need storage cabinets in the garage and/or another shed on the side yard to hold stuff, as per one of the responsive posts in this thread.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

 

[Kevin54]

As far as the parts washer, you only need enough in the barrel to cover the pump, have the hose filled and what little bit will be in the tank. I think on my 30 gallon washer I had maybe 7 or 8 gallons in it.

You need a shed. Get all of the lawn and garden stuff out of there if you can.

Look at this thread started by lilscorpion http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=174553

Also do a search for the "Show me your garage bench". There are also threads about building cabinets and overheads. Your garage is offset on the one side. With the proper bench and the proper overheads, you can store a lot of stuff in that area plus still have a workable bench.

When I had wood overhead cabinets, I built a long section in a day. I used pine shelving 1x12's for the boxes, and I used 1x3's for the stiles and rails. I could probably find my pics and post them up on here for you to see. I ended up giving my buddy all of my cabinets when I got in on the Gladiator deal a couple of years ago, then decided to redo my workbench so I don't have anything on the floor except for the mill and lathe, and my rolling toolboxes. I have a shed that the mowers and garden tools go in because hanging stuff like that in a garage takes up too much wall space. And like others have stated....if you don't need it, don't use it, get rid of it whether you give it away, sell it at a swap meet, or sell it on CL. I have to rearrange my own garage yet again so I can move my machinery to the other side, so I am down to bare minimum on one side to be able to paint. Myself, I sure wish we were going into Summer or Spring instead of Winter to finish up some of our organization.

 

[Ocho]

In some states, if you sell oil or anti-freeze you have to take old stuff back for recycling, so you might call some parts stores.

If nothing else, you should be able to dispose of your automobile related chemicals at a place like Pep Boys or Wal Mart. Their shops have to recycle all of those fluids and have the appropriate containers and disposal schedule. Unless you have fifty gallons of stuff the shop probably won't mind unless their tank is close to full.

 

[spotco2]

Here's my take on it.

First, take all of those yard tools off the wall and lean them against a wall outside or prop them in the corner of the existing shed that you already have. Hanging like that on the wall takes up a ton (looks like about 8'-10') of valuable real estate. Throw those hanging racks away that the yard tools are on. Same goes for that 8' section of hanging brooms. Hell, you don't NEED 4-6 brooms and 4 dustpans. You can't even see the floor!

Build a shelf on the front wall across the top of the garage door. Simple shelf can be built out of a few 1x6's and hung with chain and eye bolts from the ceiling just high enough to clear the door. Put all of that stuff on the shelves with the dash pads on that new shelf above the garage door. Tie all of the lose stuff (looks like weatherstripping) together with some string so it just makes a bundle. That should clear off that set of shelves with the exception of a few boxes. Toss that styrofoam cooler unless it was your grandfathers and he carried it by horseback as he brought the family west years ago.

Those doors propped up against the wall can be hung flat against the ceiling with eye bolts into rafters and rope.

Use the car you are not working on this week to store seats you want to keep and other parts that will fit. I know you're not working on both of those cars every day. Pack the trunk of the project cars with parts and pieces.

Look at that rack in post #2. You can build the base out of lumber, attach the back to the wall and the front to the ceiling with either chain and eye bolts, unistrut with threaded rod, or something secure. Start stacking totes and boxes up there. You could build a section above where the rakes are on the wall, on the wall where the air compressor is and another section above the parts washer. Another could go above the workbench.

Screw the parts washer. Don't buy chemicals for it until you build some storage areas. You've already said you have virtually no budget.

Do those computer monitors work? If so, put them on Craigslist or hook them up to your computer. If not, toss them.

You said you have attic access. Start moving some of those totes and bins full of things that temp won't hurt up there until you need them. You might have to sort them out first though.

What's in all those random boxes around the bench and tool box? Could that be consolidated into fewer containers and moved into the attic or into one of the cars? Boxes take up a lot of space by design.

Did I see you say that some of that stuff in the garage is not yours? I had that problem once and got tired of it. I loaded up everybody elses stuff and spent the day going around town playing Santa Clause and delivering them boxes of their own **** back so they could figure out where to store it.

You've got a lot of usable space there, you just need to organize it. This is coming from the most unorganized, organized person you will ever meet.

 

[Slickster76]

Going off topic in my own thread...I think that's permissible, right?


I also am starting to build a collection of hazardous chemicals left over from working on cars -- used gas and coolant, primarily. I can take the oil to the local auto parts retailer and they'll take if from me. I can take the hazardous chemicals to the city drop-off points that they have throughout the year, but they will only take so much and most of the time I'd have to drive across town to dump (they only do pickup in my neighborhood once a year). Anyone have thoughts on safe and legal disposal???

I don't know how it works out where you are, but I know a couple local shop owners around me. They dump almost all of their used auto fluids into a big drum and a truck comes by every once in a while and ***** it all out for recycling. Not a big money maker, but the company that removes the fluid buys all of it. Maybe you can find someone around you that will gladly let you add to their collection of fluids so they get a few extra bucks and you don't have a pile of full containers in your garage.

 

[Mach5]

Guys...It's been a while since I checked my own thread. First, thanks for the ideas. I'm still mulling over my options and sorting through what to do with things.

For now, though, I got a tarp from Harbor Freight. I put down a wooden "shelf" I built for the shed several years ago along the wall of the house on the side yard, and stacked the chairs up along that, and covered them with the tarp. I also moved the engines and transmissions and other big parts back outside for now and covered them with an old tarp. I got rid of some junk plastic tubs and crud on the side yard that I was intending to get rid of for a while. I haven't had a pickup since 2004 (though I plan to remedy that soon), so that has slowed many of my project ideas down because I need the truck to run stuff to the dump, Goodwill, etc. in order to make room for the stuff I want to keep.

One of my ongoing "to dos" for the house was to add more blow in insulation in the attic. In particular I wanted to insulate over the garage to keep it cooler. A couple weekends ago I spent an entire weekend in the attic blowing in 72 bags of insulation, which hopefully will keep the whole house cooler and drive down my electric bill somewhat. The downside of this project is that it got dust and insulation bits everywhere in my garage. I desperately needed to clean it. So, today's project was to get all of the stuff on the floor of the garage out so that I could clean it. I spent about 2 hours moving stuff out onto the side yard (which is now stuffed and cluttered), then pressure washed and flop mopped the garage floor. I still need to do the raised section around the workbench and sink.

I had to stop because I got tired and hungry and its 99F out this afternoon and I needed to cool off a bit. Which is why I'm sitting at my computer typing this post now. Plus, I had to stop to go get my daughter, who was taking the SAT this morning.

So, the main garage is now pretty clean and I left the 911 outside under the car cover. The 74 FIAT X1/9 I put back in the garage. My current thinking is that I'll leave the 911 outside and put the 80 FIAT X1/9 in the garage so that I can keep it clean and finish the last bit of work on it before I sell it.

Meanwhile, I've looked at buying used kitchen cabinets to put along one side of the garage. There is a place close buy called Stardust that has them, but they still want a fair amount of money to my mind, and the cabinets are still fairly small. So, my current think is to gradually buy and install various metal cabinets for storage, ala Jack Olsen's 12 Ga Garage. I figure metal cabinets will hold heavy vehicle parts better and will look better in a garage than would old Kitchen cabinets.

I'm also considering just building a carport on the side yard, and then putting cabinets or shelves out there along the house wall. If I did that I would probably get rid of the shed because it takes up a lot of space. We'll see. A carport will likely require a permit, so that may not happen. In the interim I'm making do as best I'm able with what I have. I'm trying to rethink my garage space to maximize utility and the feeling of space. So, I'm not going to start moving stuff back into it unless and until I've decided it needs to be there or will serve a purpose.

Meanwhile, I'm definitely going to get rid of the garden tool racks on the walls. My thought was that I might get a broom closet and put them all in there. I can't really put them in the shed because (a) right now it's stuffed, and (b) it's not really tall enough. I haven't decided on the best solution for those yet but will soon.

I agree I don't need so many brooms. Honestly I don't even know how we got half of them. I just got tired of them being in the way (i.e, all over the house) all the time and put up that 8' rack just to keep them organized. I know at least one of them (along with a big aluminum dust pan) was left behind by a contractor doing work on the house. But whoever commented on that is right -- at least a couple of those should go away.

I also have a lot of stuff I've collected over the years that was going to either be sold or donated and just hasn't been. Since I'm back in my "purge" phase that's going to change soon. (It was a lot easier to keep control over this clutter issue when I had a pickup).

So, here's how the garage looked before I started:

And here is how it looks at the moment:

All the stuff piled on the 74 X is just there temporarily. You can't see it in the photo but on top of the front of the X is a bunch of tin that I got to run an exhaust out the side of the house for the dryer (when the roof was redone several years ago the contractor didn't reinstall the roof jack and it's just been venting into the attic). I was also going to use some of it to run the exhaust for the portable AC that I plan to set up in the garage to cool it for when I'm out there working, but unfortunately I bought 4" and discovered I need 5".

On the solvent issue, I don't know what is presently in the drum, and am concerned about mixing incompatible products. Otherwise, I like the idea of just running to the local tractor supply and getting 10gal to get things going. Except that the nearest Tractor Supply is clear on the other side of town and it would take an hour or so of fighting Phoenix traffic to get there. Plus, I really need to put it in the bed of a truck, instead of inside of the MINI or the Honda Odyssey.

So, next on the garage projects is removing all of the cleaning and gardening tools and racks, moving stuff out from around the bench and cleaning it, and deciding where to put the bicycles. Then I can start working on where to put cabinets and what to return to the garage now.

One thing that WON'T be going back into the garage is all of the paint cans I had along one wall. I kept those cans for years "just in case" I needed to do touch up. I thought even if the paint dried I could use the cans to match it. But the reality is that if I do repaint I'll likely change colors, and I can keep pictures of the labels to know what I have. So, the paint cans are going.

More to follow.

 

[Jagmandave]

Significant improvement!

It's so much easier to work when you have just a little bit of space.....

 

[Mach5]

Well, I wouldn't consider this the finished product. There is some stuff that is outside right now that will have to come back in because it isn't weather proof.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

 

[TTTampa]

Here's my take on it.

Did I see you say that some of that stuff in the garage is not yours? I had that problem once and got tired of it. I loaded up everybody elses stuff and spent the day going around town playing Santa Clause and delivering them boxes of their own **** back so they could figure out where to store it.

Best suggestion ever! let people take care of their own stuff.....

 

[mdbeck1]

...
For now, though, I got a tarp from Harbor Freight. I put down a wooden "shelf" I built for the shed several years ago along the wall of the house on the side yard, and stacked the chairs up along that, and covered them with the tarp. I also moved the engines and transmissions and other big parts back outside for now and covered them with an old tarp. I got rid of some junk plastic tubs and crud on the side yard that I was intending to get rid of for a while.

Sounds like a good start.

Most communities have a "Large Trash Day". Check the city's web site and see if yours has one as well. If not it sounds like you might be able to get one of those "construction waste" taurps and have someone come pick it up. Unfortunately I don't remember the URL but someone will chime in and remind us all.

...
Meanwhile, I've looked at buying used kitchen cabinets to put along one side of the garage. There is a place close buy called Stardust that has them, but they still want a fair amount of money to my mind, and the cabinets are still fairly small. So, my current think is to gradually buy and install various metal cabinets for storage, ala Jack Olsen's 12 Ga Garage. I figure metal cabinets will hold heavy vehicle parts better and will look better in a garage than would old Kitchen cabinets.

I would look at the local "box" store (Home Depot, Lowes, or the equivalent). They sell several versions of the metal racks. I've got a section set up in my garage. The bottom 3' has a couple small rolling toolboxes under it (Behind it is storage), from 3'-6' I have tried to set up a workbench (never actually completed it), and the upper section is storage for plastic tubs.

also... if you buy any kind of cabinets start off with mobile bases. Then you can move them around for the next several months until you are happy with the arrangement. I use the HF mobile 4 roller dollies for that and it usually works out well.

...
I'm not going to start moving stuff back into it unless and until I've decided it needs to be there or will serve a purpose.

Again... mobile bases will help some. Just don't get them too top heavy.
When you figure out where you want them permanently you can just take the dolly off.

...
Meanwhile, I'm definitely going to get rid of the garden tool racks on the walls. My thought was that I might get a broom closet and put them all in there. I can't really put them in the shed because (a) right now it's stuffed, and (b) it's not really tall enough. I haven't decided on the best solution for those yet but will soon.

The best temporary solution I had was to put a couple of LONG bolts through the rack and stack several of the garden/brooms on them. That way they only take up one or two slots.

...
I agree I don't need so many brooms.

I usually have a couple of brooms out. One is a big wide "shop" broom and the other a standard "house broom". They get moved around quite often.

...
(It was a lot easier to keep control over this clutter issue when I had a pickup).

It sounds like you need to rent one for the day. Around here Home Depot rents by the hour. ...or find someone you know that has one and ask them for a hand.

...
One thing that WON'T be going back into the garage is all of the paint cans I had along one wall. I kept those cans for years "just in case" I needed to do touch up. I thought even if the paint dried I could use the cans to match it. But the reality is that if I do repaint I'll likely change colors, and I can keep pictures of the labels to know what I have. So, the paint cans are going.

Good call. You can buy "Paint Hardner" at the box store but I think it's basically just oil dry. Pop the lids, drop some in, stir it up, and let it dry. When dry just toss it into the trash can.

 

[Mach5]

I was actually thinking I'd take the paint to either goodwill or one of those places that recycles building materials. That way maybe someone else could use it for s small project...

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

 

[Mach5]

Originally Posted by spotco2 View Post
Here's my take on it.

Did I see you say that some of that stuff in the garage is not yours? I had that problem once and got tired of it. I loaded up everybody elses stuff and spent the day going around town playing Santa Clause and delivering them boxes of their own **** back so they could figure out where to store it.

Best suggestion ever! let people take care of their own stuff.....

Well, except that the "stuff" in question is car parts belonging to my buddy JB's car. Admittedly I have some other stuff of his up in my attic, too (mostly plastic piping for central vac). But I'm sure he has some of my stuff in his garage, too. Actually, the 74X is his, not mine...though it may become mine. And the 80X we own together. Point being, it's a bit more complicated than just keeping other people's stuff.

 

[Mach5]

Look at this thread started by lilscorpion http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=174553
.

A lot of interesting ideas in there. I subscribed to that thread. Thanks!

 

[Mach5]

This morning I spent some time in the garage thinking about how I want to rearrange things. One of the things I decided to do was take down the 27" CRT that was hanging from the ceiling in the corner. That was a PIA to get down -- by myself.

I also finally got the portable AC ducted so that I could run it. My garage used to have no insulation above it, and would get up over 100F during the day. Still cooler than outside, if only marginally, but sometimes it felt hotter because the air was stagnant. A few weeks ago I spent the entire weekend in the attic to blow in insulation, and that alone has kept the garage about 15F cooler. I had bought this portable AC when our rooftop unit crapped out last summer to use as a temporary solution until I could get the rooftop unit fixed. I figured that since I had it I might as well put it to use in the garage. It came with a 5" plastic flexi-duct that connects to an adjustable vent/seal that you place in a window. I don't have any windows in the garage, so my solution was to get some 6" insulated flexi-duct, put it over the attached 5" plastic ducting, and just plumb it through the ceiling. The hot air exhausts out into the attic by the gable vent, at least for now. I also extended the dryer vent flexi-hose and tied it up so that it exhausts out the gable vent -- again, temporarily. I have a duct that I plan to cut in to the side of the house, and will run the dryer to that to exhaust the heat.

Anyway, I'm making slow progress.

Having taken down the TV, and having moved the toolbox over, opened up my bench somewhat. That gave me the idea that I will move this computer out into the garage and mount the monitor(s) on the wall. I might need to make a keyboard shelf to get it out of the way when I am working on the bench. I also want to get a stool so that I can sit at the bench when working on detail projects.

I got a key box that I'm thinking right now I will hang next to the garage door opener. I may put the plastic hardware drawer that is presently on the bench on the wall next to the key box. That will give me back even more bench space.

Getting all of the **** out of the garage has opened up my mind to new possibilities for organization that I hadn't even thought of while trying to figure out what to do with all the ****. Now the only issue is that all that **** is cluttering up my side yard and I need to protect it until I can dispose of it properly. I've had some discussion with others about building a carport on that side, but didn't really want to get a permit. I understand that as long as it is under a certain square footage and not attached to the house, I don't need one. So my present thinking is that I will get six 4x4s, have them be 10' on the house side and 8' on the fence side, then run a frame to hold them altogether and put some kind of plates on the bottoms. Then short term I can tie a tarp to the frame to provide some limited weather protection, and as time and money progresses I may substitute in corrugated roofing in its place.

 

[Mach5]

Installed a key cabinet next to the garage door opener, and then put the hardware sorter next to it. My workbench is growing!

 

[Mach5]

I rehung the tandem bicycle. I moved the bike back closer to the roll up door by about 4 1/2ft. Puts it over the car a bit more and opens up the area closer to the toolbox and bench. I needed to hang it to get it out of the way and because it is so tall I needed to put it close to a wall and out of the usual work area so that I wouln't bump into it.

I also cleaned the up the outside of the parts washer a bit, and then tried to run the parts cleaner. I could hear the pump run but no fluid, so it would seem the drum is dry. Been hunting the web for an inexpensive solution that is reasonably safe.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

 

[cactiki]

I used to have a truck. I loved it, but I realized that between registration, insurance, tires, etc. it was costing me an arm and a leg to go to the dump once in a while. So I parked the truck in my field. Instead, I got a used Harbor Freight 4x8 trailer for $50! I have spent $150 on it since then, replacing tires, adding plywood, etc. but I still think it was one of the best things I ever did. My wife thought I was crazy when I put a hitch on my Honda Civic! But it goes great and I can run to Homey Depot and buy plywood anytime I want. I love it!
You can buy a brand new trailer from Harbor Freight for $300 or so, and they even have one that folds if space is an issue.

 

[MEAKN]

As far as the seats are concerned, I had 4 (or 5?) sets. They were always in the way and took up too much room until I had a bright idea. I had a few storage shelves (racks) I bought at Costco for storing mostly car parts. My seats fit perfectly two to a shelf. I stored them on the shelves and secured them with a loose rope across the seat backs to keep them from falling off the shelf. They took up a whole set of shelves but freed up a whole lot of floor space.

 

[vankaye]

Both the area of your garage where the lawn tools are hung on the wall and where the plastic shelfs are... could be replaced by large sturdy shelving that will hold seats, motors, and many of the items you are wanting to store: IF you replace the particle board on these shelving units with 3/4 plywood they become storage monsters!!

 

[DenisG]

Someone here re-purposed car seats into office desk chairs:
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=166708

 

[JamieK]

Why not just put the seats in the attic and forget about them. They are designed to live in cars so the heat is not going to hurt them. I'm sure it gets hotter in a car than than your attic during the summer. Besides, the only part of the seat that the heat may damage anyway is the leather or vinyl covering. And you said they all needed to be reupholstered anyway.