Depending on how you use your garage, it may be the most accessed place in your home. Those that park their cars in the garage, they’re in there every day. On the other hand, you might have converted your garage into a living space that gets used every day as well. Whatever the case may be, there are a few common garage problems that homeowners face.
Nothing lasts forever, and you might be experiencing some mishaps with your garage. Have no fear with every garage problem. There’s a solution. From your garage door to the foundation itself, the problems can range in severity. We’re here to go over some of the most common garage problems and how you can fix them so you can use your garage with no worries.
An extremely common occurrence among homeowners is that they tend to neglect their garage more so than other areas of their home. When this happens, their garage becomes an unorganized mess that you hate going into. Not only is a messy, unorganized garage a hassle to deal with, it also creates some safety hazards for you, your family and anything valuable that you may store in there.
The solution to this garage problem? Clean it up and organize. In order to truly get rid of the mess and make sure it doesn’t come back, you need to really get in there and have a plan of action going forward.
Common Garage Storage Mistakes
If you’re one of the hundreds of homeowners who can’t park in their garage because it’s a storage disaster, or among those who continually swear to clean and organize in the spring, you may want to tackle it sooner rather than later.
Fixing these common storage mistakes won’t just help with your garage’s usage, flow, and space, but you could be preventing an accident.
Yard and Lawn Care Tools & Equipment
The garage is regularly home to the tools and pieces of equipment we use to take care of our yards. So after a long day of toiling in the sun, why would we think twice about storing a mower, string trimmer, hedge clippers, and other tools neatly away?
The paradise of air conditioning is steps away. It’ll be easy to lean them against the wall, toss them in a plastic bin, or hang them haphazardly on a rusty nail.
But this is one of the most common mistakes in garage storage. It’s not safe to trust that rusted nail lazily tacked into a board to hold your lawn equipment, especially if it has blades or sharp edges.
Instead, invest in a slatwall panel garage storage system or a sturdy garage cabinet set. No equipment will be in danger of falling, and everything can be stored neatly away in seconds, freeing up space and saving you time.
Uncoiled Garden Hoses
It’s safe to say that just about everyone hates to coil up a hose, which leads to the common mistake of leaving the house in a pile in your garage. Not only can you trip over this, but also you’re not doing the hose any favours, either.
You’ll extend the lifetime of the hose and save yourself a nasty fall by purchasing an easy to use hose reel.
Bikes
The bane of every garage—bikes. Bulky and hard to store, bikes take up more space than necessary and are the likely culprit behind most Americans having limited room in their garage. Leaving bikes on the floor of your garage is a common storage mistake.
The solution is quite simple. Consider this: your garage’s vertical space. Hang bikes upside down from the ceiling of your garage by using sturdy hooks that will hold the bike by its frame or wheels.
Bikes are lightweight, and so getting them on and off is no problem. If you don’t feel like lifting them on and off the ceiling hooks all summer, that’s all well and good. Leave them on the floor, but come winter, they’ll have a place that’s seasonally out of the way.
Now look around, no bikes on the floor, tons of space, and zero times those bike handle jam into your side as you maneuver around the garage.
Paint
You might think that the garage is the perfect place to store paint, but it’s the opposite. Sure, all of your other house-related tools are stored out there, but your garage’s exposed environment can ruin those expensive cans of paint in a matter of time.
Paint needs a dry, cool place for storage. But, for it to retain its consistency, paint needs an equally consistent atmosphere. That means no dramatic temperature shifts, no freezing cold, no exposure to moisture, and no extreme heat during the summer months.
It’s a common mistake to stash paint away in the garage, one that will ruin your supply, so instead, store the cans in your basement.
Carpets, Rugs, & Clothes
Garages are for storage, but a common mistake that most homeowners make is thinking that they can store things like carpets, rugs, and clothing items in this area with no consequences.
Not only will mould and mildew set into these items due to garages being comparably not ventilated as other parts of your home, but mice may find them an enticing place to nest.
Instead, store any fibrous items in low-humidity, well-ventilated areas. If you have to use your garage as storage for these items, make sure there’s proper airflow and run a dehumidifier, and try to use a sealed container, if possible.
Your Old, Inefficient Fridge
How many of us have an old fridge they thought they’d store out in the garage? It costs you by being energy inefficient and possibly inviting unwanted creatures into your garage. Food that’s unsealed, even in freezers or fridges, can attract vermin. In addition, appliances that aren’t Energy Star certified are more expensive to run, and you’ll notice that on your monthly energy bills.
If you want to have a fridge or freezer in your garage, avoid these common mistakes. Instead, get an Energy Star appliance; you’ll save money with the investment. Seal any food in airtight containers, and be sure to periodically check to ensure your garage is critter-free and that food hasn’t spoiled.
Organize Your Garage & Avoid These Mistakes
We put off cleaning our garages for most of us, but in doing so, we’re creating our own worst enemy in common storage mistakes that quickly turn to safety hazards.
It doesn’t take long for a garage to turn into an unorganized, dysfunctional mess. So instead, smartly organize your garage by avoiding these common mistakes. You’ll thank yourself later.
Organization Doesn’t Work with a Small Garage.
You organize your garage and remove all the unwanted stuff, but you still don’t have enough space. Let’s face it, the problem here is not your stuff, but it’s your garage. However, there’s a solution to this problem, and it starts with a brand new detached garage.
15 Brilliant Ways to Organize Your Garage
The garage is a dumping ground for anything that does not fit in your house. If you have a lot of things in your garage, you can’t find a tool or anything you need while doing some repair or other work — you are not alone.
We would like to help you with these 15 brilliant ways to organize your garage in a proper manner that can be helpful in organizing your tools, vehicles, and other stuff so you can find them easily whenever you want.
Get the Right Toolbox
At the heart of a well-organized garage is a terrific toolbox. This simple piece of equipment will keep all of the tools you want in one place, in good condition, and has the benefit of making them more portable. Based on how big your garage is and what equipment you require, you may think about considering a lot of options. For example, for bigger spaces with lots of tools to save, you may choose to install a cabinet for tools. For extra utility, this cabinet could have brakes on its base, letting you pull it around or even outside the garage.
Ceiling Storage System
Make better use of your garage space and store things off the ground with this DIY project. It costs about $75 and is a great way to put away seldom-used things.
Set up Proper Lighting
A well-lit garage is important for best use. Employing the ideal garage light will make it a lot easier to get your tools and enable you to do the garage projects you want without straining your eyes. In addition, overhead lighting that is installed properly can be a real space saver compared to plugged-in lamps that can also be a hazard.
Utilize Wall Space for Storage
You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars to get a good garage storage system. You can save money by making it yourself. You also get to make it precisely the way you’ll need it. Just adding a couple of shelves can help immensely with storage problems – always a good solution for any home renovation project.
Draft Your Garage Floor
Most manufacturers of garage-organizing systems offer space planning, so they utilize their services. Before investing in this, take down your garage’s dimensions and see how positioning and the dimensions of windows, doors, switches, and receptacles, in addition to how much space your vehicle takes up, affects your garage’s floor plan.
Items that you utilize together, such as gardening tools and yard implements, should be kept alongside each other. Set bulky equipment, such as lawnmowers, in corners, so they will not get bumped or knocked over by your vehicle. Place frequently used items, such as bikes, near the garage door—stash seasonal or rarely used items at the hardest-to-reach spots.
Invest in Good Door and Window Locks
Break-ins usually happen when the garage door is left open or the door is left unlocked. Always secure the entrance door and keep garage windows locked. Put in a garage door lock that bolts the door and use it when you’re out for an extended period. And consistently close the garage door, even if you’re just mowing the lawn.
Install a Pegboard
Pegboards make organizing a breeze. They work in garages of all sizes, letting you efficiently use every piece of square footage. Several strands and hooks can hold tools and paint supplies for simple organization.
Install Cabinets
Cabinets are not that difficult to put in yourself, and also you also can save a fortune. Cabinets are great for storing things and keeping the garage tidy, and depending on the cabinets that you purchase, you might find a way to put away everything so that your garage always looks completely clean.
Garage Corner Shelves
Although you already have shelves in the spots that are obvious, what about utilizing the corners? This corner shelf unit reaps the benefits of existing studs and is fast, easy, and inexpensive. Utilize garbage plywood or oriented strand board to make shelves that fit between your corner studs. These corner shelves are perfect for keeping smaller items such as oils, glues, waxes, and polishes that can get lost on bigger shelves.
Install a Ball Ramp
If there is one kind of thing that always seems to be in the way, it’s balls! Footballs, soccer balls, basketballs, all could contribute to a dreadful trip and mess up your garage too. One genius solution for storing these is to put them in a simple ball. These are fundamentally angled shelves, created from a board of wood gearing upward. They can be set up anywhere, even in small spaces. Kids are likely to get behind this particular storage method, as it’s easy to take balls in and out of those slots.
Install a Foldable Workbench
Think you don’t have a space for a workbench? Think again! You might have room enough to install a simple Murphy-bed style bench, which folds away if it is not in use. A decent DIY enthusiast can construct their particular fold-away workbench cost-effectively and readily. However, you can also purchase one from a hardware store.
Paint the Garage Floor
Painting the garage floor requires organizational strategy, but it is crucial to making the most of one’s garage. A standard floor has some serious drawbacks, including the way the irregular surface may let in leaves and bugs, and how readily it stains. You can apply an Epoxy coat for approximately $60, which is easier to clean and will improve the look. It is possible to coat the ground of the garage easily.
Hang the Bikes
Hanging bicycles from the rafters or walls can be an excellent way to save garage space. But hanging bicycles can also take up a bunch of room. The Saris Cycle Glide is a cool, space-saving product that puts a fresh twist onto the small bike hook (around $245). They can be slid near to the wall onto the glides that mount perpendicular once the bicycles are on the hooks. And because the pins slide forward and backward on the set of slides, the bicycle can be nestled together, taking up a whole lot less space. This system also makes it simpler to take the bicycles out once they’re hanging. That’s because you can pull or push bikes clear of any obstruction before you lower it.