Garage Shelving

Garage shelving may very well be the most essential ingredient when it comes to organizing your garage. I seriously don’t think you can have enough of it in your garage. The great thing about it is that they're never empty! They simply get used, no matter what. This is why you should install as much shelving as you can.

Install shelving all over your garage. However, consider the pathway you’ll need to get from your car to the door. Also, if you have a smaller garage, don’t install them all the way down on the walls adjacent to where you’ll be parking your vehicles. Keep it up high enough so you won’t bump your head or your vehicle door on the shelving.

Speaking of head bumping, you should consider overhead storage which can be used in almost ANY garage!

You can either make your own garage shelves, or you can buy them. You can save some money if you do decide to make your own, but you should consider the overall look and feel of your garage as you design them. I am definitely no carpenter, but I understand the appeal of custom built shelves.

There are three types I like to use. The first type is particle board garage shelves. These are fairly economical as well as fast and easy to install.

The second type I like to use is the classic metal brackets and shelf. These are simply equally spaced and leveled metal brackets that support a shelf. In addition to being the least expensive, these are also the easiest to mount and they can be used in very tight spaces.

The third type I like to use comes out of a box. It is a system that usually has 6 or so shelves that you attach to the vertical supports at each corner. After you put them together, they will seem awfully flimsy and unstable. But, once you properly anchor them to the wall and to each other, they become strong enough to hold most small to medium sized items.

All three of the above types can be found at your local home improvement center.

Using shelves to store stuff in your garage is obviously not a new concept, yet you might be surprised to see just how many home home garages are loaded with clutter on the floor, yet they have few (if any) shelves on the walls to help deal with the clutter, or even to feature it depending on what it is.