.svg "bostongarage")
The Pittsburgh winter is swiftly approaching. Is your garage ready for all that snow and slush? If the space is disorganized, the cold and wet of winter will only make things worse. Prepare for winter now by installing the right garage organization solutions before it gets too cold outside. You’ll be glad you did when your garage becomes the fully functional space you’ve always wanted just in time for winter sports and outdoor activities.
Follow these tips to optimize your garage space this winter and all year round.
No Floor Storage!
Lining the walls with adequate storage frees up floor space so you can pull your car into the garage and save it from the cold, ice, and snow. Of course, for the best results, you should carefully select what type of storage you want to install.
Whether you opt for cabinets, shelves, or a workbench, it’s vital for these storage solutions to sit up off the floor. Ideally, this means mounting them to the wall to avoid all contact with the floor. However, casters or adjustable metal legs are also acceptable for lifting storage units off the floor.
The reason to avoid contact with the floor is to prevent moisture from damaging your cabinets or shelves. Mud, floodwater, and melting snow can all introduce water into your garage, which can warp and rot wood or rust metal. By mounting storage cabinets to the wall just a few inches above the floor, you preserve their integrity and the belongings you keep inside.
Off-the-floor garage storage also helps to keep pests at bay. If rodents scurry into your garage to escape the brunt of a Pittsburgh snowstorm, they may attempt to chew a hole through cabinets sitting on the floor. When your storage cabinets are out of reach, pests can’t damage them or burrow inside.
Ski and Snowboard Racks
With several ski resorts just a quick drive from Pittsburgh, it’s no surprise that you and your family are avid skiers or snowboarders with your own equipment. Purchasing your own skis and snowboards saves you from paying rental costs season after season, but this means you need a good place to store your gear.
The garage is the best place for skis and snowboards since they can become dirty and wet after a day on the mountain. But instead of simply leaning the equipment in the corner or laying it on a shelf, how about you install a custom ski and snowboard rack?
This storage method serves three important purposes. First, it helps keep your garage uncluttered so you have room to store everything and find what you’re looking for with ease. Second, it helps keep your gear in good condition. You paid a lot for quality snowboarding or skiing gear, and you don’t want things falling onto the floor and getting damaged. Third, a custom ski and snowboard rack is a great way to proudly display your investment.
Custom Cabinets for Other Sports Gear
Chances are skis and snowboards aren’t the only sporting gear you store in the garage. While you’re getting the garage organized for winter, why not install custom cabinets to house other equipment? Cabinets are the best method for storing a wide variety of items in your garage because you can close the doors over them to A) hide them from view for a more streamlined look and B) provide an extra layer of protection for your investments.
Inside the cabinets, you can customize the storage situation by adding shelves and hooks. This lets you store small items like cleats, baseball gloves, kneepads, and bike helmets on easy-to-reach shelves. Adjustable shelves add to your customization options. Then, you can hang golf bags, jackets, and backpacks from hooks behind closed doors.
Hooks and Wall Organization
Not everything stored in your garage belongs behind closed cabinet doors. Other items are better stored hanging on the wall. This gets them off the floor and keeps them easily accessible when you need to grab and go. The best way to facilitate this storage method is to install slatwall.
This product comes in panels or strips of varying colors to provide a nail-free way of mounting hooks, baskets, shelves, racks, magnetic strips, and more. This allows you to hang storage solutions anywhere you need and shift them around to accommodate the changing seasons and any new tools and equipment you add to your collection.
With slatwall installed, choose what types of hooks you want to mount depending on what you prefer to store here. Heavy-duty hooks allow you to hang big, bulky items off the floor, including ladders, bicycles, sleds, and garden hoses. Special double hooks let your hand long-handled items, such as rakes, shovels, and brooms. You can even mount sporting equipment here, including baseball bats, hockey sticks, tennis racquets, and lacrosse sticks.
Wire Baskets
Versatile wire baskets are another excellent form of wall organization. One option for using this storage method is to install slide-out wire baskets beneath wall-mounted garage cabinets. Their location near the floor and the slide-out function makes them perfect for storing heavy buckets of deicing salt and sand.
Another option is to hang wire baskets from the slat wall where you already have hooks and racks mounted for flexible wall storage. Baskets mounted here can hold a wide variety of things, from winter gloves and hats to household cleaning products to miscellaneous sports balls and bike helmets. Different sized baskets and the ability to shift them side-to-side or up and down makes it easy to customize garage organization for every season.
Are you considering organizing your garage before winter arrives in full swing? If so, please schedule a free on-site design consultation with Boston Garage to learn more about maximizing storage space with the right types of garage organization!
