Florida summers are hot! While the rest of the country is out and about enjoying their few months of warmth, these are the months us Floridians find refuge in the cool indoors. With more time spent inside it’s the perfect time to get our air conditioned homes sorted and organized. But wait…what about (cue ominous music) the garage?!?!

With the official end of summer behind us, cooler (OK, tolerable) days and less risk of a wash-out mean it is officially garage season for YPO!  In honor of the start of the season (October through May), we wanted to share some of our top secrets to achieving order in your garage. Hey, who knows, maybe you will even be able to pull a car or two in before the holidays.

Step 1: Make a Plan

Imagine you could add 400-700 square feet of usable space to your home, what would you do with it? The first step towards organization success is planning. Conceptualize how you want your garage to be set up and what you need. On top of storage, are you looking for a home gym, a laundry room, a workshop? Plan out your needs along with your wishes and determine how much space you are willing to allocate to both. Storage is always a need, so we recommend starting with metal racks (installed or freestanding) to assist in storing your storage bins.

Step 2: Take Everything Out

Yes, everything. Starting with a clean canvas will make it easier to organize. It will also make it less likely that your unused hockey gear from high school makes it back in.

Step 3: The Initial Purge

Garages tend to be the funnel of “stuff” leaving our homes. Without being addressed regularly they can clog up and overflow. In our experience purging in a garage is much simpler than other areas of the home, because most items placed here are already forgotten. Glance through each item or box and discard or donate the easy choices. (Pro Organizer Tip – Cardboard boxes attract pests like silverfish, cockroaches and rodents. To ensure a cleaner space, eliminate cardboard wherever possible or contain it within a weathertight bin)

Step 4: Sort

Now it’s time to sort items by general category. Sorting items allows you to view the actual size of each of your categories (who knew we had so many Halloween decorations?!?), which helps in determining placement within your space. Some common garage categories are:

• Workout
• Tools
• Outdoor/Sport
• Seasonal Decor
• Gardening/Lawn
• Hurricane
• Cleaning Products

Step 5: The Final Purge

Keep the momentum going!  The more stuff you can part with, the more space you get back. Always remember to consider the life you want and the life you live, not what was in the past.

Step 6: Create Zones

Keep in mind any category that may grow (or shrink) in the near future and account for that in your placement. Zones should make sense with how you use the space (ex: extra cleaning supplies should live by the door to the house while gardening supplies and bicycles make most sense on a wall near the exterior doors).

Step 7: Containerize & Label

If you’ve reached step seven, you’re almost done! Contain like-items in bins and label each one. Sweep up for that finishing touch and enjoy the newfound beautifully organized extension of your home.

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**If you are interested in saving time and streamlining the process by working with a Pro Organizer, call 954-406-6002 or email info@yourproorganizer.com.**

your pro organizer is a hands-on organizing firm specializing in helping you get and STAY organized. We bring efficiency, style and peace to our clients spaces so they can concentrate on the more important things in life.