Another Small Home Improvement Project - Garage Storage!

At long last we have proper storage in our garage!  Last spring my hope was to get out there as soon as weather warmed, take everything out and put in a better storage system.  I had dreamed of new shelving, some cabinets and even a workbench out there for years and years.  However, when I priced the lumber just to add the shelving I wanted we ended up cleaning,purging and reorganizing that space while making do with what we had instead.  Lumber prices were out of our budget with all the other things that were happening last spring and I put any type of a garage renovation on the back burner for the time being.

Just having the one metal shelf unit wasn't cutting it

Adding this shelf over the freezer helped, but still not enough, however
I am happy to report this stack of storage bins has all been re-purposed!

As we worked on other more pressing projects around the house which included the master bedroom, our main bathroom and my daughter packing up and moving off to college, the garage once again became the usual dumping ground and the end result was a complete mess.  Again.  It was difficult to find what we needed and put away what we had.  It was very frustrating and it seemed to be a constant repeating pattern.

Everything out!  Again!

First boards going in!  Yay!  I was getting sooooo excited!!

Last month I mentioned that the girls and I had made two trips to the FREE WOOD bin near where I work.  For over a week I had driven by this huge pallet that was over 12 feet long and thinking how nice those 2"X4"s and the OSB sheeting was that it was constructed out of.  If I had a project that could use it I certainly would've taken it home.  Then I realized I did!  Duh!  The garage!

All framed in and adding the shelf boards

This space at the end of the shelving was a brilliant idea!
At least I think so anyway, LOL

The garage renovation was absolutely not on our radar to complete this summer.  We had way too many other things going on at home and my daughter was leaving for college in a week, but we all agreed it was far too good of an opportunity to let go to waste so we literally stopped what we all were doing and made it a priority.  We went over to the FREE WOOD bin with our hammers and a pry bar and took apart the pallet so we could load it into my truck.  It took us two trips to bring it all home, it was that much wood.  After pulling out the nails and staples we had a really nice stack of lumber (which I forgot to take a picture of).

The next morning we had to clear out again and then back to work

Next section up and completed!  This made me so happy! 😁

After that everything in the garage ended up in the driveway and our front yard.  It looked atrocious!  Then we got started on one side and figured out how much shelving we needed to build, the spacing and a fairly good idea of what would be going where.  We did have to make a run to Home Depot for some extra 2"X4"s as we didn't quite have enough.  I  had the tail end of a gift card to use and only had to pay just under $10 out of pocket for the wood.  Yay!

Wide enough and tall enough for storage bins

Then it was time to start putting stuff away

By Saturday evening we had the bulk of the shelving installed.  We stopped and put away all the things that needed to be secured in the garage, left the rest of it outside and called it a day.  We were hot, tired, dirty and exhausted.  The next morning we were back at it adding the next section of shelving.  Since we already had our supplies and knew what we were doing it went a whole lot faster and we made much better progress.

I love, love, love this section!

Everything fits perfectly and is easy to get to

We created an area to house the lawn mower and to neatly hang up all of our outdoor tools.  There is room for the ice melt, snow shovel and leaf blower as well.  All contained in one place, I really like this.

Look at the top picture at the wood in the corner and now at what
is left.  I've used up a ton of that stuff on all the projects we've had going.

The old metal shelving unit (gleaned from a former employer for free) was given a good scrubbing and then relocated where our big blue recycling bin had sat.  We decided it was taking up way too much valuable real estate and it will now be kept outside next to the trash bin.  I put all of my tools and building supplies on it, which is perfect and now the new shelving can store the rest of our stuff.  My seasonal decor bins are much more accessible, we have a designated area for pet feed and supplies, the coolers and our camping equipment have a place, even the cargo trailer for my bike has its own space to sit.  We even have some open spots, not that I'll be looking to fill them anytime soon.

  

This shelf I removed from over the freezer is
going to get re-purposed in a future renovation project

Even my bike cargo trailer has a place!

I went through all of the trim and lumber I've dragged home from the FREE WOOD bin for projects I have on my list and got it all organized.  Long pieces were placed up on the top of the metal shelving unit, I put smaller pieces for crafts in a box and the rest ended up corralled in a trash can which makes it nice and neat.  The whole mess is much more accessible and looks a whole lot better to boot.

Stella completed her inspection and wholeheartedly approves

Now when we walk out here I feel calm.  I know where everything
is and I can get to it.  This renovation has really made a huge difference.

For a project that wasn't even supposed to happen I can't believe we pulled this one off.  More importantly I can't believe our good fortune in procuring the wood to do it.  This is by far the best $10 project I've ever done!