Make cleaning the garage a pain-free process: a custom built luxury dream home needs a dream garage space
The average homeowner has a few areas that tend to fall to neglect when it comes to organization and clutter accumulation. Some areas are hidden, such as attics and basement closets, and others out in the open, such as the mud room or garage. The advantage to having your custom built luxury home built to your specifications is the opportunity to rethink some of these areas that can be repositories of clutter, accumulation and items that may not have a designated home. Focusing on the garage, it is quite easy to create a well-thought out space that will provide access and storage for the homeowner’s desired designated items.
Typical homeowners have multiple items in their garage that were not originally intended to live there, and the weeks prior to the onset of a cold Wisconsin winter is a good time to organize the garage space in preparation for the host of snow accessories. The attached garage was created to protect cars from the elements while allowing owners the same luxury by enabling a protected area to go from auto to home. A garage by nature is a fairly raw and unfinished space, welcoming of dirt, water and oil, and a gateway to the outdoors, thus a natural place to house outdoor equipment and tools to make their use accessible. When broken appliances, boxes of remnants from cleaned out cars, out of season outdoor tools or toys and other “I’m not sure what to do with this” items accumulate, it is time to reevaluate the garage space and return it to a streamlined and functional extension of your dream home.
Five Steps to Reevaluating Your Garage Space
Step 1: Make a list.
What do you want to have stored in the garage? If basement or other storage inside the house is limited, do you need year round storage space created for seasonal tools and toys? Is an additional garden shed available or desired to store lawn tools and gardening supplies?
Step 2: Make a plan.
Map out the space in your garage and consider the traffic pattern of the entire family, accessibility needs of items and frequency of use. Consider lifestyle, who uses what when and how, and whether its placement is convenient and logical.
Step 3: Create groupings.
Make it logical. Bikes should go together. Balls should go together. Tools should go together. Keep related items together, such as helmets with bikes, racquets, clubs and pumps with balls, rakes with shovels.
Step 4: Use organizers.
Make it easy to maintain. Keep it simple. Hooks, drawers, shelves and bins will minimize clutter, maximize space utilization and give everything its own place. Don’t be afraid to label to reinforce proper placement.
Step 5: Toss regularly.
As with your closet, every item in your garage should have purpose, still be used and wanted. Avoid creating cabinets or corners that become graveyards for the lost, forgotten, replaced or broken.
A well-organized garage can make the difference on how you feel coming home at the end of the day. When the doors open at your luxury dream home, avoid the first sight being reminders of unfinished projects, but rather make it reflect the thoughtful order that extends throughout your home. If you are in the process of building your dream home, your custom home builder can assist with designing the most functional garage space suited to your family’s unique lifestyle. Check out some of the following garage organizing ideas on Colby Construction’s Pinterest board.