Storage Space?

Well January is over, and before we know it, Spring will be here. With all the stuff that we got at Christmas and with the way things pile up throughout winter, it is time to think Spring Cleaning and Organization. Why do you want to spend the first warm days of Spring cleaning and organizing? Start today. Here are a few tips on getting started.

Inventory

What do you have? Begin by splitting your list up into three categories: "REGULAR USE"; "SEASONAL USE" and "I didn't know that I had that?"

• "REGULAR USE" is anything that you use on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. These items need to be readily available. So you will want to organize these items last.

• "SEASONAL USE" are items that you bring out for the holidays, seasonal sports, and other annual activities. These items need to be stored out of the way, but organized and accessible. You don't want to have to move a thousands boxes to get at the Christmas decorations every year, but you also don't want to look at them in July.

• "I didn't know that I had that?": And the last category are the items that you forgot you had but you are not sure what to do with them.

Organize

Once everything is separated into categories its time to organize. This is the most difficult part of the process.

• First: Go through the "I didn't know that I had that?" pile and begin to remove your clutter. Separate these into two categories: "KEEP" and "DON'T KEEP".
• Second: Take the "DON'T KEEP" items and determine if each items is in good enough shape to donate to a local charity or needs to head to the dump or recycling center.
• Third: Take your "KEEP" items and sort them out into "REGULAR USE" and "SEASONAL USE"
• Lastly: Organize your "REGULAR USE" and "SEASONAL USE" items into categories such as:

• Outdoor
• Fun
• Work

• Indoor
• Fun
• Work

And in each category further separate as needed. You may want to separate your seasonal items into the four seasons. (If you are lucky enough to have four seasons.)

Storage

This is my favorite part of the process. It is where you will begin to see the most progress and finally see the end.

You now need to ask yourself where am I going to store all of these items. My advice is to first exam your home and property for storage areas.

1. Attic
2. Basement
3. Closets
4. Garage
5. Shed or other Out Buildings
6. Public Storage
   

Each area will have unique storage characteristics which need to be considered when choosing a storage location. Here are a few tips and hazards to keep in mind;

1. Do not store items that are sensitive to high or low temperatures in areas that are not climate controlled. If you have a lot of Christmas candles, you do not want to store them in: the garage, attic, shed or non climate controlled public storage. Chemicals should be stored in the garage and or shed where there is a lot of ventilation.
2. Make sure that your attic is set up for storage. You do not want to disturb insulation or air flow in your attic. This can cause severe damage to your roof. Do not install boards or sheets of plywood that will compress your insulation.
3. Consider a shed to store out of season items as well as your lawn maintenance equipment. This will free your garage from unnecessary clutter throughout the year and restore it to it's designed purpose.
4. Basements are a great storage location. You will want to make sure that you run a dehumidifier in humid climates in order to reduce the chance of mold and mildew on your storage items. 
5. Rubber and plastic storage bins are your friend. They are easy to stack and maneuver when trying to organize and utilize your storage space. Labeling is as easy as masking tape and a permanent marker. These containers will also help keep your items protected in case of a small flood or water damage.

I hope that this article has helped you in your quest to stay organized and clutter free.

Rob Estoll

Task and Tools Blog