Take your house back – cleanout your garage once and for all.
For many of us, we have taken to using our garage as our own personal dump. But never fear, you can take back your garage and bask in the glorious clutter free space once again.
We know you've been avoiding that garage. We’ve all been there; afraid to even open the door because the sheer amount of clutter and junk is overwhelming.
You're human, you have flaws, you probably leave the toilet seat up, still pick your nose when no one is looking and you’ve probably got a few piles of junk hidden somewhere. You’re just like the rest of us when you have something you don’t use anymore you put it in the garage, attic, spare room or whatever until you have a garage full of things you don’t anymore. It’s where most of your stuff goes to die. You’re beloved college futon, the old bowling ball, the shovel with a broken handle, the fake Christmas tree with 4 broken limbs. The point is, we all have a room full of crap, but we don’t have to live like this, we’re not animals.
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Why Your Garage is a Mess
The problem with cleanouts is, they are time-consuming and exhausting. We don't lack motivation, every time we have to play real-life Tetris to access anything in the garage, we get really motivated to clear out all the crap. What we lack is time and energy.
In today’s world, we just don’t have the time for horrible home projects, especially ones that are really going to suck. We have work, kids, and X Box, by the time we’re done taking care of everyday things, there isn’t enough time or energy left over for clutter and cleanouts.
The garage is the go-to clutter pile of the house, it’s just so easy to store junk in there. But you can't ignore that junk for life, and honestly, you’ll feel so much better once it's been cleaned out. It is a lot of work, but we know the secret to making it easy. Not only is it easy but it's not like other quick and dirty solutions where you take everything and hide it in the backyard or the storage shed, this is a real solution.
6 Steps to a Garage Clean Out w/ AZ Junk;
- Go into the garage, take an ice-cold beer or a tall glass of sweet tea.
- Look at all of that crap.
- Call us for garage cleanout in Phoenix, we’ll meet you there.
- Sip your icy beverage while you build muscle tone, pointing at the things you want to go.
- You point at it, we haul it off.
- Go inside, tell your wife the garage is done. Play another level of Red Dead Redemption.
3 Steps for a DIY Garage Cleanout
Step 1 - 1 Sorting
The first thing you need to do is sort. Just start somewhere, pick up something and decide what you want to do with it. Keep it? Sell it? Donate it? or Trash it? Once you’ve decided, start a pile for each category. A helpful tip: use some chalk to mark off sections of your driveway, and label each section either, keep, toss, sell, or donate.
Step 2 - Let it Go
Although getting rid of stuff sounds easy, we know it can be difficult, especially if you're the sentimental sort. If you think you can’t bear to give something up, a good alternative might be to take a picture that will keep your memories fresh and go ahead and sell that item.
- If you are on the fence about any item, then take that as a clue that it might be time to toss it out.
- If you have some obscure things lying around that you just know you’re going to use one day, think back to that last time you used them. If it has been more than a year, it's probably time to get rid of them.
Now you might be holding something precious in your hands but it's busted. You’ll have to determine what it is going to take to be repaired, then decide if it's worth it. It might be too expensive, too difficult, or maybe you just know you’ll probably never do it, if so, then toss it. Once you get into the groove making these decisions will come easier.
Whenever you come across items you want to keep, start arranging them into categories, such as sporting equipment or power tools. This presort will make re-organizing your garage much easier.
Step 3 - Cleanup
When you are done sorting all of that junk in the garage, take a few minutes and tidy it up, give it a good sweep, make sure there are no lingering bits of trash. Now it's time to store that keep pile. When putting all those keepers back in the garage think floor space. Try to use as much vertical and ceiling space as possible, leaving the floor as bare as you can. Group items together when you put them back in the garage, put seasonal or rarely used items in hard to reach places, but set up those bikes near the garage door.
You're almost there, put the items to donate in your car and take them to a donation center today. Don’t wait or you might never take them.
Finally, Call AZ Junk Removal
If you live in the Phoenix Metro area, AZ Junk will pick up all your unwanted junk. Ask for Brad and mention this post for a 10% garage cleanout special! Also see our dumpster rental services.
5 Ways to Organize Your Garage
Cleaning out your garage is a wasted effort if you don't organize the stuff you have left. Without some arrangements, it will be only a matter of time before you can't walk through it again. But never fear, you're a Do-It-Yourselfer and your talents will not go to waste.
So, once you've completed the hard part of getting rid of all the crap in your garage, we've gathered some of the best DIY plans and hacks to help you get your garage organized once and for all.
#1 The Workbench
The first thing you need to build is a workbench. You need one, it is the most important tool for any garage. All you need are a few 2x4s and some plywood. With these simple plans, you can craft a tough and sturdy table to handle any of your DIY tasks. You can even go the extra mile and add some drawers. Just follow these easy plans by the Family Handyman.
#2 Peg Board
You've got a lot of tools. Screwdrivers, drills, wrenches, fifteen hammers, because that's what your kids pick out every Christmas; at least it's not ties. But where are you going to put all those tools? Simple, make use of the vertical space in the garage. Install a pegboard and let the simplicity of its genius make storage and organization easy. Installing a pegboard couldn’t be easier. You can pretty much just cut it to the right size and attach it to the studs. It doesn’t get much simpler than that. But in case you need a little more instruction take a look at how the guys at DIY Network installed thiers.
#3 Simple DIY Shelves
Of course what is a garage without some DIY shelves? A mess. That's why everybody and their mother has built and installed shelves in their garage. There is no end to the available plans, styles, and designs online. But here is a simple, easy, and cheap way of setting up shelves for all of your sleeping bags, camo, Yetis, flint, bull urine. Or whatever.
#4 Overhead Storage
Don’t forget you can make use of the overhead space, too. While these are a little riskier, meaning don’t screw it up or they’ll destroy your drywall when they come crashing down, building overhead shelves isn’t much different from vertical shelves. Just don’t cut any corners, stick to the plans.
That'll take care of the bulk but you still have a bunch of important crap to store. Try some of our organizational hacks to deal with your miscellaneous garage gadgets.
#5 Simple Hacks
Bucket
Hanger
Bucket
Hit your local feed store, and grab a flat backed feed bucket. Then stuff all of your wash, wax, polish, and towels right inside. Now you can hang the bucket up by its flat side using a picture hanger; freeing up space in the cabinets. Another easy hack is as simple as screwing a coat hanger into the wall and using a chain to hang up all of your extension cords. If you have a lot of them make sure to screw the coat hanger into a stud.
Chain Cord Hanger
Now finish setting up the rest of your gear for storage. Sort and store it by priority. If you need it really often put it up close in an easy to reach space. If you need it but not very often put it on the shelf in the back or overhead. Finally, if you don't need it get rid of it. Donate it and get a receipt to use for your tax return next year.
Final thought; donate.
Are some of the unwanted items in your garage in fair condition? If so, you could qualify to have them hauled away for free and get a tax write-off for your charitable donation. Select from the options below to find a donation center near you.
Big Brothers Big Sisters Donation Pickup
Habitat For Humanity Donation Pickup
Salvation Army Donation Pickup