If you’re like most people, you accumulate and accumulate and accumulate until you have so much stuff, yet no idea where any of it is. And where does a lot of that “stuff” typically end up? The basement. Exactly!
Since it’s Spring, there’s no better time to start thinking about cleaning – and organizing –your basement and creating a designated storage area. Below are five tips to get you headed in the right direction.
1. Go through what you’ve got.
As much as that may seem like a daunting task, you’ve got to start somewhere if you’re going to get organized. So you don’t become overwhelmed, remember to break this job into smaller parts. Don’t feel like you have to tackle it all in one day or think you have to do it yourself. Call the family in to help and be sure to set manageable goals. One good way to start is by separating things into three categories: KEEP, TRASH, DONATE. If you’ve got stuff piled to the ceiling, you’re going to have to be willing to get rid of the things that you’re no longer using. Otherwise, you’ll just end up in the same position a few months down the road, and you’ll have to go through the whole process all over again. Be sure to follow through, too. Instead of waiting for a charity to call you for a pick up, drop off any items in the “donate” category as soon as possible.
2. Categorize kept items.
Once you’ve determined what you are going to keep, the next step to an organized basement storage area is storing like items together. For example, organize all your seasonal items, all your household tools, sports equipment, mementos, etc., into groups. By keeping similar items together, you’ll be able to more easily find things once you’ve put them away.
3. Purchase organizing materials.
OK, so now that you’ve got all your things sorted and organized into groups, you’ve got to put it away and store it in an effective fashion, right? No problem. Just assess what you’ve got and the sizes of the items you need to store and make a list of tools you’ll need to store them effectively. Then, head out to your local discount or hardware store to make your purchases. Plastic storage bins and shelving units are a must. Hooks that can hang from the ceiling or wall are also useful. Identify a specific area of your basement that can be used for storage purposes, and try to create a mental picture of how you’ll organize this area. If you’re artistically-inclined, sketch it out so you have a plan to follow once you’ve got all of your organizing items in place.
4. Create a system.
As you’re storing bins on shelves, it’s a good idea to affix labels that identify contents. This will prevent you from having to open every single bin to find what you’re looking for. In addition, try to place items that you use the most in most easily accessible places. This will reduce the chance for creating a mess while searching for an item. Also, just like you categorized items into groups, you should store them accordingly.
5. Don’t get lazy.
Once you have your basement storage area organized, you’ve got to stay disciplined; don’t fall back into old habits that led you to the mess you had to clean up to begin with! When you take something out, make a mental note to put things back in their place when you’re through. Be sure to store things according to the new system you’ve created. And for goodness sake, don’t start cluttering up the floor again with random junk!
Now that you’ve created an effective storage area in your basement, you can start exploring the possibilities for how you’ll be able to put the rest of your basement to use. Stay tuned for our next blog, which just may help spark some ideas!