You'll look in your closets and your basement, if you have one. You'll look in that spare room that already holds so much of that household category known as Stuff. But it just could be that the obvious place you're overlooking is your garage.

When you need room for storage, your garage may seem like an improbable place. After all, you barely have room to park a car or two in there.

But the next time you pull a car into your garage, stop and look through the windshield, over the hood and up to the walls. Now you'll see a prime opportunity for storage on those vast, open walls.

Make a List of All the Things to “Park” in Your Garage

Before you rush to the store and scoop up a bunch of shelves and cabinets, conduct an inventory of some other Stuff – namely, what you already have out in your garage and what's scattered throughout your home and could be stored there (like holiday decorations).

Then let Experts in Your Home help you make the most of that prime opportunity by designing an organization plan that will help you make the most of your garage. Maximizing space is one of the things we do best – a project that might involve some simple upgrades as well as some more extensive ones. These ideas should help get you started on this productive home improvement project.

Simple Garage Organization Ideas

• Whether or not you have an attic in your garage, you could probably benefit from ceiling storage. The Experts can create a sturdy system that consists of support carriages and plastic bins. (To construct the carriages, we glue and screw three-quarter-inch plywood flanges to 2-by-4s. Then we screw the carriages to ceiling joists and slide in the bins.)
• Since the Experts aim high, we also encourage homeowners to hang ladders from the ceiling – modeling the same carriage system. And of course we secure the ladders with elastic cords to keep them in place.
• We've never been fans of suspending bicycles from the ceiling; many people find it difficult to get up there, and then the bicycles go unused. Instead, we favor wall bike racks that place bikes within easy reach, with the tires touching the ground. And of course we add a shelf overhead for equipment such as helmets and arm and shin guards.
• Whether you have kids or enjoy sports yourself, you're bound to have a collection of sporting goods that has gotten out of hand. Let the Experts help you rein it all in by creating your own sports storage center. One of our favorite solutions: stacking balls, bats, tennis rackets and other unruly items with bungee cord so that they stay visible while remaining firmly in place.

More Extensive Garage Organization Ideas

• The Experts love shelves and cabinets, but we don't like the hodge-podge effect that is sometimes unwittingly created without a comprehensive storage system in mind. Commercial cabinets also are saddled with space limitations; you have to take what you can get. Hiring the Experts to build custom cabinets will make the most of your garage space while giving it a surprisingly classy look that many people don't expect to find in a garage.
• If you're an active do-it-yourselfer, hobbyist or gardener, a custom workbench could be right up your alley. And if the Experts build it on wheels, we can it roll it down the alley, too. Otherwise, a fixed bench (or at least a sturdy counter) offers a place to add outlets to your garage, too.
• Who doesn't like the thought of a three-car garage – even if the third stall is devoted to storage? This solution isn't always feasible, so let the Experts explore the possibility of knocking out a section of a wall and building a “bump-out” – a 6-by-12-foot expansion that doesn't require a concrete foundation.

Get Help with Your Home Remodeling Project

You're probably getting the idea: You can stop looking around for storage and make use of the space you have, right in your garage. Request a Home Remodeling Quote from the Experts for a consultation and watch our designers create solutions that fit you – and all your Stuff – to a T.