Spring Cleaning – Garage Style

Everybody always talks about spring cleaning, and after all those months of holing up for the winter, it usually needs to be done. However, if you want to make life a bit easier this time around, begin with the place you tend to store everything you aren’t really sure what to do with – if you’re like most, that place is the garage. When those first few sunny, warm, perfect-for-cleaning-everything days come around, start in the garage and see how much better it makes the rest of the process. All you have to do is follow these tips, and your garage will be better than ever.

Getting Prepared

While you might be itching to get started, you have to get ready for the job. This means you need to gather up boxes and packing tape, or totes with lids. You also need garbage bags that will actually hold all that trash that seems to have multiplied all over the place – and don’t worry, everybody wonders how a space that’s been ignored for a few months got so messy!

Plan on Sorting

There’s no point in cleaning your garage if all you’re going to do is just rearrange all the clutter. You need to plan on sorting out the stuff that you know you don’t need. You can label it all for a yard sale when it gets a bit warmer, or you can donate it all. Either way, you’ll be getting it all out of your space and into someone else’s.

Don’t miss a spot!

As you are going through all of your stuff, make sure you are also giving it a deep cleaning. What’s the point of moving everything out so you can actually get to all those spider webs and dust bunnies if you don’t take the time to get rid of them? The entire process will be easier because you won’t have to move things around to do it – just clean each area you sort thoroughly before moving to the next one. If you have allergies or sensitivities to dust, it might be worth the few dollars to get a dust mask while you’re at it – it’s likely been a long time since you swept out there!

Labels Are Your Friends

Once you know what you’re keeping, label it. Whether it’s in a tote, storage box, locker, or cabinet, slap a label on it so you and everyone else knows what is supposed to be where. Not only will this make finding things a breeze, it also provides the perfect road map when you have something to take out to the garage. You and the kiddos will know exactly where items are supposed to be, so you won’t end up with all that clutter again.

Once you’ve gotten everything sorted, cleaned, labelled, and organized, make sure to periodically give it a good once over throughout the year. Not only will you keep everything looking great, you’ll also make the entire process that much easier next spring, since you’ll actually be just cleaning for the most part.