5 Easy Storage Tips

Organize all your gear in style while getting rid of the clutter at the same time. Karl Champley, home improvement expert and the winner of Ellen's Design Challenge on HGTV with Ellen DeGeneres, helps you get organized in five easy steps. Garages across the country may be treated like the junk drawer of the house, but there's a reason you kept all that stuff in the first place. So, get smart about how you store your gear with a proper storage solution and Champley's five easy steps: * Go in with a game plan. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by the project, start small and develop a game plan to help make the most of your time. With Gladiator GarageWorks, you can begin your organization process with grab-and-go kits like the GearTrack Single Pack. This will let you to customize and add as your bigger game plan unfolds. When you start small and see how streamlined your garage begins to look, you'll begin to think bigger. * Sort items as "keep it" vs. "kick it." Separate items in two piles and identify what you absolutely have to keep for seasonal use versus the items you store for personal reasons but don't often use. This "keep it or kick it" approach will cut your organizational time in half with you taking a hard look at the real use of items you're storing and to help you get rid of the non-essentials. * Take advantage of wall space. Walls can be wasted space if you don't take advantage of them for storage. Items such as hooks, bins and baskets will help keep everything from rakes, bicycles and basketballs in their proper place. So, when you pull your car in, your kid's bike won't be in the way. Your garage will go from a cave of clutter to a place of pride with these easy fixes. * Keep similar items together. This should go without saying, but if you keep similar items together, you'll avoid confusion in the future. There are storage kits like Gladiator GarageWorks' small item bins for screws and nails, or caddies for larger tools, all of which help save time and space in the long run. * Get creative and have fun. You can use "spring keeping" season as an opportunity to have fun and really add some brightness to the garage. Storage solutions can add color and personality to often overlooked spaces in your home. The right custom storage tools allow everything from bicycles to soccer balls to fit perfectly in their given place. In addition to your garage looking like a Hollywood set, you've now made changes that will leave a lasting first impression on potential homebuyers. For more ways to organize your garage (and life), log onto www.gladiatorgarageworks.com.