The Organizational Guide For Your New Shed
Receiving a new shed is exciting, but figuring out where to put everything can quickly become overwhelming. Planning where your storage equipment will be placed can save you space and help keep seasonal items easy to find. By grouping similar items together, utilizing wall space, and organizing your items in an efficient manner, you can keep your new shed clean, spacious, and easier to navigate.
What Purpose Will Your Shed Have?
Before adding hooks, racks, pegboards, or custom shelves to your new shed, it’s best to consider what kind of items you plan to store inside. This can help determine where everything should be placed and how much space each category of equipment will require. A properly organized shed will give you ample space, promote a cleaner interior, and make it easier to find what you need.
A good practice for organizing any kind of storage is to categorize the items into groups. For shed storage, consider creating categories for lawn care, gardening, seasonal items, automotive supplies, and sports gear. These are the typical storage items that take up space in a garage or even your home. Having your items grouped can help keep everything consolidated and allow for easier organization when placing them inside the shed. For example, place soil, small shovels, grass seed, gloves, a watering can, and pots in one area, since these items are all used for gardening. Some items may have more than one purpose, like outdoor gloves, since they are used for a lot of outdoor work. Organizing each category around how you use it will make items easier to find and prevent them from getting mixed in with unrelated equipment.
Use Smart Storage To Save Space
Staying organized is crucial in a shed, so items don’t get lost or mixed up with other equipment. Sheds often collect many small, miscellaneous items, like screwdrivers, nails, yard stakes, etc. Having a basket or container for these smaller items can help keep them organized and in one place, ready to use. Consider labeling these containers as well. Labels also make it easier for anyone in your family to quickly find what they need from the shed.
Once you have a plan for your shed and all your equipment grouped, it’s time to create a clear walkway while preserving floor space for larger items. Install hooks or pegboards to store shovels, rakes, and other long-handled tools on the walls, freeing up valuable floor space. If your new shed comes with a loft or shelf, consider placing lighter items in the loft or on the shelf to keep additional items out of the walkway. The image below shows how wall hooks and storage containers can help keep smaller items organized while preserving valuable floor space.
Where to Place Your Supplies
Hooks and pegboards make it easy to hang tools and equipment, but what about other items that may be too large or messy to keep above the floor? In most Stoltzfus Structures sheds, you can add shelving units. These shelving units help decrease the number of items on the shed floor. A shelf can also double as a dedicated potting station for watering cans, hand tools, gloves, pots, and other gardening supplies. Store opened bags of soil in buckets or waterproof containers to prevent moisture from reaching the shed floor, where it could contribute to mold or rot over time.
As mentioned earlier, keeping the center of your shed open is incredibly important if you plan to store any kind of larger equipment, like a mower, bicycle, wheelbarrow, seed spreader, etc. This allows these items to be moved in and out of the shed easily, without the need to move other items out of the way every time. You also want to consider which specific items should be easily accessible. Batteries for electric lawn equipment should be kept near the electrical outlet for easy charging, while cleaning supplies should be close to the door, especially if they are commonly used, like a hose, car washing supplies, or a broom. The most important thing to remember when organizing your shed is to leave room for future storage needs so you don’t overcrowd your shed over time.
Be Careful With Storage Placement
If you don’t plan to add hooks or pegboards in your shed, consider resting shovels, rakes, etc. against the wall so they are not left on the floor, as this can pose a safety hazard when walking in the shed. Also, if you ordered your shed with a loft, do not place shovels or heavy items in the loft space, as they could fall and pose a safety risk. Keep lighter items in the loft, like seasonal décor, outdoor chair cushions, empty planters, or camping gear. Sharp tools and chemicals should also be kept out of reach of children and pets, so consider placing these items on a higher shelf, on a wall mount, or in a lockable cabinet inside the shed.
More About Our Sheds
Stoltzfus Structures offers a variety of shed styles, including the Dormer, Storage, Garden, and Elite. With options such as shelves, lofts, and other custom features, you can create an efficient, organized shed designed around your storage needs. We offer custom builds, so if you have an idea that isn’t directly shown on our website, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Contact us or call 610-593-7710 to speak with one of our shed specialists. We’d love to help you create a shed that fits your backyard and storage needs.
Jada Liney
Recently graduated from college, I take advantage of having more free time and spend those moments catching up on my love of reading, brainstorming ideas for design projects, and spending time with my family, friends, and furry companions. I have two Golden Retrievers that are complete opposites: one who has enough energy to run three marathons a day if he could, and the other who would be happy to stay in bed all day! I might relate a bit more to the latter, but am always up for an adventure.
