5 Ways to Get Your Garage Ready for Winter

Here in Wisconsin, nature celebrated the first official day of winter with a snowstorm. Luckily I was prepared, but it’s never too late to get your garage in order to make winter less of a burden and keep your things in proper working order. So get ready for the cold temps, mud, ice and snow with a few friendly suggestions that keep everything you need at hand.

1. Rotate your seasonal storage. A short time ago I posted about seasonal storage – tucking away the things you used in summer and bringing out the items you’ll need in winter. If you haven’t already, now’s the time to rotate your storage bins to bring out the sweaters, coats and boots, and officially pack up the gardening gear for next season.

2. Make sure your snow blower works. If you live in an area where you can expect a lot of snow over winter, your best bet is to make sure your snow blower starts and works properly before the first snow. My neighbor was outside shoveling because he meant to fix and test his snow blower all fall, but before he knew it inches of snow were falling!

3. Keep your shovel, salt and de-icer close at hand. Keeping your most useful winter tools within easy reach makes the burden of moving snow and salting walks much more bearable. Consider wall tool hooks for your shovels, and keep salt, ice melt and scoops nearby. That brings everything off your garage floor, keeping your space neat and organized.

4. Move freezable fluids indoors. It’s best not to let supplies such as glue, liquid weed killer, paints, stains, finishes and spray cans of any sort freeze, so you’ll want to move them inside if you know it’s going to get cold in your area during the winter months. I’ve heard of some people storing their supplies in a closed cabinet with a lightbulb on inside of it all winter, covering it with a blanket to keep everything warm – but why waste the energy? Just move it all to your basement.

5. Don’t track the outside in. For attached garages, consider creating a small mud space so you don’t track mud, salt and snow into your home and onto your floors. A landing pad is a great spot to let your boots dry, and can also put up hooks next to it to hang coats and scarves.

Keep your garage organized and clutter-free this winter. Learn more about innovative storeWALL storage solutions – perfect for every area of your home.