Garage Ideas to Help Organize and Secure Your Space
By Ring on August 30, 2024
If your garage is a messy, forgotten space you only use when you need the car, it may be time for an overhaul. With some strategic changes, you can help eliminate clutter, protect your belongings, and make your garage a space you actually want to use.
Here’s how to organize your space and help improve garage security:
1. Map Out Your Garage
Before you make any changes to your garage, make sure you know exactly what you’re working with. Measure out your space and draw up a floor plan to see which areas are open for extra storage. Don’t forget to account for the space your cars, lawn mower, and other oversized items will take up.
2. Make the Most of Your Wall Space
When you don’t have a ton of empty floor space in your garage, you may have to get creative with vertical storage. Luckily, there are a ton of inventive ways to use your garage walls, such as:
Add a combination of the above based on the items you need to store, and you’ll have plenty of space for all your gear.
3. Add Overhead Storage
If you have space in your garage, consider using the ceiling for overhead storage. You’ll be able to free up wall space for smaller, more frequently used items and keep bulkier equipment up above. For example, you can store your camping equipment and patio furniture overhead during the winter months and swap them for holiday lights and decorations in the summer.
4. Organize Wisely
When choosing different storage methods, it’s important to consider what you actually need to store. You may strive to be a hobby woodworker one day, for example, but if you don’t have any tools now, you probably don’t need a jar organizer and pegboard. And while storage cabinets look clean and sleek, swinging cabinets require extra clearance, which is why open shelves tend to be the more practical choice.
Once all your shelves, overhead racks, and hooks are in place, be strategic about where you place certain items. Put your most frequently used items, like your bike, gardening tools, or tennis racket, near the garage door for easy access. The items you don’t use often are better suited for the back wall or overhead storage.
5. Mount Security Cameras Inside and Out
Your garage is home to a lot of valuable items, from cars and bikes to camping gear and power tools. Security cameras make it easy to keep an eye on your belongings and get notifications if there’s any activity in or around your garage.
Inside your garage, you can use a Stick Up Cam to check in on your partner while they work on a project or check in on your Amazon Key delivery. Outdoor cameras with built-in lighting, like a Floodlight Cam or Spotlight Cam, can replace light fixtures outside your garage to help provide protection and visibility. You can use them to monitor cars in your driveway and illuminate dark spots around your house. Plus, the motion-activated lighting can help brighten up the exterior of your home, so it’s easy to punch in your garage code after an evening walk.
6. Install Sturdy Locks
If you have an attached garage, a high-quality lock is essential to help protect your home. Consider adding a smart lock to the door between your home and garage, which can help make it easier to get inside if your hands are full of groceries. Instead of reaching for a key, you can enter a code or press a button on your phone.
Outdoor Contact Sensors can help add an extra layer of protection if your garage has windows. Install one side of the sensor on the window and the other on the casing, and when your Ring Alarm is armed, your system will get triggered if it opens.1
7. Add Extra Lighting
You need plenty of light in your garage to help dig through storage bins, hang your bike after a long ride, or grab a tool after dark. Battery-powered Spotlights from Ring can help you up the brightness without messing with wiring.
Mount your Spotlight where you need extra light, and it will automatically shine when motion is detected. With a Ring Bridge (sold separately), you can also set your lights to stay on and adjust the brightness, giving you the perfect amount of light to wrap up a project. Outside your garage, your Floodlight or Floodlight Cam will help shine a light on any outside activity.
8. Invest in a Smart Garage Opener
When you’re rushing out of the house, pressing the button on your garage door opener may slip your mind. With a smart garage door opener, you can use your phone to close it later, even if you’re miles away from home. This handy garage gadget can even notify you when your garage door opens and closes and tell you the current status throughout the day.
With a smart garage door opener that works with Ring, you can control all your garage gadgets, from cameras and lighting to smart locks and openers, straight from the Ring App. After you pull into the driveway, it’s easy to open the garage door and unlock the door to your home with a few quick taps.
Shop the Ring garage collection today to start bringing some of your garage ideas to life.
1 Ring Alarm and all Ring Alarm accessories require a subscription for in-app features and digital notifications, including digital arming / disarming and integration with other Ring, Echo, Alexa, and third party products. Subscription sold separately. View ring.com/protect-plans for pricing and details.
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