Whether you consider yourself to be something of a DIY pro or are carrying out home repairs and improvements for the first time, good organization is key.
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After all, this ensures that your projects are completed quickly and to a high standard, saving you a considerable amount of time, stress, and money. However, the foundations of good organization start before you pick up tools or watch a how-to tutorial. For example, you should first ensure that you properly organize and store your tools!
Why is tool organization important?
Whether you’re installing a tool shed in your garden or a shelf in your garage, there are many reasons why tool organization is important.
Firstly, it is important from a safety perspective. Storing your tools incorrectly increases the chances of an accident occurring, especially if they are stored in a place where young children can gain access to them. Taking proper precautions to prevent accidents in this regard can be particularly beneficial, especially when you consider the fact that hundreds of thousands of individuals visit the ER each year with DIY-related injuries.
Additionally, improper storage of your tools can significantly reduce their lifespan. For instance, if metal-based tools are not stored correctly, they may develop corrosion or rust, affecting their long-term usability. To keep your equipment in top condition, solutions like Xemogo offer smart storage and maintenance options designed to extend the life of your tools.
Finally, keeping your tools organized can help you to work more efficiently. This is because you’ll find it much easier to find what you’re looking for, meaning that you won’t lose valuable time searching for your hammer!
How to keep your tools organized.
Fortunately, there are many different steps that you can take in order to keep your tools organized.
Set up a designated space to store them.
The first step toward ensuring that your tool collection is well-organized is setting up a designated space within your home to store them. This can reduce clutter while bringing forth many of the benefits listed above.
There are many different places to store tools in your home, even if you don’t have the space in your yard to build a tool shed. For example, you could install shelves or a storage cupboard in your garage, basement, or even attic. If you only need to access tools sporadically, you may want to invest in a local storage unit (though this, too, should be kept neat and tidy.)
Once you’ve decided where you’d like to store your tools, it's time to start thinking about how you’d like to store them. Again, you have a wide variety of options to choose from in this regard. For example, smaller items can be stored away in secure toolboxes. Alternatively, you may want to build a storage rack that you can hang on the wall (or buy one, of course).
Organize tools by category.
Organizing tools by category can also prove to be useful, especially as it makes it far easier to find what you are looking for. While this can vary depending on personal preference or the kind of DIY projects you’re focusing on, you could store them in this fashion:
Garden tools.
- Shovel
- Weed Eater
- Rakes
- Hoes
- Spades
- Shears
- Loppers
- Pruning saws
Hand tools.
- Pliers
- Screwdrivers
- Hammers
- Wrenches
- Saws
- Chisels
Power tools.
- Saws
- Drills
- Angle grinders
- Electric screwdriver
- Nail Guns
You may also want to set up some extra space to store other useful items, such as measuring tools, screws, nails, and bolts.
Ensure you are storing each item correctly.
As referenced above, keeping your tools organized can often enhance their lifespan. This is because it reduces the chances of them getting damaged in any way. However, in order to ensure that you are really capitalizing upon this, it's worthwhile to check the user manuals/guides for each tool so that you know exactly how to store them.
Remember that you have a designated place for everything.
Once you’ve gone through the trouble of setting up a storage area for your tools, it is important that you maintain this space. This means that you should remember that there is a place for everything - and everything must go in its place. Otherwise, you’ll find that your tool storage area quickly becomes a cluttered (and hazardous) mess. As such, no matter how tired you may feel after your latest DIY triumph, don’t consider the job done until you have put everything away correctly.
On a similar note, you should clean this space as often as you do other areas within the home. Not only is this your best defense against the build-up of clutter, but it can also remove dust, debris, and other contaminants that could cause damage to your expensive tools and equipment. If, when carrying out basic maintenance, you find that you haven’t used a particular tool in a while and cannot foresee yourself using it in the future, consider selling or donating it. Otherwise, it is doing but taking up space within your home.
Final Thoughts.
There are many benefits to building your own tool collection. After all, it means that you can quickly respond to any maintenance issues within your home, whether that’s a garden full of weeds or a leaky tap, without having to call for help. As such, this can save you a great deal of money while also allowing you to become more self-sufficient.
However, in order to ensure that you’re able to rise to the challenge of a DIY project, you must be as organized as possible. This starts with keeping your tools as organized as possible without allowing clutter to take control.
Fortunately, there are many steps that you can take to achieve this goal, from ensuring that you store each item correctly and investing in storage containers to finding a designated space in your home to keep all of your tools. Either way, following the steps outlined above will help to protect the safety and well-being of everyone in your home while also ensuring you find the tools you need when you need them. This, in turn, will bring you one step closer to becoming a DIY pro.
