This post may contain affiliate links.
Garages have a funny way of becoming the place where everything gets dumped when you don’t know where else to put it. A box gets pushed into a corner, an old chair gets parked against the wall, and before you know it, there’s barely enough room to get to the lawn mower.
You don’t have to tackle the whole garage in one weekend. Start with the things you already know you aren’t using. Clearing out a few categories can open up a surprising amount of room and make the rest of the garage much easier to organize.
If you’re ready to get started, these 14 items are a good place to look.
Old Paint
Those half-empty paint cans can sit in a garage for years with the promise that you’ll need them someday. If you have leftover paint from a recent project, keeping a small amount for future touch-ups can make sense.
But old cans that have dried out, gone bad, or are no longer needed are just taking up room. Check local disposal rules before getting rid of paint, since some communities have special collection programs for household paint.
Broken or Damaged Furniture
That broken chair or worn-out table you’ve been meaning to repair may eventually get pushed so far into the corner that you forget about it.
Take an honest look at the furniture stored in your garage. If it’s beyond repair or you haven’t used it in years, there’s little reason to keep giving it valuable floor space.
If you have a piece worth saving, give yourself a realistic deadline to fix it. Otherwise, donate, sell, recycle, or dispose of it based on its condition.
Related: How to Repair and Paint an Adirondack Chair
Cardboard Boxes
If you order regularly from Amazon or other online retailers, cardboard boxes can pile up surprisingly fast.
A few sturdy boxes can be handy for moving, storage, or shipping packages, but there’s no need to keep dozens of them. Flatten the ones you don’t need and recycle them according to your local recycling rules.
Unless you’re planning a move soon, that giant stack of empty boxes probably doesn’t need a permanent home in your garage.
Leftover Construction Materials
Home projects often leave behind a strange collection of materials: a few pieces of lumber, extra tiles, leftover bricks, roofing shingles, or half a bag of something you were sure you’d need later.
Keeping a small amount of useful material can be smart, especially if you expect to make repairs to the same area of your home. But if you’ve been storing the leftovers for years without touching them, they’re probably ready to go.
Donate usable materials to a local building-material reuse organization, offer them to someone working on a project, or check your local disposal options.
Worn-Out Garden Supplies
Garages are often the final resting place for garden tools and supplies that have seen better days.
Look through those old hoses, cracked planters, torn gardening gloves, broken sprinklers, and tools that no longer work properly. If something has been sitting there season after season without being used, ask yourself whether you’re really going to need it.
Keep the tools and supplies you actually reach for. The rest can often be donated, recycled, or thrown away depending on the material and condition.
Broken or Unused Appliances
Old refrigerators, microwaves, coffee makers, dishwashers, and other appliances can take up a huge amount of space. Sometimes they’re kept as backups, but often they’ve simply been sitting there because nobody has gotten around to dealing with them.
If an appliance still works, selling or donating it may be an option. You can also look into local recycling programs for appliances that no longer function.
If you’ve got usable furniture or household items taking up space, you could also consider selling them through sites such as OfferUp or other online thrift stores.
Old Newspapers and Magazines
Old newspapers can feel difficult to throw away, especially if they have sentimental value or document an event you wanted to remember.
But if you’ve had the same newspapers and magazines sitting in a box for five or ten years without looking through them, there’s a good chance they’re no longer serving a purpose.
Keep the editions that have genuine sentimental or historical value and recycle the rest. If there’s a particular article or photo you want to save, scanning it can take up far less room than storing boxes of paper.
Old Tires
Old vehicle and bicycle tires tend to get shoved into a garage corner because they’re awkward to deal with.
Don’t put unwanted tires in the regular trash unless your local waste authority specifically allows it. Many communities have tire recycling or collection programs, and some tire shops accept old tires for a fee or as part of a replacement service.
Getting those old tires out of the garage can free up more space than you’d expect.
Outgrown Baby Items
Kids outgrow things incredibly quickly, and garages can become storage facilities for everything from strollers and cribs to toys and high chairs.
If your children have moved past the baby stage, go through those boxes and decide what is still worth keeping. Items in good condition may be useful to another family and can often be donated or sold.
Check safety recalls before passing along older baby gear. Car seats, in particular, have expiration dates and safety considerations that make them different from ordinary household items.
Old Paperwork
Boxes of receipts, utility bills, instruction manuals, and other paperwork can quietly take over a garage.
Go through the piles and separate documents you actually need from papers that can be securely shredded or recycled. Some records may need to be kept for tax, legal, financial, or warranty reasons, so don’t toss important documents just because they’re old.
For records you need but rarely access, scanning and securely storing digital copies can free up a lot of physical space.
Related: 14 Genius Hacks to Declutter Your Home Faster and Reclaim Your Space
Rusty or Broken Tools
Every garage seems to have a drawer or shelf filled with tools that haven’t been useful in years.
Maybe there’s a hammer covered in rust, a rake missing several tines, a screwdriver with a damaged handle, or a power tool that stopped working long ago.
Go through your tools and keep the ones that are safe and useful. Broken tools that can’t reasonably be repaired can be recycled or disposed of according to local rules.
There’s little benefit in keeping a tool around just because you might need it someday if you already have a working replacement.
Clothes You Never Wear
Clothing stored in garage bins often gets forgotten. Before long, you’re keeping clothes that haven’t fit, been worn, or even seen daylight in years.
Pull out those boxes and check everything inside. Donate clean, wearable clothing and set aside damaged pieces for textile recycling if that service is available in your area.
Clothes with permanent stains, major tears, or persistent odors may be better suited for recycling or disposal than donation.
Outdated Electronics
Old electronics can be surprisingly hard to let go of. That outdated computer, DVD player, television, VHS player, cassette deck, or stack of discs may bring back memories, but keeping every piece of obsolete technology can quickly eat up storage space.
Before getting rid of anything, check whether it contains personal information that needs to be removed. Electronics should also be taken to an appropriate recycling location rather than thrown in the regular garbage.
Some older items may have resale value, especially vintage audio equipment, game systems, records, and other collectibles. If you’re unsure, check current resale prices before sending them off.
Unused Fitness and Sports Equipment
That exercise bike you haven’t touched in years or the box of sports equipment your family no longer uses may be taking up a large section of the garage.
Take a look at the equipment and be honest about what gets used. If something is still safe and in good condition, consider selling or donating it.
Equipment that is damaged, worn out, or no longer safe to use shouldn’t be passed along just to get it out of your garage. Dispose of it according to local guidelines and make room for the things you actually use.
Other Topics You Might Like
- 10 Strange Things That Are Surprisingly Smart to Stockpile
- How to Clean a Wood Cutting Board
- 15 Safe Ways to Clean a Cast Iron Skillet Without Ruining the Seasoning
- 12 Things Professional Organizers Would Never Store Under the Kitchen Sink
- 12 Small Habits That Make a Big Difference in Keeping Your Home Clean
