How to Design a Garage Interior

Designing the interior of your garage is based more on function than aesthetics, but there are attractive storage and work solutions that will help keep your garage organized, while making the most of your space. You can design the interior of your garage by measuring the wall space and designating work or storage areas based on availability and costs.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring tape

Instructions

1. Draw an outline of the interior walls. Mark the garage door, windows and fixed appliances. Measure the height and width of each interior wall in your garage. Allow for the garage door opening as it impacts the wall and floor space. Designate space for the cars, with room to open the doors. Write the measurements on each wall so you can design the work and storage space. If you use your garage to house your cars, mark off half of the side walls, if the fit is tight, to allow for exiting the cars.

2. Lay out a design based on the primary functions of your garage interior. For many people, that means storage for vehicles, tools, household items and supplies. Make space for the largest items first, like a work bench, storage cabinet or a lawn mower, and then assess the available wall and floor areas. If space is at a minimum, you can design vertical storage, such as shelves, hooks or racks to take advantage of the height. Add space for a peg board behind your work area to hang tools. Plan shelves or racks horizontally along the top of the walls on either side of your cars. Hooks underneath the shelves can be used to hang garden or cleaning tools.

3. Research the costs and measurements of the available storage solutions for your garage interior, both online and in local home improvement stores. Isolate the most important storage elements first, check your budget and refine your design if necessary. For example, if you need a large storage cabinet more than you need a bike rack, price the cabinet first and then include other storage solutions as your budget allows. Look for alternative solutions to ready-made garage storage. You can make your own shelves inexpensively with brackets and treated plywood, and then stack plastic bins for closed storage.

Tips & Warnings

• Consider the available storage on your garage ceiling.

• Pay attention to the weight limits for your hooks, racks and shelving.

References

• The Garage Store Ready-Made Garage Storage Solutions

Resources

• Safe Racks: Overhead Garage Racks