Ideas for keeping a clean and organized shop

All the organization is pointless if you have too much stuff!

Traveling box

JustDandee said:

I need help, might need therapy, but let’s start with help. Looking for ideas, tips, widgets and gadgets that you found useful to keep your garage/shop clean.

My work bench is buried in stuff, tool box not well sorted, if it’s a flat surface I have stuff on it. I keep stuff, from cars I no longer have, because the possibility me having another air cooled VW is a real possibility… or my kids…or someone I know.

My wife says I have to many cars is there such a thing? I start a cleaning session and invariably I find that lost widget in my pile and get side track- (this part might work on the tractor). Attention deficit Disorder I think they call it . anyhow appreciate any ideas, this winter I just have outdone myself and I need a serious spring clean day/week.

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Lots of good info here, I am in constant clean up mode. Shelves are needed, I will use small cardboard boxes to put parts in and label what is in the outside with a sharpie. It goes on the shelf, if you have to open the box to look what’s inside half the time it doesn’t get closed.
Organizers for hardware, I have a lot of divider trays but am having a problem getting decent ones now. I use to buy 1 size from Home Depot so they were all the same and labeled on two sides. They don’t have them any more and most I find on Amazon are too cheap.
I have a couple of heavy duty file cabinets, great for storing manuals, sanding supplies, discs, sandpaper, I store drills and saws in one drawer. I also keep low use tools in plastic boxes in one drawer.
For additional tool storage or bulky items, welding helmets, face shields side boxes are relatively inexpensive. I have 3

For me, the key is for everything to have a place. A bunch of tools thrown in a drawer or even sharing the same pegboard hook doesn't work, because:

1. Spend 5 minutes digging the tool out
2. Use tool
3. Leave tool out because I know I'll need it again and don't want to waste 5 more minutes digging for it the next time
4. Forget where tool is, spend 10 minutes looking for it, possibly while holding it in left hand.

The best thing I ever did was to buy a 200-something piece tool set that came in a plastic 3-drawer chest and EVERY piece has a little spot that it either securely rests in or positively snaps into. It takes no time at all to put it back where it goes and no time at all to get it back out again.

My intent for the new garage is to have a 4' x 24' wall of pegboard where every tool has its own hook and is outlined on the board so if the tool isn't there, you can clearly see what belongs in that spot. That idea I borrowed from working in a volume large equipment assembly plant...every worker had only the tools they needed for their jobs and they were organized and kept that way to nearly eliminate time wasted looking for tools.

Although technically it's a mobile shop, I enjoyed @AndyG 's wisdom shared regarding his work trailer setup:

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/andygs-work-trailer-2.58009/

take a look at https://www.garagejournal.com/forum. A great resource for organization and possible lay out ideas. Plus anything else you can think of about your garage.

I use Stanley small parts boxes for hardware. By removing some of the bins inside, I can often store the small tools that are used with the hardware. For example, I can store the solder, the soldering iron, flux, desoldering tools etc. all together. The problem becomes that when you have a lot of these storage boxes the one you want is always on the bottom of the pile. To help with that, I built this storage shelf.

The handles have a label indicating the contents. After taking the pictures below, i purchased a pack of multi colored round 1/2” stickers that I stuck on the right front corner of each box. One color for electrical, a different color for nuts and bolts, etc. this allows me to keep the trays roughly grouped together based on broad categories of contents.

I can store a whole hardware store in about a 2x2 foot section of floor space.

sab said:

Although technically it's a mobile shop, I enjoyed @AndyG 's wisdom shared regarding his work trailer setup:

[URL][URL][URL]https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/andygs-work-trailer-2.58009/[/URL][/URL][/URL]

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Thank you organization is something that a lot of guys struggle with and the reality is it is mostly because they don’t know how to do it- And the reason I say that is because I didn’t either-

You absolutely have to have some kind of system that prevents shuffling things-

- Get things off the floor

- Keep like things together

- Labeling is your friend

- Never never never set things up where you have to move something to get to something because if you do you’re constantly undoing your system

- The more you use things the easier they should be to access

- A good sign that you got it right is it will tell you when something is missing- Also you will know without having to think what you have and what you don’t have to and that is an advantage.

For me it is more of a challenge because I work mobile, So were using different things at different places and it makes me really stay committed to a high level of organization. As far as my living in service to my clients I absolutely refuse to work otherwise. I wish I could get my workers to really see the value in the approach and I’ve always hoped that leading by example would do it but it just makes them off to work out of my trailer and not theirs they trash up.

Once you develop the system and habits, it becomes effortless and more gets done.

Study 5S

https://www.graphicproducts.com/articles/what-is-5s/https://www.lean.org/lexicon-terms/five-s/https://www.sixsigmadaily.com/5s-sort-set-shine-standardize-sustain/

HDRider said:

Study 5S

[URL][URL]https://www.graphicproducts.com/articles/what-is-5s/[/URL][/URL]
[URL][URL]https://www.lean.org/lexicon-terms/five-s/[/URL][/URL]
[URL][URL]https://www.sixsigmadaily.com/5s-sort-set-shine-standardize-sustain/[/URL][/URL]

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5 s is 5 ways to shitcan everything, the asshole who came up with that whole concept must have been a real prick who talk many Fortune 500 companies to use it, just like six sigma , another flavor of the year…

Stinkbug said:

I use Stanley small parts boxes for hardware. By removing some of the bins inside, I can often store the small tools that are used with the hardware. For example, I can store the solder, the soldering iron, flux, desoldering tools etc. all together. The problem becomes that when you have a lot of these storage boxes the one you want is always on the bottom of the pile. To help with that, I built this storage shelf.

The handles have a label indicating the contents. After taking the pictures below, i purchased a pack of multi colored round 1/2” stickers that I stuck on the right front corner of each box. One color for electrical, a different color for nuts and bolts, etc. this allows me to keep the trays roughly grouped together based on broad categories of contents.

I can store a whole hardware store in about a 2x2 foot section of floor space.

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That rack is beautiful, I'm almost ashamed to show mine now

That rack, wow!

I maxed out the storage along the garage wall by using wooden crates reclaimed from the work dumpster and freebie lockers from a local school demolition. My shop area is in the single stall of a 3-car garage. I have to achieve "European" levels of efficient storage to keep stuff mostly organized.

Here's my ceiling solutions, ceilings are 12 feet so can take 2 people to get down 4x8 sheets although I've done it alone

For storing lengths of pipe and steel I made these wall dividers out of flat plate with pipe stubs welded to them, then bolt plate to wall and weld chains in place. The full length 20-24 footers go outside under a roof I built on the side of the house although I'm trying to work through all that stuff and only buy as needed from now on.

For shorter stock I made a floor standing divided bin out of 6" sidewalk drain sliced and welded together similar to the racks at the hardware store

The shelves are mostly loaded and labeled, and I take advantage of every nook and cranny. Shelves start at least 5 feet up, otherwise you end up putting things in front of them then you can't get to them. Keep in mind this is my workshop as well as where I operated my electrical business out of and where I keep all my toys, so yes it's full. In addition to the main part there is an attached 200 square foot "tool room" where I have lots of electrical tools and my drill presses are set up in there and stainless steel work benches.

In another corner just out of view past the rollaways is a 4x5 welding table on wheels with a 3/8" top. I like to keep as much stuff as possible on wheels. Also 2 Rubbermaid carts that I use for projects, very handy to put your stuff on one and roll it over to where you are working.

Here's my "non-Stinkbug LOL" rack,








in my defense I originally built it for a service van to hold every size and type of electrical box, there is a sliding part that kept things from falling out but I just turned it around to use for the organizers and set it on a Harbor Freight dolly. I'd like a nicer and bigger one but life keeps me pretty busy.