Sheds: Organization and Placement

Sheds are a lifesaver when it comes to caring for your yard. They provide a temperate, dry place to store all of your tools--from your mower and string trimmer to your dog poop scoopers and even big things like wheelbarrows and ladders. The only other place you would have the option to put them without bringing them in the house is the garage, which in many cases would mean you have to leave a vehicle outside--putting it in danger of hail or other storm-related damage. Because of this, any shed--be it large or small, tall or short, bought or built--is a necessity for storage purposes. Learn how to organize your many tools in a shed (sometimes a difficult task, as you probably have a lot of tools and limited space) as well as where in your yard you should place or build your shed. Read on for all the shed information you will ever need!

For organization, a few thoughts and tips to organize your shed more effectively:

1. Place ladders, rakes, shovels, and string trimmers in a hanging position from the walls or lay them in the rafters of the roof. Don't take up precious floor space with these items, instead, bang nails or hooks into the walls and place all of your long, light things on them. Ladders can hang across the length of the wall on two or three hooks while rakes, trimmers, shovels, and all similar things can hang vertically from one or two hooks. This will make it easier to reach these items as well as leave space for bigger, heavier things on the ground.

2. Invest in good shelving units, as they will hold all of your small items while not taking up too much floor space. When looking at outdoor shelving units to purchase, prioritize vertical storage over horizontal storage. The whole purpose of a shelving unit is to clear the floor of small, light items so that mowers and wheelbarrows can be set in their place--if you buy a long, wide shelving unit instead of a tall, thin one than that idea goes to waste. Put gas cans, tree trimmers, trowels, any necessary oils and lubricants for your machines, and other light handheld things on the shelves. In some cases, depending on the strength and size of the shelving unit, you could place smaller machines like chainsaws or leaf blowers on the shelves as well to clear up even more space. 

3. Leave all of the heavy, large items on the floor (especially if they have wheels). Wheelbarrows, mowers, bikes, racks, fertilizing equipment, etc. can all be left on the ground. Make sure they are in a dry area (especially if they are machines, as water can destroy the internal workings). Make sure they are easy to access and you don't have to move around tons of other things just to get to them. 

For placement in your yard, some thoughts: 

1. Keep it accessible by path. Be this paving stones laid an even amount of space apart, a sidewalk or other walkway, or an elevated bridge, make it easy to get to the shed and easy to transport things from your shed back across to the house. Put in the work to make gaining access to all your valuable and necessary tools as easy as possible.

2. Keep it out of the way, even while still being accessible. A shed is not a lawn decoration (unless you put in the work to make it that way, in which case proudly display all of your hard work in the form of a shed!) Don't place sheds right in your line of sight or in the middle of your yard. Keep it out of the way--behind the house, up against a fence, etc. When you're entertaining, you don't want to have to explain away an ugly eyesore that you put in the wrong place. And when you're mowing or working in other ways in your yard, you don't want to have a massive structure getting in your way. Be selective about where you place your shed. 

Now you have some good ideas for how to organize and place your brand new shed! Now that everything is in it's proper place (including the shed itself), enjoy having a clean, dry place to store your necessary tools. 

Published August 14th, 2023.

PxHere, 13 Feb. 2017, pxhere.com/en/photo/700553. Accessed 14 Aug. 2023.