Many ready-made commercial systems are available now for storing or
hanging items in your garage. Some of these also are applicable to basements,
attics, or other places in your house.
While the systems may take a bit
longer to install than nailing a ledger or a shelf to wall studs, their
advantage is that most are easy to customize. You can change the configuration
and add hangers, shelves, baskets, and bins where and when you need them.
orth-all-about-strg-91-0.jpg Commercial clamps and racks hold hand tools. Power tools get parked in heavy-duty, sliding drawers, safe from dust.
Such systems work best in finished garages. If you have an old garage with exposed stud walls, it’s a relatively small job to install drywall, 3 plywood, or paneling on the walls to create a usable surface. If you use drywall or plywood, you don’t have to worry about taping the joints or finishing it if you want a purely utilitarian surface.
GETTING BICYCLES OFF THE GROUND AND OUT OF THE WAY
Interest in cycling has put cars and bicycles in competition everywhere— on the roadway and in the garage.
Hanging bicycles from the garage wall or
ceiling keeps them safe, clean, and out of the way. There are many commercial
bike-hanging systems available, ranging from simple vinyl-covered hooks
with threaded ends that screw into studs or joists to complex designs that
hold your bike as well as helmets and other gear.
You can make a simple homemade rack by hanging
two pair of 2x2 uprights to the ceiling joists, adding a brace between them,
and attaching 1x4 crosspieces. Cut semicircular notches in each 1x4 to support
the bicycle frame. You could create a single unit or a double unit.