by Author Name Withheld 67

Created on: March 20, 2007   Last Updated: April 22, 2007

A clean garage is a gorgeous garage.

Tips to get from gross to gorgeous:

1. Start with a realistic vision of where you want to end up, and when. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

2. Get the whole family on board. Find a picture of your "after" garage - something from a magazine or website that looks more or less like what you want. Put it on the fridge so everyone in the family knows what the goal is.

3. Pick a maximum of three - yes, three - things you want to use the garage for. One: storing vehicles. Two: storing things you use and that are too dirty to go in the house, like lawnmowers and shovels. Three: that's up to you.

4. You know why it's called a Garage Sale? Because the stuff you're selling is the extra stuff in your garage. Set ONE day for your garage sale. At the end of the day, everything that's not sold goes to the dump. If it is not good enough for someone to buy at garage sale prices, then don't give it to a charity. They have to spend money to take it to the dump.

5. Continue getting rid of stuff. Repeat until your garage has the same amount of clutter in it as your dream garage in steps 1 and 2. That is: NONE. Getting rid of clutter is the main work of your makeover. Bite the bullet and do it. Rent a dumpster, hire a kid, do whatever it takes.

6. When you can go into your garage with a broom and sweep the entire floor clean without having to move anything, you are ready to rebuild. Before then you're just fooling yourself - you still have clutter.

7. Sweep. High - the ceiling, the walls. Low - the floor. Repeat.

8. Wash the windows.

9. Oil the garage door, fix the lock on the door if you have a locking door.

10. Lay down some mats to keep the floor clean in the spots where you park the dirtier things, whatever they may be.

11. Put the vehicles in the garage.

12. Is there really any room for anything else? Bring in the tools and things you listed as your second choice (way up in step #3).

13. Is there really any room for anything else? If you can honestly say yes, then now and only now is the time when you have permission to install shelves or storage units or whatever it is you had in mind. Go ahead but stop as soon as you start to feel crowded.

14. DONE! Congratulations.

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