Just about everyone probably does it. They have “utility rooms” that turned into disorganized storage areas. Check out these four steps to properly declutter your utility room before choosing customized cabinets from Closet & Storage Concepts West Berlin.
1. Sort your “stuff.”
Whatever you have stored in your potential utility room, find a way to sort it. This might require purchasing some bins with lids that you could later store on shelves once you decide how to set up your utility room. Otherwise, use whatever containers you currently have — even dump out the boxes you have items stored in right now. Then, use those empty boxes to categorize all your belongings.
2. Decide to keep or discard.
Take at least two or three boxes you have or clear an area in the disarrayed room for this. Make piles such as “Keep,” “Throw away,” or “Donate.” Treat this project as if you’re moving and can’t take all the items with you, only right now you’re just downsizing to make room for the most important items.
3. Decide the room’s purpose.
Some people might have a utility room where they would store brooms and cleaning supplies. This also might become a laundry room. Other people choose to make this space a pantry, which also could have a section divided from where the food would sit. You can design a pantry to also have space for cleaning supplies if you keep those items far enough away from anything edible.
4. Sketch a room layout plan.
If planning overwhelms you, remember that your drawing will serve as a guide. You don’t have to commit to it, but it will give you an idea of how to set up your utility room. Your drawing will help you come time to decide if you need shelves, drawers or cabinets. You might even want all three. Draw this in between sorting what you want to keep or discard if you want.
5. Choosing your cabinets.
Try not to stress over this step too much. However, it helps to know if you prefer to place your items on open or closed shelves or if you need tall wardrobes in your utility space. To maximize room usage, you can even find cabinets that fit in both corners and along an entire wall.
If you plan to have a pantry and a cleaning supply closet in the same space, think about a combination of closed and open tall cabinets. For smaller items, maybe think of units with more shelves. Of course, you need to measure for appliances if your utility room doubles as a laundry room.
Start making more room for life this spring with Closet & Storage Concepts! We are the premier provider of custom home storage systems in the Philadelphia and South Jersey areas.