Make Your Shed Useful for YOU - Cook Portable Warehouses

It’s your shed. Not your sister’s shed. Your neighbor’s shed. Or even your kid’s shed. (NOTE: It IS your spouse’s shed too though, don’t forget that. Not that they’ll let you). Moving on.

Your shed is for you and your home. So, ensure that it’s solving your purpose.

Now, you may think, “I need a shed for storage, of course it’s solving my problem!”

But, even with a new shed, you only have so much space. Granted, with our rent to own program if you run out of space you can trade up to a larger size. Even then, you’re still limited to the space you have. Use it wisely.

The following are three guidelines to follow no matter if your shed is for storage, a she shed, man cave or office.

Create zones. Are multiple people using your shed for storage? Are there multiple themes of your storage? Then these zones will help you remember where you put things. Holiday decorations you know will be found in the right-hand corner. But, your tools and workstation are found in the front of the shed. By designating a few zones there’s no need to empty the entire shed to find the one thing you’re looking for. You’ll at least know the section to start looking in.
Invest in storage accessories. That’s right, the shed is just the start. Now, you need shelving, potentially a pegboard (our Handyman includes this!) and a way to use your ceiling space to its fullest (this is easier if you get a shed with a loft built in). Now, it doesn’t have to be anything elaborate. Build your own shelving with scrap wood or buy sturdy plastic shelving and bolt it to the wall. Add plastic bins (that are labeled!) and viola, you’ve just freed up your floor space and kept things accessible. That’s really the challenge isn’t it? There’s the challenge of where to keep things (a shed, check!) and then there’s the challenge of how to keep those things accessible. Wish there was an easier way, but really it’s just by sticking to an organizational system. Doesn’t sound like any fun, but in the long run, you’ll be thankful you did.
Set boundaries. Sounds like something you’d hear in therapy. So, let this be your shed therapy lesson for the day. Set those boundaries and don’t look back. Is your shed for a workshop? Then don’t let it slowly become the catchall storage space in the backyard. Does someone in the family need to store something large while they move? Set a date they will have it picked up. Does your spouse have a tendency to buy too many tools or decorations? Set standards that when things get too full, then a purge will have to happen. Setting boundaries allows your shed to be what it needs to be for you and your family. If you don’t, it will transform into a giant hole where things go, never to be found again. And no one wants that.

So, we fully expect you to use your shed space wisely. Don’t skimp out on any of these three “rules”. Trust us, it’s worth it.

If you’re still needing a portable shed for your backyard, be sure to tour our Cook shed options. Why? Because we make the best building. We wouldn’t still be selling or still have a lifetime warranty on all treated components if we didn’t. You can see how we build our sheds here.