One of the things we don’t consider when we think about storage is the convenience of having that storage available 24/7, 365 days a year and the only way you can have this is having a storage shed on your property. Most people have one shed and while that works really well, having a shed that is dedicated to you backyard work and activities can make your life incredibly easy especially if you also garden.

Having your tools and equipment at your fingertips and always in their place when you are looking for them makes life easy and that is always a good thing. Don’t you think it’s time to get serious about your backyard shed? Make your gardening more fum with good, organized storage!

We bought our plastic shed about 7 years ago when we moved into our first home. Though we didn’t plan on it, we had a son the very next year and have since added another one. At first we used the storage shed for storing furniture while getting the baby’s room put together and, over time, it has been used to hide Christmas gifts, store bikes, wagons and other kinds of kid’s toys as well as an array of garden tools and equipment. I thought about it the other day and realized I have never had to clean it or do any type of maintenance on this shed since we bought it!

When we had to leave it behind on our move to a larger house, I would have never thought I would grieve, but I did. It was like leaving an old friend behind knowing you won’t ever see them again. Kind of weird but true. However, it didn’t take us long to get a new friend because we needed one. There was no question as to what kind of shed we would be purchasing; a plastic storage shed! It’s just a bit bigger because the family is still growing and we’re going to need all the storage we can get!

This time every year it seems there are at least two or three new garden tools that I simply must own. My collection of tools is outgrowing the space I have set aside for them in our sun porch/laundry room. So this year I decided to invest in a plastic shed for my garden.

Plastic Sheds are easy to set up and they will last for decades. I followed the advice of others and bought a little more shed than I thought I needed, so that I can grow into it over the years. I chose an attractive model with molded plastic, steel reinforced panels which look like the vinyl siding on most of the houses in our neighborhood. I added the optional foundation kit, which will keep the wooden flooring up off the ground, which can get pretty wet at times.

My wife is thrilled, because essentially I just added back another 20 square feet to the porch!

Spring is my favorite time of year. Everything’s in bloom, the world is alive again, and… it’s time to do some spring cleaning. Okay, so I love everything about Spring except that last little bit.

But spring cleaning is a ritual at our house nonetheless. We take a weekend and get out all the things we’ve accumulated and find new homes for them in our storage shed out back.

Every year, we find things in the shed we no longer want to keep, and we either donate them somewhere, or sell them in a garage sale (usually every 2 or 3 years). This always frees up the space we need to store all the wonderful new items we found we couldn’t live without. But then for the rest of the year we can feel good that we have securely and properly stored our belongings to be able to access them at any time we need them again. We get into our shed often, and we use it like a large detached walk-in closet.

I guess we’ll be picking a weekend soon to set aside for some spring cleaning. I’ll be glad when it’s over and done again, so I can get back to enjoying Spring!

It wasn’t too long ago that I was visiting with a friend at his house and as we entered the kitchen, I smelled gasoline and it wasn’t just a hint of gasoline either.  After asking him about it he told me their lawnmower was stolen earlier in the spring out of their yard and since they don’t want the same thing to happen to the new one, they are storing it in the basement.

We went down to the basement and not only was the lawnmower there, but there were two full gas cans!  Well, he’s my friend and I decided right then and there if he is doing something this dangerous, I bet some of you are doing it too.  Because we don’t see or hear about gas exploding in people’s homes doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.  In fact, there are injuries and even death every year due to fires caused by the improper use of gas containers and/or equipment the uses gas.

The bottom line is if you can small gas, those fumes can be lit by a spark, static electricity or any type of open flame; including your pilot light!  The cost of a cheap shed to store these items in is nothing compared to the cost of loosing a life.  Think about it and be smart!

I know it’s not what you want to think about in December, but it might save you some good money in the long term if you buy one of the larger items you will need this spring.  If you don’t think you need a storage shed, garage, greenhouse or other large outdoor item, then don’t bother shopping for one.  However, if you know you are going to have to bite the bullet anyway, why not get the deals now.

You can landscape on the cheap as well with this same principle.  Many outdoor product and structure stores have some great bargains going on during the holiday months.  There are items that need moved off their shelves before the next year’s batch can be brought in and many are pricing them to sell.  Online stores are also giving a lot of free shipping and free accessory deals right now that are attractive.  Just FYI.

If you find yourself a little short on funds these days, it might be wise to look at ways to save money when you want to tackle any project either by yourself or one you would like to hire out to a contractor.  The one place you don’t want to skimp on is the materials as you need to have good solid materials to build anything you do so it will stand up over the test of time.

Another option is to purchase either a kit of some kind that has different sizes to choose from where you can simple put it together or install it to get what you are looking for.  There are some very good kits for garages, sheds, greenhouses, pergolas, closest and garage storage, arbors, fences and many others that can come in handy if you cannot afford a custom made item.  If you want to get something done bad enough you will find a way.

The holiday season is not only the time for parties and entertainment it is a great time to get organized.  After all, you have to move those decorations in and out of your storage units anyway, whether that be a shed, a basement or just closets throughout your home.  Anytime you are forced to go and get anything out of your storage area and it takes you more than a few minutes to find it and remove it, you have an organization issue.

There are plenty of shelves, bins and organizational systems that you can buy but the main question is; do you have space to store those items or are you just stuffing more and more into less and less available space?  Before you invest in the organizational systems, you may want to invest in getting some additional space either through off property solutions like a secured storage space or an on site solution with a utility shed of the appropriate size.  The bottom line is do it now while you’re having to go through your holiday decorations and save yourself time later.

So you have a few simple repairs that you think you could make yourself if you just knew exactly what you needed to do.  Well there are a couple of things you can do to find information when you need to make those easy repairs.  You can start with the internet.  However, the Internet can be extremely confusing for some people and say it’s hard to tell if they are getting good valued information.  If you find multiple methods of repair, don’t panic.  They may all be valid.  So what can you do to decide which method is for you? Well here are a few other ideas.

Take a trip down to your local library.  You can potentially do all of your research on building new things as well as repairs from information sources you find at the local library.  It’s fast, fun, and most of all, free.  You can also visit the repair books for Black & Decker.  They have a lot of great books that you can buy and keep on hand to reference for many repairs.

For those of us who do not have a garage, we have to decide what is most important; the added storage a garage gives us; or protection for our vehicles, before we decide to either pay the expense of building a garage or settle on an alternative.  Another consideration is how much space we have on our lot to build from scratch, erect some kind of a kit or just do with what we have.

If protecting the car or truck is the ultimate goal, a simple carport is a great alternative way to accomplish that end result.  Carports are easy to install and can be purchased in many different sizes and colors so you can cover more than one vehicle or a boat, camper or RV.

If storage is what is most important to you, obtaining an outdoor storage unit would be a good alternative.  They come in various sizes and most have foundation kits that are very helpful.  You will need to check with your codes department in your county or town to make sure what you want to do is within their guidelines.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… C: wait… SD: wait…