8 Best Reader Garage Projects and Storage Tips

The Family Handyman readers know how to tidy up their garages, and now you can use their tips, too!

Our editors and experts handpick every product we feature. We may earn a commission from your purchases.

1 / 8
rolling garage bike storage
Courtesy Eric Schleppenbach

Rolling Bike Storage

My rolling bike rack offers easy access and efficient storage for my family’s many bikes. To build the rack, I made a 2×4 lower frame with 2×4 uprights on each end. Large triangular plywood braces support the uprights. Plywood panels span the uprights, adding strength and rigidity. Staggering their heights and alternating their orientation, I can hang seven bikes on this 6-ft.-wide rack. Casters make it easy to roll away for storage. For security, I run a long steel cable through the bike frames and connect the looped ends with a hefty lock. I hang all our biking essentials—helmets, shoes, pumps, spare wheels and tires—on the back of the rack. – Eric Schleppenbach

Get the garage of your dreams one step at a time with our dream garage makeover guide.

2 / 8
garage shelf bag grill cover storage
Family Handyman

Shelf Bag

While cleaning the garage, I found lots of toys, scooters and sports equipment that took up too much shelf space and needed a different solution. I picked up a grill cover at a reuse center and repurposed it as a catchall bag for all this odd-shaped stuff. I attached the cover to my shelving unit with screws and washers. – Dean Tener

Learn how to make a DIY wheelbarrow hang-up, plus 10 more space-saving garage storage tips.

3 / 8
slide-out parts bins sliding panel garage storage
Family Handyman

Slide-Out Parts Bins

I made use of the narrow space between a shelving unit and a workbench by building this handy slide-out rack. I mounted 12-in. full-extension ball-bearing drawer slides ($6 per pair) to a plywood panel—one at the top and one at the bottom—with their mating parts attached to the side of the shelving unit. Then I hung the parts bins on the plywood panel. The drawer slides have a 100-lb. load capacity. – Scott Beverly

Organizing a garage isn’t a one-size-fits-all project, so we’ve compiled some of our best garage storage ideas. Check out these 46 Brilliant Ways to Organize Your Garage.

4 / 8
door track bike rack garage storage
Courtesy Roy Velardi

Door-Track Bike Rack

I attached a box rail to a well braced shelf. Each machine-threaded bike hook hangs from a box rail hanger, using a nut and thread locker. (The box rail and box rail hangers are from Home Depot; the bike hooks from parktool.com.) Bikes slide both ways for easy access, and the hooks rotate, allowing bikes to hug the wall. The rail and hangers hold 450 lbs. – Roy Velardi

5 / 8
mega mobile storage rack garage storage
Family Handyman

Mega Mobile Storage Rack

I found this metal shelving unit with wheels at a garage sale and turned it into a mobile storage unit for my garden tools. I covered three shelves with plywood to keep items from falling through the wire shelves. I framed the top two shelves with 2x4s, creating a lip on the shelves and providing a sturdy place to fasten storage hooks. Concrete mixing tubs on the lower shelves are perfect for storing smaller items. – Stan Hall

It will only take you one morning to achieve garage happiness. Here’s how with these garage organization ideas.

6 / 8
ball storage garage organization
Family Handyman

All-in-One Ball Storage

I built this sports storage rack to hold a lot of equipment. We toss large balls into a round hole at the top, and bungee cords span the front to keep them from falling out. Two baskets on the bottom half of the rack hold baseballs, hockey pucks and more. And the storage hooks on the side of the rack hold our baseball bats and hockey sticks. – Tim Hausman

7 / 8
rotating small-parts organizer garage organization
Family Handyman

Rotating Small-Parts Organizer

Here’s my take on an old tip for organizing fasteners and hardware. Instead of mounting jar lids to a 2×4, I decided to attach them to a six-sided rotating beam. I drew a hexagon on the end of a 4×4 to use as a guide for setting the fence. Then I set my table saw’s blade to 60 degrees and made the rip cuts to form the sides. To allow the beam to rotate freely, I drilled dowel holes in the ends of the beam and ran dowels through the posts into the beam ends. – Kenneth Snow

See how we doubled the storage capacity of this garage wall with plywood and inexpensive hardware.

8 / 8
pegboard tool organizer garage storage
Family Handyman

Pegboard Tool Organizer

My collection of small screwdrivers always rolled around in a drawer, making it difficult to find the one I needed. So I cut a scrap piece of pegboard and set it on standard pegboard shelf brackets. Now all of my small screwdrivers are neatly stored and easy to access. – Art Gay

For ways to use your garage ceiling for storage, check out these 14 products for garage ideas.

Brad Holden
Brad Holden, an associate editor at The Family Handyman, has been building cabinets and furniture for 30 years. In that time, he has absorbed so many slivers and ingested so much sawdust that he's practically made of wood.