What did you do to add storage?

[LvmyPug2]

I would love to hear from my fellow TVers what creative ideas you have come up with to add storage to your home. We are thinking of adding an attic stair. But other than replacing those darn half shelves in the kitchen cabinets with pullouts and buying a stackable washer and dryer, I'm stumped. Any suggestions?

[getdul981]

Put in the stairs. The builder has supplied "some" plywood/particle board in the attic over the garage. I put in extra plywood in the attic and had the pull-outs installed in our previous house. Just haven't had a chance to get to it in this one yet. It's definitely on the "to do" list. I'm also thinking of adding pull-outs under the kitchen sink and the bathroom vanities. It's a real female dog to get to stuff in the back of those places. Also when you do the pull-outs in the kitchen, have those half shelves replaced with pull outs also.

[784caroline]

What model home are we talking about??

[Bill-n-Brillo]

If you're looking for more shelf/hanging space in your closets, take down the shelf/hanging system TV installed with the new build and put up double rows for shelf/hanging. This will work for hanging shirts, etc. Still will need the ones at the original height for longer items. If you've got higher ceilings, you can do a third shelf as well, just for storage shelf purposes.

Put shelving on your garage walls, too - up high, just to store things up out of the way.

Original/prior homeowners of our place installed extra wall cabinets in the laundry area.

Bill :)

[skip0358]

I took all the 1/2 shelves out and added pullouts to top and bottom as well as the pantry. In the walk in closet I added a full row of upper shelves, in the master bath closet I added 2 additional shelves, in the laundry I added and extra upper shelf and a shelf on the wall,in both other closets I added a 2nd upper plus 5 smaller shelves on the right side. My garage I added 28' of wire shelves on the walls plus installed a 6' base cabinet plus added attic stairs. Once a year we go thru everything and donatate what we haven't used or worn.

[Uptown Girl]

We are adding additional cabinets in the laundry room and over the commode in the master bathroom 'water closet'. Also using lidded baskets where floor space allows for toilet paper and extra folded/rolled towels.
Hubby installed Craftsman work cabinets in the garage and attic stairs/plywood flooring.

We purchased furniture with an eye for drawers and cabinet doors/cubby holes.
Platform beds with drawers underneath.

Have ordered extra storage in the master closet. Double rods are most important for us here.
I also will convert the 3rd bedroom closet to become all 16" deep shelves (wall to wall, ceiling to floor) for oddball storage.

And I am really downsizing possessions. I suspect I will continue to do that in waves, as time goes by and we see how we are functioning.

[MikeH]

Solving storage problem was easy for us---------we got rid of everything we had not used in 15 months. Now, no storage problems!

[getdul981]

What model home are we talking about??

Ours was a Begonia.

[Mikitv]

We have Bridgeport model and I added cabinets under the kitchen window by the desk area. I also had to add a cabinet and full counter in my laundry room because they didn't offer that when we built. All of our closets have shelves and double hanging rods. Put in attic stairs and also shelving in our garage.

[Debfrommaine]

In walk-in closet hubby installed the Craftmade (sp) closet organizer system - well made, pretty easy to put together and looks great, economical, too. Great storage for blankets, pillows when company arrives, and other unit has shelves (we added doors on upper half)......second home we've done this to.

[ladydoc]

We did everything above PLUS we had these huge hanging steel selves installed in the garage. Once I convinced hubby he did not have to have the car in the garage, we also put in a row of heavy duty shelves basically dividing the garage in half. The left has the golf cart;the right have the laundry area. In the back hubby has a hobby area with shelves and a work surface he built.

[2AFRetSNCOs]

OMG! We're going to have to get serious about getting rid of all our stuff. No way do we want to NEED all that extra storage and no way is our car NOT going to be in the garage. No offense intended. By the way, this is my first post. We hope to buy our CYV in a few months and move in by the end of 2012.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

OMG! We're going to have to get serious about getting rid of all our stuff. No way do we want to NEED all that extra storage and no way is our car NOT going to be in the garage. No offense intended. By the way, this is my first post. We hope to buy our CYV in a few months and move in by the end of 2012.

And when you think you've whittled your possessions down enough, do it again.....and again..... :D I'm not looking forward to the moving experience if we decide to move to TV f/t at some point in the future!!!

Welcome to TOTV!!!

Bill :)

[angiefox10]

And when you think you've whittled your possessions down enough, do it again.....and again..... :D I'm not looking forward to the moving experience if we decide to move to TV f/t at some point in the future!!!

Welcome to TOTV!!!

Bill :)

That's what I've been doing..... I go through it and through it and through it. I toss and give away each time! whew!!!! I don't want to end up with boxes left over after I move in!

[nitakk]

I think you'll find when you get here, you don't need all that stuff anymore. The whole idea is to make life simpler and easier and having a lot of junk you really don't need doesn't fit into the lifestyle here. The longer you are here, the less "stuff" you need - and the more time you have to enjoy life. We have a two bedroom, two bath home with 1-1/2 garage and I have everything I need (with our car and golfcart in the garage!).

[Happinow]

I have been reading a lot of posts and I don't know what CYV stands for? Help!

[angiefox10]

I have been reading a lot of posts and I don't know what CYV stands for? Help!

Court Yard Villa

Hey... Were is the post with the abbreviations and what they mean for Happinow?

[Mikeod]

I have been reading a lot of posts and I don't know what CYV stands for? Help!
CourtYard Villa

[dwbevan]

CYV = Courtyard villa

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Ask and ye shall receive, Angie:

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/showthread.php?t=44092

Bill :wave:

[angiefox10]

Ask and ye shall receive, Angie:

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/showthread.php?t=44092

Bill :wave:

Thanks Bill! I knew you could do it! :wave:

[Mark1130]

And when you think you've whittled your possessions down enough, do it again.....and again..... :D I'm not looking forward to the moving experience if we decide to move to TV f/t at some point in the future!!!

Welcome to TOTV!!!

Bill :)

Will someone PLEASE call my wife and remind her of this?

I told her we have have to get rid of a lot of things before we move into our CYV. She gets rid of things and when I come home she has went out and bought more to replace what she got rid of! :oops:

[Pturner]

Getting rid of "stuff" is the best solution but definitely not the easiest. :sigh:

[angiefox10]

Will someone PLEASE call my wife and remind her of this?

I told her we have have to get rid of a lot of things before we move into our CYV. She gets rid of things and when I come home she has went out and bought more to replace what she got rid of! :oops:

Ummm Mark, You're on your own on this one... But nice try! :girlneener:

[LvmyPug2]

Thanks for the great suggestions. I'm not sure if I'm proud or embarrassed by how many trips I've made to goodwill but I still have a few more to go.

[angiefox10]

Thanks for the great suggestions. I'm not sure if I'm proud or embarrassed by how many trips I've made to goodwill but I still have a few more to go.

Keep your receipts!!! This is going to be a good tax year for us!

[CatskillBill]

This is what I built for my extra storage. And it hides the ugly utilities. Just be sure to keep proper clearances from hot pipes if you have a gas furnance or gas hot water heater. Some homes are built with AC & water heater enclosed. My Bougainvillia did not.
Also louvered bifold doors insure good fresh air flow for combustion of gas appliances.

[Trish Crocker]

Ours was a Begonia.

did it change names????:)

[Happinow]

Court Yard Villa

Hey... Were is the post with the abbreviations and what they mean for Happinow?


Ah...thanks. Now it all makes sense!

[Happinow]

You are all so prompt! Thanks for the help. :wave:

[Bettiboop]

Getting rid of "stuff" is the best solution but definitely not the easiest. :sigh:

I agree lol. I've been sorting through things for two years now and it seems like I'm going around in circles. :loco:

Wish I could hire that guy on television (can't remember his name) who helps people downsize their "stuff".

Hopefully I can manage to get it done before our move to TV!!! I don't have a choice. :sigh:

[ladydoc]

OMG! We're going to have to get serious about getting rid of all our stuff. No way do we want to NEED all that extra storage and no way is our car NOT going to be in the garage. No offense intended. By the way, this is my first post. We hope to buy our CYV in a few months and move in by the end of 2012.

I think about half of the folks in our villa neighborhood do NOT put their car in the garage. This is not Minnesota. You might well change your mind. Hubby did.

[brostholder]

In our CYV, we are replacing all the kitchen cabinets with pullouts, converting the closets to "california closets", having a large pantry cabinet put in by the entranceway, adding cabinets to the laundry room and having an attic ladder put in. We have a little sign on our refrigerator that says "If it isn't useful, beautiful or joyful, throw it out". However, we find it easier to post the sign than to live by it, but we are trying.

[CaptJohn]

We have a little sign on our refrigerator that says "If it isn't useful, beautiful or joyful, throw it out". However, we find it easier to post the sign than to live by it, but we are trying.

Your sign is nice and general. I like that. All my junk fits in those categories so I have specific signs all over the house and in my shirt pocket and still fight myself to obey them. The junk is part of our collective history of being on the planet so throwing it out is like throwing out a part of myself. Each piece bring back a certain memory of acquisition or good time. Maybe when I get in my 80's or 90's I'll do better when I start forgetting where I got them!

[getdul981]

did it change names????:)

No, we changed houses. We now have a Lily.

[hdh1470]

Found nice product for flooring in attic ezattic.com

[herbaru]

Found nice product for flooring in attic ezattic.com

Looks interesting. Do let us know if you try it.

[graciegirl]

Someone told us when we were trying to decide which and what was to buy as much space in a home, square footage, as you can comfortably afford. Some cottages are the same price as designers. Some cottages are the same price as villas. Some villas cost the same as designers.

We are still LIVING and DOING and yes bringing stuff home. Think about the size before you commit. There is much said about villas and enclosed backyards and dogs, but I see a lot of folks walking dogs in my neighborhood. The dogs like it, I like to see the pups walking by and the owners are getting exercised.

Just had to say that we are glad we took the advice and bought a Camellia for our first house here.

My husband put shelves to the ceiling in our garage and added shelves in our interior closets. We have nightstands with drawers and hall furniture with drawers. We filled an entire St.Vincent de Paul truck before we left Cincinnati. AND I am not a keeper or a hoarder.

The getting rid of stuff is hard to do...but don't get rid of everything you love....like Christmas stuff. Christmas still arrives here.

[rubicon]

Its a losing battle for me because while I keep explaining to my wife we are in the liquidation phase of our lives she continues to buy things because they are great "sales". and to add insult to injury I still can't get her out of the habit of saying " you just don't know when you might need this." So despite a major reduction of furniture, et al when we moved from Minneapolis area and I am talking about many truck loads I find myself going nuts again finding places for her to store stuff. I am admittedly prone to organization and don't like to see much of our stuff.

so like many of you I added extra shelves in the closets. I purchased furniture with an eye for storage. I installed white cabinets in my garage to hide everything including brooms, etc. I still have plenty of room for my two cars and golf cart. By the way a neighbor of mine had the habit of leavng his car parked outside until he discovered rats were using it at night.

I also had space over my garage attic I install additional cabinets in the laundry room. finally like many of you I continue to reconfigure each and every area of storage to determine if there is a better pattern. God this be patient and please the wife venture alone should get me into heaven.

[tommy steam]

I would love to hear from my fellow TVers what creative ideas you have come up with to add storage to your home. We are thinking of adding an attic stair. But other than replacing those darn half shelves in the kitchen cabinets with pullouts and buying a stackable washer and dryer, I'm stumped. Any suggestions?

I wonder why the builder does not offer more storage , attic pull down stairs and all the things that people add to their homes after thy move in.

[hotrodgirl]

I think the attic flooring and EZ stairs may be offered as an upgrade if you are building. I did ask that and was told it is doable... Don't meet with the design team for a bit het, but that is a definite on my list. Perhaps some of those who are meeting with them soon could post a reply. I think Sara (Shalomaul) is there this next week...

[George Bieniaszek]

Most of the CYV's have a 1.5 car garage. Our Ford Escape along with the golf cart make for a snug fit width-wise so if you have to park your car in the garage, you cannot count on the garage as a storage place for too many things. We also have our washer/dryer in the garage as well.

[Beatit]

Yikes! We are scheduled this Monday to start the design process. Just found out our designer will be Phil Haskins. Does anyone know anything about him or had him as a designer?

Thanks.

[jimbo2012]

I use this in my home now and love it.
You can raise or lower it, no ladders.

Increase the storage potential of your garage with the Racor 250 lb. Heavy Lift Storage Platform, delivering a way to load and lift heavy items to the ceiling without use of a ladder. This platform offers storage for things like file boxes, outdoor furniture, lawn mowers, canoes, tires, ladders and more. Heavy duty steel support beams and vinyl coated steel cable ensure quality performance and a hand crank helps eliminate the physical strain associated with storing heavy objects out of the way.

Ceiling platform supports up to 250 lb. for heavy-duty storage
Constructed from heavy duty steel with support beams for reliable durability
Hand crank lets you raise and lower platform with ease
Lift can lower 8 ft. from the ceiling for easy loading
Includes heavy-duty support beams, 4 ft. x 4 ft. platform, winding axle, vinyl-coated steel cable and all mounting hardware

Not sure what the ceiling height in the garages are there, anyone know offhand?

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/da/da9f021a-814f-4b29-bc71-6d411149a76e_300.jpg

they are about $150, also w/o the lift for about $60

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/100/14/1404ce38-e503-4ea3-b5e6-12c6f92111b4_100.jpg

And they make one for bikes

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/c1/c1cf2db4-07ab-4863-8443-c19a55775830_300.jpg

[perrjojo]

My husband had lots of photos, placques and awards from his 40 years in the aircraft industry. We have removed all the photos from the frames and taken photos of the placques and awards. I have then scanned them and am making them into a Shutterfly book. He will still have a record of all the memories without taking up all of the space. I had many family potraits on the walls and am doing the same with them.

[jgbama]

:DMy husband had lots of photos, placques and awards from his 40 years in the aircraft industry. We have removed all the photos from the frames and taken photos of the placques and awards. I have then scanned them and am making them into a Shutterfly book. He will still have a record of all the memories without taking up all of the space. I had many family potraits on the walls and am doing the same with them.

We are putting framed photos in a photo album. Love the idea of doing the same for plaques and awards.

After 9 trips to Salvation Army thrift store and a very successful yard sale yesterday, we are still downsizing! Our (soon to be) new home in TV has attic stairs already, but don't want to cram every nook and cranny with stuff we didn't get rid of in Montgomery. Our motto, "dejunk, dejunk, dejunk" and we aren't touching our "life memories". We are removing "we might need this one day" from our vocabulary! :D

When we come back to the closing on July 16th, I plan to walk DW through the house again and remind her of our motto! Wish me luck, as I do want to make it to our 43rd anniversary. :pray:

Our biggest challenge is we have separate computer rooms here, but must merge into an approx. 9X11 third bedroom in TV. I may have to set up a TV tray in my closet for a laptop! :1rotfl:

[Redrok]

I've scanned all my family photos and we now see them on our TV and Computers as screens savers. Saved a lot of space when we got rid of the albums and we enjoy them much more too.

[asianthree]

My husband had lots of photos, placques and awards from his 40 years in the aircraft industry. We have removed all the photos from the frames and taken photos of the placques and awards. I have then scanned them and am making them into a Shutterfly book. He will still have a record of all the memories without taking up all of the space. I had many family potraits on the walls and am doing the same with them.

Good Idea:bigbow:

[Dayzee]

We were very fortunate to already have most of the afore mentioned storage ideas installed in our home by the previous owner. However, there are several usuable spaces in our house that require something shallow. I happened to find some pieces at IKEA (Love IKEA!!!) that work great. We have made a habit of taking our shoes off at the door and since we generally come in through the garage I wanted something for shoe storage in our laundry area off the hallway. IKEA has a selection of cabinets (about 8" deep in various heights) with pull-down style storage. I purchased two - they take up little space, make a shallow space usable and match my white laundry room cabinets perfectly. We can store up to 12 pairs of shoes in one cabinet.

[Billyworld]

:coolsmiley:I have a Lantana with a two car garage and a cart garage. I am extending the cart garage 27 feet and blowing out the back wall to make it approx 40 feet long. Should hold my stuff. Concrete being poured today. Just another Idea to store "crap".:thumbup:

[getdul981]

:coolsmiley:I have a Lantana with a two car garage and a cart garage. I am extending the cart garage 27 feet and blowing out the back wall to make it approx 40 feet long. Should hold my stuff. Concrete being poured today. Just another Idea to store "crap".:thumbup:

Now, that sounds like a good idea.