How to Design a Garage Shelf

Measure the wall width and height to use for shelving. Sketch a shelf across one end of the garage about 18 inches from the ceiling. Draw three or four shelves across a 4-foot high space beginning 2 feet off the floor, as another option. Picture specific items or boxes and bins to fit on the shelf space to decide how many shelves will be installed.

Figure out the materials you will need. Use a stud finder to locate studs behind drywall in the garage. Buy pre-made brackets to hold wood shelving. Purchase, as an alternative, metal strips with rows of slots to hold shelving brackets that snap in. Use 3-inch metal screws to secure the metal strips vertically on four or five studs along the wall. Drive these screws with an electric screwdriver. Plan to buy 12-inch brackets to support 12-inch wide boards to form the shelves. Cut boards about 48 inches long by 12 inches wide to rest across support brackets.

Remove junk from the garage space near the shelving area. Set the items aside to organize them for placing them back on shelves. Get a friend to help secure vertical metal strips to the wall using a carpenter's level to guide you. Snap a chalk line for each shelf to make sure the brackets will be even across the wall horizontally. Keep in mind that you will insert individual brackets into slots on metal strips that allow for different heights of brackets.

Buy the wood boards for shelving in 8-foot or 12-foot sections. Install the shelves so that very little board material goes to waste. Cut four 8-foot boards in two, for example, to make eight shelves. Screw or nail two thicknesses of boards together to make shelves extra strong. Paint or stain the boards to give them a finished look, if you like. Install a curtain at the ceiling level to cover clutter once items are placed on the shelves.

Group paint cans together along a bottom shelf. Don't put heavy paint cans or electric tools with sharp edges or blades on a top shelf where they can fall off. Put these in plastic boxes or bins on the very bottom shelf. Place boxes of old books or clothing on middle shelves. Add items to the top shelf space that will seldom be used. Put Christmas tree decorations or lights there, for example. Label the shelving boxes and bins once an organizational plan is established.