Make Organization Your New Year's Resolution: 4 Tips for the Backyard

Organized storage shed
December 22, 2021

The backyard is an important place to entertain, relax, and enjoy the outdoors. How it looks greatly affects a home's curb appeal and its functionality. If your backyard is disorganized, it can create feelings of anxiety or even be a hazard to kids and pets. Thankfully, as the weather cools, there is more time to maintain your backyard and get it ready for the upcoming year.

Efficient storage solutions like sheds and portable garages can help homeowners stay organized and keep yards clear and pristine. There are all types of shelters for different storage needs like yard equipment, gardening, firewood, and other seasonal items. Therefore, if you want to make organization your New Year's resolution, it’s advisable to invest in more storage. Here are four organization ideas you can use to make your yard look the best it can be this upcoming year.

Garden equipment storageGarden equipment storage

1. Plan Your Backyard Zones

The first step in achieving your New Year’s Resolution is to plan the layout of your backyard. To create an organized outdoor space, you should designate yard “zones.” Each backyard zone is designated to a certain activity or storage need. For instance, if you need a place to season firewood for your fire pit, you should map out a backyard zone dedicated to firewood storage.

When you have multiple people living in one home, it’s easy to have items everywhere. The best way to stay away from clutter is to organize your belongings in sheds. In this way, you can protect seasonal items and toys from premature wear and tear. To create harmony between all the different interests in your household, pinpoint areas that will house specific items. Here are a few examples of some useful backyard zones.

Kids’ Play Area

Kids need a safe area to play that is away from hazards like sharp tools and cooking areas. As much as possible, keep the kids' playground away from anything dangerous like active grilling areas and bodies of water. You can even mark this area clearly by making a playground “beach” with play sand.

Keep this place safely lit with outdoor lights so that the kids can see where they are going even when the sun starts to set. A small outdoor storage shed for toys can also prove quite useful for easy cleanup and organization. This also prolongs the life of balls and other toys from getting exposed to the elements.

Gardening Area

Gardening is best enjoyed when you have access to all your tools. Position your greenhouse or garden storage in a zone where you can focus on your work. Many gardeners find potting benches useful in this area since it doesn’t take up a lot of space and can discreetly stay on one side of a patio or deck. Other useful items like a hose rack and small gardening shed with vertical storage for tools will boost this zone’s efficiency and organization.

Entertaining Area

Entertaining areas are usually reserved for the deck or patio since you can easily keep outdoor furniture out of the dirt. However, you can dedicate any level area in the yard towards entertaining with some careful planning. Overall, these places should be clear of obtrusive storage and clutter.

Knowing what goes where your backyard will make it easy to plan for storage sheds. To store the most items, use tall shelves in the sheds so that you can access small items and keep them visible instead of on the ground. For instance, you can make your grilling areas more defined and functional with grill gazebos, outdoor seating, and a shed to store outdoor cooking gear.

Firewood and Hearth Storage

If you plan to store firewood, it’s important to keep it in an area away from the house or moisture. Use firewood and hearth storage solutions to keep all your fireplace and firepit supplies in the best condition. Also, stacks of wood should be kept away from the siding of your house to prevent any moisture damage and places for pests to hide.

Patio storage shedPatio storage shed

2. Have Storage Options for Every Season

Now that you have an idea of how you want your backyard organized, you’ll need to get the tools to organize it. Your New Year’s Resolution of staying organized will be off to a great start if you have plenty of storage on your property.

Use Storage Sheds to Store Seasonal Items

Sheds are among the best items for backyard organization because they provide a secure place to keep all of your equipment, tools, or excess items. Not only do they protect your belongings, but they can be customized to your storage needs. Arrow Sheds are easy to set up and made of durable materials that will protect your seasonal items for the months they aren't used.

Tool Organization Ideas

Even small storage sheds can store a lot of items when you maximize their potential. Add shelving to keep your tools organized by season or a tool hanger to utilize all of your space. Some sheds are even compact enough to store away seasonal items or conceal recycling and waste bins. If you need storage on your patio, a deck box is a great option. You’ll be able to fit all of your patio items or outdoor gear in an easily accessible storage bench.

Portable firewood seasoning shedPortable firewood seasoning shed

3. Have a Plan for Firewood

If you use firewood to heat your home or have a fireplace in your living room, you likely have a location on your property to store your wood. But do you know how important it is to have proper firewood storage? When your firewood is tossed into your yard, it makes a mess, and your firewood burns less efficiently.

Having proper firewood and hearth storage is key to seasoning wood and keeping it ready for fires throughout the fire pit and fireplace season. Here are some of the basics that you need to maintain a steady fire.

Seasoning Sheds

If you prefer to harvest your own wood, you need a place where your logs can properly dry out. Seasoning sheds are specifically made to promote ventilation and dry out wood up to twice as fast as open-air seasoning. The translucent covering lets in light during the day to speed up the drying process while its waterproof nature shelters fresh wood from rain and snow. Meanwhile, this outdoor building also makes conditions less appealing to common wood pests since its less humid compared to open-air seasoning.

Firewood Racks

Firewood racks are specifically designed to meet the needs of seasoned firewood. It allows extra ventilation and waterproofing protection compared to standard storage racks. By keeping firewood at a higher level with a dedicated rack, you’re less likely to have infestation problems in your wood. This solution also keeps your firewood organized and easily accessible during the winter months.

Firewood Accessories

There are other accessories and hearth products you need to increase your safety and improve the quality of each fire. For instance, a rolling cart can transfer large amounts of wood from the seasoning shed. An indoor firewood rack to keep your daily supply of wood in the house for convenient log refreshes. Firepit tool kits make it possible to stoke the fire and move around logs without risking burns.

lightweight garden shedlightweight garden shed

4. Routinely Clean Your Backyard

Your New Year’s Resolution won’t be complete without a little yard cleaning. The number one reason for clutter in the backyard is due to simply forgetting to clean. It doesn’t matter what season it is; there’s always the need for a clean sweep to keep everything tidy. During the winter, you won’t need to maintain your yard as much, but you should be careful of what is in your yard. Here are some tasks to keep on top of mind throughout the year.

Pick up Patio Furniture

Forgetting to pick up patio furniture or large objects can create large dead grass spots and cause problems for your lawn later in the spring. Move these large items to an outdoor storage shed or garage. Also, keep the cushions in a closet indoors or storage ottoman where they won’t get wet and develop mildew stains.

Yard Upkeep

Cooler weather means slower grass growth and fewer weeds to deal with, which is good news for homeowners who are weary from yard care. For the rest of the year, you’ll need to occasionally maintain your yard by mowing, raking, and watering. Don’t forget about your storage shed, either. Keep it clutter-free and orderly so that you won’t have any hassle with finding any yard care equipment.

Organization Ideas for the Backyard

Organizing your backyard space is so much easier when you have a plan and the right tools for the job. We hope these backyard organization tips inspire you to keep up with your New Year’s Resolution.

If you have any questions about any of our storage solutions, feel free to contact us here. Need more tips on how to organize your backyard? Check out our blog post on Tips for Dealing with Clutter and Shed Organization.

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