Family Work and Storage Areas Outside the House

By Theodore Brevik and Marion Longbotham.

Families occupying a home on small acreage in the country will use many work areas outside the house. Storage spaces are needed for equipment and products the family uses in outdoor work and recreational activities.

This chapter has general guidelines for such work and storage areas. Families can make adjustments to fit their special needs.

Work and recreational areas may include a garage, shed, yard and garden, outdoor cooking area, play and recreation areas, and others. Some areas may be dual-purpose.

Storage spaces are needed at or near the work and recreational areas for many items. Storage may be needed for items listed below as well as for other items:

Autos and/or a pick-up truck (8 by 18 feet);

Yard and garden equipment garden tractor & equipment, power mower & gasoline, leaf or- grass push rake, rakes, brooms, shovels, hoes, axes, lawn trimmers & edgers, wheelbarrows, extension ladders, stepladders, hoses, sprinklers, weed sprayers, insecticides, herbicides, fertilizers;

Home maintenance equipment paint, brushes, ladders, caulking materials, window-washing equipment, carpenter tools, storm windows & screens;

Electrical, plumbing and other home maintenance tools;

Auto servicing and repair materials oil, waxes, cleaners, grease, spare parts, anti-freeze, filters, car ramps, jacks, spare tires, oil cans;

Recreational equipment bicycles, wagon, sleds, swings, slides & other toys, skis, canoes, snowmobiles, boats, skates;

Workbench;

Miscellaneous equipment powersaws & other wood-working equipment, lumber, garbage cans, empty bottles;

Food products root vegetables, canned and frozen food.

A plan that provides adequate, handy work and storage space requires careful thought. To start, develop a list of work area and storage needs including automobiles and/or other vehicles.

Keep in mind that needs change over the years and equipment items often are switched to newer and sometimes larger machines. At other times, new interests develop and are added to or substituted for initial interests and activities. Open flexible areas can allow for these changes.

One useful approach to help decide on size and arrangement is to study available plans and to visit other families who have already built and are busily engaged in living on small acreages.

Storage space for keeping products when they are not being used should be convenient, safe, and adequate in size and shape. These qualifications apply to new or remodeled storage areas.

Judging Convenience

Convenience of storage can be judged in terms of the stored item being easy to see, reach, grasp, remove, and replace. Don't stack articles unless they are of similar nature, such as firewood or bags of mulch.

A half hour of garden work can be done at a convenient time of the week if the needed machines or tools can be easily removed and replaced. If the machine or tools are hard to reach the job is apt to be put off.

Bicycles, wagons and other toys should generally be easy to get at because of frequent use.

Storing articles near where they are first used also adds to convenience.

Machines removed from storage areas often require routine maintenance before being taken outdoors for use. This implies storing the maintenance products so they can be used on the machine between the storage area and outdoor work area.

Some machines and tools require space for maintenance or repair. In these cases there should be a space that can be cleared so they may be worked on, preferably in the workshop area.

If the workshop is in the garage, the car may have to be put outside to leave floor space for repairing a yard machine.

Tools associated with the workbench should probably be stored in a locked cabinet above the bench. Seasonal equipment, for warm or cold weather use, can be stored in a less convenient area in the "off" season and in a more accessible area during the season of use.

Items can sometimes be interchanged seasonally in the same storage spaces. An example: lawnmowing and snowblowing machines. Skis and croquet sets are seasonally used and could justify more security in their storage.

Utility connections are needed to operate or service some machines, tools, or products. Locate these conveniently in relation to the area where they are used. Adequate lighting at work and service areas is recommended. Utilitarian lighting fixtures need not be expensive.

Storage should not be too deep. Most items requiring storage do not require more than 12 inches in depth.

Safety Aspects

Planning for safety in work and storage areas is important. Several aspects of safety should be considered both for the regular workers and other persons who use a work or storage area occasionally.

The storage area should provide for safety and security of the articles being stored. Some articles require protection from the weather. Others need to be protected from extreme heat or cold. Some machines are heavy and require an adequate base for support. Outside and garage storage areas may need special security measures to deter theft and vandalism.

The operator should be able to remove and replace machines and articles without personal injury or damage to the item being handled or serviced.

Electrical lighting and connections should enhance safety. Beyond general lighting needed for safety while handling equipment, special lighting is needed at work areas such as a workshop.

Adequate ventilation is needed in work areas where carbon monoxide, dust or noxious fumes may be generated. An exhaust fan can be mounted in the wall or ceiling.

Children are unaware of hazards which exist in such work and storage areas. Responsible adults can keep hazardous items in locked or inaccessible storage spaces and use other means to protect children. Hazards which cannot be kept secure may require parental training and guidance of the children for their own protection.

Types of Storage

Types of storage areas include:

Enclosed storage areas cabinets, closets, tool chest;

Horizontal surfaces counter and bench tops, table tops, shelves;

Vertical surfaces wall-mounted hangers or pegboards on which articles such as rakes, hoes, and shovels are hung for storage with easy access;

Floor surfaces for freestanding, heavy, or bulky items; for machines which need to be permanently mounted to a strong base;

Ceiling surface ceiling-mounted hangers from which items like a canoe or bicycle may be suspended;

Special storage areas a place where items often used together are stored together, such as workshop or garden pest control materials.

Each family must make decisions about storage. Options are to fit the items into the available space, improve the efficiency of the available space, or add space for storage. When storage areas are crowded, consider disposing of some seldom-used items. This is often practical for a family of decreasing size.

Families should provide for flexible use of space and for efficient use of storage to avoid the cost of overbuilding storage structures.

The Garage. The garage will probably be important not only for the car, but for the variety of tools and power equipment associated with living on a few acres. The garage needs to be handy, large enough, and designed and built for safety and security. A totally enclosed structure that is not only large enough for one or two cars, but built to accommodate other chores associated with small acreages, would probably work best for many families.

Most homes in recent years have been built with attached garages large enough for two cars. A common size has been about 20 by 20 feet, which leaves little room for a work bench or for storing power equipment popular for yard work, gardens, and snowblowing, and for bikes and the like. Many garages of this size usually become filled with these things as well as wagons, snowmobiles, and other recreational equipment on one side, leaving no space for one or sometimes two cars.

For most homes on small acreages, a well-planned attached garage would be convenient and economical. Two to four feet added to the width of the garage and eight to ten feet added to the length or depth can provide for storage and work areas and still leave room for cars.