How To Declutter & Organize Hardware

Today's mission is to declutter and organize hardware, such as nails, screws, nuts and bolts, etc., that you've got around your home.


This is the first step in the process of decluttering and organizing the tools within your home. Today we focus on hardware, and tomorrow on the rest of the contents of the tool box.

The first step in any organization project is to gather all of the items from around your home into one place, so first gather up all of the small hardware you've got around, perhaps in a junk drawer, and other places such as your garage, basement, or tool box.

Once you've got everything together go ahead and assess quickly what you've got, and declutter any excess such as anything that's broken, rusted, or items you don't need.

To know exactly what you do need to keep and stock in your home for minor repairs and do it yourself projects you can check out my basic home tool kit list, which breaks down the essentials of both tools and hardware.

Once you've gotten everything together, stocked up on any needed supplies and gotten rid of any excess, it will be time to organize what you've got left. Below I have suggestions and ideas for you for this simple organization project.

Taylor's Tips For How To Organize Hardware For Minor Repairs & DIY Projects

Next, in this mission, once you've decluttered, it is time to organize the small hardware you've got left so that when you need it you can find it.

I suggest keeping these items close to your tool box because you'll be using them together.

The amount of organization you need to do of your hardware is directly proportional to the total amount of hardware you've got, and how many types of items you've got. If you have a lot, for example, you really need to spend some time organizing everything, because otherwise you'll never be able to find what you need.

On the other hand, if you're like many people (unless this is one of your hobbies or a profession), you don't keep too much of this on hand, but instead have just a few screws, nails, etc. to use for minor home repairs, or for the occasional small DIY project.

In that case, if you don't have a lot and not too many types of hardware, I suggest a small hardware organizer, such as the small parts organizer with drawers shown above (referral link), or a similar organizer such as one of the ones shown below.

There are many types of hardware storage bins and containers available. The key is to use one that separates and compartmentalizes the various types of hardware so you can readily find the item you need relatively quickly, instead of having to hunt for a long time when you need a specific sized screw, for instance.

What you don't want is to throw everything in one large compartment and then try to sort as you need an item. Sort at the beginning, and keep them separate to save yourself lots of time later.

Here are some examples of organizers you can use. There are big and small ones available, but if you don't have much, a small organizer will be better suited to your needs than something large, unless you plan to also use the same organizer for other things as well.

Small Parts Organizers {Referral Links}

How Real People Organize Hardware Around Their Home

Below I've got pictures from several Declutter 365 participants who've done this mission, and decluttered and organized hardware in their home.

First, below is a photo from a reader, Jenny, who organized the hardware she has for her home that she uses to hang pictures.

As you can see, she's chosen a container where she can keep the pieces of hardware loosely divided to make it easier for her to find what she needs.

You can get similar containers here:

Hardware Organizer Boxes {Referral Links}

Next, below is an idea for repurposing a set of plastic photo storage box organizers to hold hardware, as shown by a Declutter participant, Nikki. She said, "I’m in the middle of decluttering/organizing my shed. I had little sandwich bags of nails, screws, etc. everywhere in there with no rhyme or reason. I had this photo organizer box that I bought for another project. It literally took me 30 minutes to sort all the tiny pieces. Now I can stop buying washers, nuts, bolts, etc. because I can easily find what I need!"


You can get photo organizer storage boxes, which actually can be repurposed to hold lots of smaller types of items, here:

Photo Storage Boxes {Referral Links}

Finally, here's a photo below from another Declutter 365 participant, Debbie, who said: "This is my 'utility' shelf that was cleaned and organized just after Christmas. I received these stackable containers as a gift and put them to good use. Labels let me know exactly which one to grab when I need a nail, screw, hook, etc."

Want To Do More Decluttering Missions? Get Started With Declutter 365 Today!

Once you declutter one type of item in your home I bet you'll want to declutter some more. After all, decluttering gives you a great reward for even a small investment of time and energy.

The Declutter 365 system is designed to help you declutter, over the course of a year, your entire house, with just 15 minutes of decluttering each day!

Hundreds of thousands of people use this proven system to get rid of their clutter, and bring peace and calm back to their homes.

Declutter 365 works to guide you to clear the clutter without overwhelm, focusing on just one small area at a time, and without making a huge mess in the process, so you see consistent forward progress without all that "messy middle" that makes it even harder to function in your home than before you started.

In addition to building a daily decluttering habit, the Declutter 365 program, along with the accompanying 52 Week Organized Home Challenge, teaches you the skills, habits, routines, and mindsets necessary to maintain the clutter free and organized state of your home from now on, so it'll never be as messy and cluttered as it is right now, ever again.

If you haven't already, make sure to get your copy of this year's Declutter 365 annual calendar here (it's FREE!), find today's date, and do 15 minutes of decluttering on the day's mission. Then, repeat again tomorrow, and again and again. Over the course of the next year, if you do this 15 minutes per day, you'll declutter your whole house!

In addition, there are even more ideas for storage and organizing on the site in the {A-Z} Storage Solutions & Ideas round up page. Go check it out if you'd like to see even more ideas.



Further, here's the next Declutter 365 mission all about decluttering tools, which is the next logical step after today's hardware mission.



And finally, get ideas for the types of hardware and tools you need to stock for simple home repairs and common tasks with this basic home tool kit list.

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Join The 52 Week Organized Home Challenge

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