View Full Version : Is there a way to declutter household hardware?
Hi guys! :)
I have decluttered my whole apartment and everything went fine, until I came to my hardware stuff.
I'm pretty handy and doing -everything- myself. Changing floors, power outlets, kitchen fan, toilet seat and so on.. you get the point.
To do all that I obviously need a lot of tools and hardware of all different kinds, but probably not as much as I actually have.
My tools isn't my biggest issue but all screws, bolts, fasteners, electrical supplies, plumbing supplies etc.
Does anyone have some rules or anything to declutter this type of things?
How will I possibly know what I'll be needing for my next project? :confused:
DS has accumulated tools and I suggested a tool bench with compartments which he shot down. Some people use peg boards.
rosarugosa
7-31-21, 6:44am
I do find it necessary to keep a variety of these items available. I did a bit of sorting a couple of years ago, and stored like with like in clear shoebox-like plastic storage boxes and wrote a description of the contents on the container with a Sharpie. I already had the shoeboxes on hand. I also had acquired some of those clear plastic drawer units (small units) and I used those for less heavy items (picture hooks, felt floor protectors, etc.) and I also wrote on the drawers with a Sharpie.
happystuff
7-31-21, 8:28am
Like, rosarugosa, I also have some varied sizes of clear plastic boxes. Several have the dividers inside that create little square individual storage sections. These are perfect for me - sorting nuts, bolts, nails, hooks, etc. I also have the clear shoebox things rosa mentioned for slightly bigger items.
Good luck finding a solution!
Thanks for the suggestions :)
I have the most organized the same way, I just think I have waaaaay to much of it!
Took some pics of the stuff I'm talking about, and then I also have all wood materials..
I live in a 70 square meter (750 square feet) apartment, I can't possibly need all this.
My problem is that I have no idea how to know what I should/shouldn't declutter! :confused:
38863887
(Don't know what happened with pic 2, it's vertical on my computer)
Furniture on pic 1 is 140cm (55 inch) wide, for size reference.
I usually use the rule "If you haven't used it in... declutter it", but that doesn't apply very well in this case >8)
ToomuchStuff
7-31-21, 8:32pm
Stop with the decluttering thought for a second. How is it currently organized?
Then, what are your long term plans for projects?
We have a store locally, that sells storage devices for around $8 that are similar to those sold by many companies. Building a storage unit for them, like the video link, could be a good start.
https://youtu.be/eu3T8x6eWq8
Alright I give you a bit closer look to how some of it is organized and also a picture from my storage where I store all the bigger containers :)
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I know exactly what I have and where everything are.
I can give you guys a little more background.. :)
I'm almost financially independent and about to retire early.
When I do, I'm planning to travel a lot and live like 6 month a year in other countries.
I can afford to keep this apartment but I'm thinking of renting something smaller/cheaper anyway,
that's why I'm so eager to declutter instead of organizing all this stuff.
Today I live in a 750 square feet apartment and I'm trying to downsize my stuff to fit in a ~430 square feet.
To answer your second question Toomuchstuff..
This apartment is completely renovated and I have no planned projects right now.
But if I move to a smaller apartment in the future there might be some new ones.
What type of projects do you envision that you would do rather than a landlord or landlady do for you?
Yppej: Now you really putting my english on test :D
I don't know the words you use to make a different between the apartments you buy and rent?
The one I'm living in right now is bought, and I'm thinking of renting the next one.
My best friend owns a house with some apartments in it.
The goal is to take one of those, if someone decides to move out.
If I do, I can do whatever I want in it the same way as if I bought it.
If I take the apartment I live in for example, I have:
- Replaced all floors
- Replaced all sockets
- Painted all roofs
- Painted/wallpaper every wall
- Painted the whole kitchen
- Installed a dishwasher
- Replaced countertop/sink/tap
- Replaced kitchen fan
- Replaced oven/freezer/fridge
- Replaced all window sills
- Moved some power outlets & switches
- Replaced all power outlets & switches
- Replaced all doors (inside)
- Cut out for hoses in a concrete wall (TV cables)
- Installed a Elfa shelf-system in the storage
- Installed a portable AC (permanent solution)
..and the list goes on and on and on..
I have a pretty good example of my issue.. there's a whole carton with self closing hinges.
24 pieces in total and I have saved them in case one of my furniture will break.
I would definitely not need more than 2 in spare, but there's a lot of different kinds of hinges.
Different hole pattern, different sizes, different opening angles.. my furniture isn't all the same either.
How will I decide which to keep and which to declutter? :help:
You have an impressive skill set Rudan. In the US an apartment you own is called a condo.
How will I decide which to keep and which to declutter? :help:
Maybe think of which ones will be easy to obtain if you actually need them later on. Keep 1-3 of the hard-to-get ones and declutter those that you could easily find if needed. Just a thought.
It sounds like you have certainly put in the work to make your apartment to your liking! Congrats.
Thank you, and thanks for the education :)
Apartment and condo then? I have heard "flat" sometimes aswell, but that seems pretty rare.
I just wish decluttering hardware also was a skill of mine >8):D
happystuff: Thank you! I'm really pleased with the outcome.
That's how I try to think, but I can't decide anyway! :doh:
It's sooo much easier to hold it in my hand and compare them, than just watching them through a plastic packaging.
Now.. that's just one example, there's a lot of other stuff aswell with the same issue = can't figure out which to keep.
Someone really needs to come up with some rule for this! :D
Yppej: I see! That's explains it, thanks once again!
Well there is a decluttering 20/20 rule, but I'm not sure I subscribe to it:
The 20-20 decluttering rule says that if you can replace something for less than $20 and in under 20 minutes, it can safely be decluttered. OUT it goes!
I guess the underlying premise is sound, that one should consider how easy or expensive it would be to replace something if needed down the line. To that I would add weighing the likelihood that one would need it again.
We can replace nothing in 20 minutes....We're 20 minutes from any stores, so that strict time won't work, but I can see the point. I was just in the basement looking for primer and found Dry Lock paint for the basement. I was thinking we needed to get some and voila! There it was.
Well there is a decluttering 20/20 rule, but I'm not sure I subscribe to it:
The 20-20 decluttering rule says that if you can replace something for less than $20 and in under 20 minutes, it can safely be decluttered. OUT it goes!
I guess the underlying premise is sound, that one should consider how easy or expensive it would be to replace something if needed down the line. To that I would add weighing the likelihood that one would need it again.
Yeah that's right, I remember now! But following that to the fullest would mean getting rid of every single screw..
As you said before, you need some various screws and stuff at home.
The only place I can shop and be home again in 20min is a small grocery store and a gasstation.
Going to a hardware store would take me like 45min, and of course, they're only open daytime.
That last line of yours is what I'm after, a way to decide "the likelihood that one would need it" :)
We can replace nothing in 20 minutes....We're 20 minutes from any stores, so that strict time won't work, but I can see the point. I was just in the basement looking for primer and found Dry Lock paint for the basement. I was thinking we needed to get some and voila! There it was.
I do that all the time, but then there is some stuff I haven't used for 10 years..
You can be sure that if I throw it out today, I will need exactly that next week!
And that's what makes it hard making good decisions about hardware stuff..
It's so weird, I open my wardrobe and just throw out all the clothes I haven't used for a while.
And then I do the same with electronic, toiletries, kitchen stuff etc without any hesitations.
But when I take out the hardware boxes I totally blackout.. so frustrating!
Well there is a decluttering 20/20 rule, but I'm not sure I subscribe to it:
The 20-20 decluttering rule says that if you can replace something for less than $20 and in under 20 minutes, it can safely be decluttered. OUT it goes!
I guess the underlying premise is sound, that one should consider how easy or expensive it would be to replace something if needed down the line. To that I would add weighing the likelihood that one would need it again.
Amazon prime is fast but it's not 20 minutes fast. Based on that rule I should keep everything!
Amazon prime is fast but it's not 20 minutes fast. Based on that rule I should keep everything!
Amazon Prime isn't available in Sweden where I live, and I guess that even in US that rule only works in the bigger cities?
Edit: that even in US that -service- only works in the bigger cities?
that even in US that -service- only works in the bigger cities?
Amazon Prime works everywhere, its just a matter of when you get your package. Most times I can get things the next day, occasionally a little longer. Never the same day though like the big cities.
Amazon Prime works everywhere, its just a matter of when you get your package. Most times I can get things the next day, occasionally a little longer. Never the same day though like the big cities.
Yes that's what I meant! The service where you have thing you ordered in your hand within hours :)
ApatheticNoMore
8-2-21, 3:07pm
I wouldn't be inclined to declutter something just because I can replace it in 20 minutes and $20, the test would be: am I likely to ever use this? There is a hardware store within walking distance of me. Mind you I decluttered a vacuum years age because I kept renting places without carpet (not deliberately but), still have very little use of one, although I could use the attachments, maybe someday I'll live somewhere with carpet.
I wouldn't be inclined to declutter something just because I can replace it in 20 minutes and $20, the test would be: am I likely to ever use this? There is a hardware store within walking distance of me. Mind you I decluttered a vacuum years age because I kept renting places without carpet (not deliberately but), still have very little use of one, although I could use the attachments, maybe someday I'll live somewhere with carpet.
And how would you decide what to respond on that question if you're holding some screws?
Or something else that you can't predict when you will need.
Maybe tomorrow, maybe next week or never..
How do you clean your floors without a vacuum? With a brush or what?
I don't have carpets either but I still have a vacuum cleaner :)
I guess I would also consider how large an item is. I would be willing to hold onto a lot more spare screws than spare vacuum cleaners, since I have limited space.
I guess I would also consider how large an item is. I would be willing to hold onto a lot more spare screws than spare vacuum cleaners, since I have limited space.
Yeah you're right, I don't save things in that size for spare neither.
In Sweden we say something like "Small streams make great rivers", don't know if you use the same?
Anyhow, many small things will end up taking a lot of space aswell and I guess that's my biggest issue.
One door handle, one hook, one hinge, one pipe, one power outlet.. and suddenly, there you are with a lot of stuff! :~)
Yeah you're right, I don't save things in that size for spare neither.
In Sweden we say something like "Small streams make great rivers", don't know if you use the same?
Anyhow, many small things will end up taking a lot of space aswell and I guess that's my biggest issue.
One door handle, one hook, one hinge, one pipe, one power outlet.. and suddenly, there you are with a lot of stuff! :~)
I know this sounds extreme, but do you have access to off-site storage for those things that you might use "someday" but maybe never? I live in a small house, and thankfully we have a couple of sheds, and I go by the Pareto Principle: You only use 20% of your stuff 80% of the time. I try to keep ONLY that 20% in my house and the 80% in the shed. In practical terms, I'm probably closer to 50/50, but you get the point. My husband is an amateur chef so we have all kinds of gadgets but I try to encourage him to store all those things he might pull out for one meal once in a while in the shed.
A storage unit would cost you a monthly charge, but it might be a solution for you.
I know this sounds extreme, but do you have access to off-site storage for those things that you might use "someday" but maybe never? I live in a small house, and thankfully we have a couple of sheds, and I go by the Pareto Principle: You only use 20% of your stuff 80% of the time. I try to keep ONLY that 20% in my house and the 80% in the shed. In practical terms, I'm probably closer to 50/50, but you get the point. My husband is an amateur chef so we have all kinds of gadgets but I try to encourage him to store all those things he might pull out for one meal once in a while in the shed.
A storage unit would cost you a monthly charge, but it might be a solution for you.
Nothing extreme with that, the condo where I live now have a pretty big storage unit measuring about 3x3m (10x10ft) in another building.
I don't know if you read where I wrote that I'm thinking of move to my friends apartment building?
Anyway, he have storage units aswell but they're pretty small, like 1.2x2m (4x7ft).
That's approximately the same size as my walk-in-closet I have and were I store my hardware boxes today.
I need to fit all I have in there + everything I have in the storage unit in those 4x7ft so downsizing is necessary.
In my storage unit I have a suitcase, snowmobile clothes, Christmas stuff, seasonal clothing, feet to my wall mounted tv and so on..In walk-in I have hardware, sewing machine, guest bed, printer, cables, big tools, paint, vacuum cleaner, AC (oct-may) etc :)
iris lilies
8-3-21, 11:28am
And how would you decide what to respond on that question if you're holding some screws?
Or something else that you can't predict when you will need.
Maybe tomorrow, maybe next week or never..
How do you clean your floors without a vacuum? With a brush or what?
I don't have carpets either but I still have a vacuum cleaner :)
I have a brush broom I use on hard surfaces. I hate vacuum sweeper’s, putting them together, cleaning the inside, cleaning the rollers when hair gets caught in them and it gets stuck, changing out the bags. I’d like the simplicity of a good broom.
I have a brush broom I use on hard surfaces. I hate vacuum sweeper’s, putting them together, cleaning the inside, cleaning the rollers when hair gets caught in them and it gets stuck, changing out the bags. I’d like the simplicity of a good broom.
Ok, you are thinking of sweepers. They're pretty rare in Sweden.
I use an Electrolux Ergospace, really small and 13m (42ft) reach is enough for my whole apartment.
Sure, I have to replace bag sometimes but that's really no biggie.
In my eyes, cleaning the broom from hair and dirt is much worse :)
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ApatheticNoMore
8-3-21, 11:58am
I just use brooms and wash the floor sometimes. I didn't even know you could vacuum non-carpet.
I just use brooms and wash the floor sometimes. I didn't even know you could vacuum non-carpet.
Sure you can! I don't have any rollers, it's just plain against the floor.
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I have laminate floors and they don't like water, so I only wash them when it's really necessary.
I decide how much room to dedicate to something like this (supplies, hobby, etc.) Decide what fits in about 80% of that space and the rest goes. You will have to make a lot (A LOT) of decisions, but at the end, you'll have what you really want and need. What is left is easily accessible and contained.
I decide how much room to dedicate to something like this (supplies, hobby, etc.) Decide what fits in about 80% of that space and the rest goes. You will have to make a lot (A LOT) of decisions, but at the end, you'll have what you really want and need. What is left is easily accessible and contained.
That's also a great tip! I really appreciate all of your thought guys :)
Dedicate a certain space that it should fit.. I will definitely consider that one!
I decided that what I wanted to keep was the quantity I wanted as an immediate store, and one back. That was the minimum where I felt I had "enough."
So, if you're comfortable with 6 screws of each type, keep 7 and discard the rest. I use this with everything: sheets, screws, apples, toothpaste.
The hard part is figuring how much to keep as an immediate store.
Try dividing the quantity in 1/2 first. Is that too much pulled? Is there still too much to keep?
Or, as an alternative and I've done this too. Figure out how much space you want to give to storing this type of stuff, absolutely. Fill containers til you use all the space. Discard extras.
So, decide how much to keep, an extra as a guide. Or, decide how much space you're will to give this type of stuff as a guide.
I hope this helps!
catherine
9-30-21, 12:47pm
I just use brooms and wash the floor sometimes. I didn't even know you could vacuum non-carpet.
That is how I started when I moved up here the first year, in a seasonal situation. But when I decided to move from my 2000 sq ft house to this 770 sq ft cabin, I had a place for my Miele vacuum cleaner, so I brought it and I do use it. But I like keeping things simple with just a straw broom and diluted vinegar as a cleaning agent.
My first year I considered buying one of those Dyson "sticks" (https://www.dyson.com/vacuum-cleaners?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=us_en_fc_cordless-range_always-on_vacuum_cordless_do_research_text_brand_exact&utm_term=dyson+stick&ds_rl=1283408&ds_rl=1283408&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwNWKBhDAARIsAJ8Hkhe5J5Au2APS_D1-ojcGp8AOz0xoiraQCtQjWvtAaf32UvfyUGc1wbIaAo2MEALw_w cB&gclsrc=aw.ds) but I am really attached to my Miele. It's a very high quality product.
iris lilies
9-30-21, 12:52pm
When we move from here I will probably be asking you all what kind of stick vacuum cleaner to buy. I will want one eventually. Well I think I need one for upholstered in furniture, right? I dunno.
Teacher Terry
10-4-21, 12:45pm
I only own a robot vacuum so the furniture doesn’t get vacuumed.
I got a small stand-alone piece of furniture to put my microwave on and put tools in the two drawers underneath it. There are still tools in the two drawer night stand in the family room, but at least they are not crammed in there so tightly on top of each other that it's hard to shut the drawers.
It was my first ever visit to a Hobby Lobby. I hadn't gone before because of their conservative reputation but I figured they probably won't make me wear a mask. Sure enough they had three signs on the door:
1. To stay 6 feet away from others
2. To not enter if you any of a half dozen symptoms they listed
3. To wear a mask if you are not vaccinated
Finally a place where vaccination has its privileges!
The same is true for their staff, some of whom were wearing masks and some of whom were not.
Anyways, the microwave was previously atop a table with open legs and no drawers. Converting furniture could create more storage space. Other examples of this are ottomans with a top that lifts off to reveal a storage compartment or bed frames with drawers built into the bottom of them.
dado potato
10-31-21, 12:39pm
Hi guys! :)
I have decluttered my whole apartment and everything went fine, until I came to my hardware stuff.
My tools isn't my biggest issue but all screws, bolts, fasteners, electrical supplies, plumbing supplies etc.
Does anyone have some rules or anything to declutter this type of things?
How will I possibly know what I'll be needing for my next project? :confused:
Rudan,
Do you have a friend, perhaps someone with a workbench of their own, who might possibly have space for some of your discarded items? I would suggest enlisting this friend to be your helper on one or two afternoons of decluttering. Your friend might be able to take some of your surplus off of your hands, but more importantly your friend can support you on the emotional difficulty that may come up when you say good-bye to an assortment of "perfectly good hex nuts" or whatever.
Can your goal of downsizing be clarified? I may have missed this in the comments, but I am not sure I understand:
how soon you will move to the smaller apartment?
how much of the storage unit in the new apartment will be available to you to organize for storage?
The linked article contains general advice on "decluttering for seniors". The article talks about decluttering in a positive light... a process that is freeing, and which can be worked on with grace.
Lycka till ... Good luck
http://www.thesimplicityhabit.com/decluttering-for-seniors
Yppej: Now you really putting my english on test :D
I don't know the words you use to make a different between the apartments you buy and rent?
The one I'm living in right now is bought, and I'm thinking of renting the next one.
My best friend owns a house with some apartments in it.
The goal is to take one of those, if someone decides to move out.
If I do, I can do whatever I want in it the same way as if I bought it.
If I take the apartment I live in for example, I have:
- Replaced all floors
- Replaced all sockets
- Painted all roofs
- Painted/wallpaper every wall
- Painted the whole kitchen
- Installed a dishwasher
- Replaced countertop/sink/tap
- Replaced kitchen fan
- Replaced oven/freezer/fridge
- Replaced all window sills
- Moved some power outlets & switches
- Replaced all power outlets & switches
- Replaced all doors (inside)
- Cut out for hoses in a concrete wall (TV cables)
- Installed a Elfa shelf-system in the storage
- Installed a portable AC (permanent solution)
..and the list goes on and on and on..
I have a pretty good example of my issue.. there's a whole carton with self closing hinges.
24 pieces in total and I have saved them in case one of my furniture will break.
I would definitely not need more than 2 in spare, but there's a lot of different kinds of hinges.
Different hole pattern, different sizes, different opening angles.. my furniture isn't all the same either.
How will I decide which to keep and which to declutter? :help:
With that list you need at least 6 more hands, patience and time :)
My house went through all of those except the last two, but plus moving walls and doorways.
As a practical experience to consider:
- Safety.
- The less different patterns - the better. This gives the aesthetic and the repairment simplicity.
- Personal space.
- The room where the most time is spent.
- Take professionals for support.
- Think about the future for several years.
- Think twice.
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