Great garage cleanup 2019!

So we recently moved into the smaller of the two main houses on our ranch (there is also a shack that gets used as a camp house), and my cousins moved into the bigger house in which we had been living. Before we moved, I tried to get dad to get rid of a lot of his stuff, and he cooperated a little, but not really on tools/equipment. So I sorted out everything he wanted to keep, boxed up a bunch for charitable donation, and took away a lot of trash, leaving some that needed more than just me to move it. Then I left town for a job. When I got back, dad and his buddies had moved all his stuff into the new garage in giant piles without taking any of my uncle’s or cousins’ stuff out, plus had dumped out the donations in order to use the boxes for other stuff, so they are mixed back in with everything else. Plus they left all the trash and created new trash by doing some work on the house. Oh, and there is still a bunch of stuff in the old garage that needs to be brought up to the new one. I have been a little salty about this. I am losing my mind not being able to find my tools or literally having to crawl over junk to get to them. And of course it is full of toxic gick. As you can see below, you can’t even walk in the door without squeezing past an old china cabinet of my aunt’s. So I WILL clean out this garage (and maybe the yard) in 2019.

Wow, I'm so sorry you had to go through that Jessica; my dad is also a bit of a hoarder, and convincing him to get rid of even a SINGLE broken thing that he is "definitely" going to fix is like pulling teeth!  It's not even something expensive or important like an engine or tool, it's a $5 pocket fan, or massager stick...just throw it away!!

I'm praying for ya, not only for a successful cleanout, but for patience & love toward your family, even in their inconsiderate messiness; you only got one family(also praying this to remind myself).

Ahhhhh! A messy garage is a terrifying prospect. Ours had gotten so bad that we had to have a work party to sort through everything. It's amazing how fast things can go bad in a garage. I didn't get before picture from that giant clean-up, but it didn't take long for it to get pretty bad again.

I'll admit part of my motivation to clean the shop this last time was to get the badge bit for it (https://permies.com/wiki/100002/PEP-BB-tool-sand-cleanshop).  It's kind of like getting a star-sticker on my homework in school--it's just a bit more motivating for me when I know someoneone's going to say, "Good job."

Anyway! I'm rooting for you! Take it one place at a time, and take breaks as need be, and use whatever momentum you get! You can do it!

jennifer...if you have read my post..you KNOW i am loving this... LOL

embrace the moment...ours looked like that too...little by little over 2018, i was able to get most of it moved along with replacing the roof...:)

LOL...bless you!!! and ill buy that old wooden ice cream hand cranked maker in the pic! :)  i've been looking for one :)

Dustin, thanks for the prayers! I admit I spent a few days fantasizing about sending Dad to the landfill, but I’m better now!

Nicole, the BB does sound motivating! I saw your pictures on that thread; nice job!

Teri, I am laughing along with you! Actually, that ice cream maker is one of the few things in the garage that we use frequently—ice cream is a good way to use up eggs when the hens  are laying, if you are working hard enough to burn it off ;)

I set a timer for 10 minutes today and spent that time just taking things that do not belong in the garage to their proper homes. This allowed me to clear a goat track almost all the way to the back door of the garage, and to fill a large box with donations and a feed sack full of trash. 10 minutes doesn’t seem like much, but I can squeeze it in while Dad is verrrrrrry slowly putting on his coat and hobbling for the truck, so he can’t spy on what I’m getting rid of and decide to keep it all “just in case.” And even just 10 minutes a day should allow me to get the badge bit in a little under a week. Also, I found my canning equipment! \0/

Did ten more minutes today, for a total of 20 minutes so far, and there is visible progress! Today I boxed up a truckload of stuff for charity, and am beginning to see a difference in the area near the door. It is really encouraging that so little time produces noticeable results.

Best of luck to you, downsizing (or combining homes) is always difficult! The one thing that stood out to me was the cast iron in (B1BA43C7-005F-4E31-AA28-58C66E7EB47A.jpeg), even if you aren't a fan, you should consider removing any rust, light seasoning and selling, you might get good money for it depending on the manufacturer/model.

Denise,

I do cook a lot with cast iron, so I am looking forward to rehabilitating some of the stuff my uncle and cousins left to add to my collection! I have been wishing for a smaller pot with a lid for some time, and lo! it has appeared. Although they also left a couple of giant cauldrons outside which I’m not sure I can lift, much less figure out how to season.

Those giant cauldrons can bring in a bunch of cash (at least in central PA). So if you decide that you don't want to bother with the heavy beasts, you might want to look into selling them. I see them pretty often on our local craigslist for around $250. I think the only way you could season them is to build a campfire and hang them from a tripod above it! I have several cast iron pans that were handed down or found that I've yet to clean too, and I just got a cast iron waffle pan that I'm excited to try out. Good luck with all that you have to get through, we bought my in-laws cabin several years ago and had many years of "stuff" to get through. It was tough (on us and them) some things we just got rid of, some we took back to them, some we donated, and some we are still looking at how to "relocate" without hurt feelings. The cabin is way different now, and I think in a way it helped that I painted all the inside walls--it looks like a different place to them now, so much of the "loss" is a little more acceptable.

Thanks, Denise! I had no idea people would pay that much for them; i may just sell them, as I could use the cash!

Jennifer Richardson wrote:Did ten more minutes today, for a total of 20 minutes so far, and there is visible progress! Today I boxed up a truckload of stuff for charity, and am beginning to see a difference in the area near the door. It is really encouraging that so little time produces noticeable results.

10 minutes a day and the stuff goes away!  :)

Keep up your progress!