How to organise screws and nails so you can find them
Why a tin of mixed screws costs you more than you think
There's a particular kind of annoyance that only happens in a shed, and it's the one where you're most of the way through a job, you know for a fact you bought the right screws, and you're standing there tipping a coffee tin out onto the bench looking for them. The screws are nearly always in there somewhere. Finding them is the problem, and the 10 minutes it takes is the part that turns a good afternoon into an irritating one.
Sorting it out isn't a weekend project either, and that's worth knowing, because most people put it off imagining a full shed fit out when really it's one afternoon and a handful of containers.
Clear containers beat anything you can't see into
If you're still keeping fasteners in an old coffee tin or a takeaway container, the single change that makes the most difference is being able to see in. Stackable plastic containers with dividers let you find an 8 gauge 25mm screw without tipping the lot out, and once you can see what you've already got you stop buying a third box of the same thing, which is where the money quietly goes.
A tackle box is the cheapest way to do it properly
A fishing tackle box is a fastener box that hasn't been told, and it's usually cheaper than anything sold as a hardware organiser. The compartments adjust, the lid clips shut, and when it goes over in the back of the ute everything stays in its own square. Nobody thinks of looking at one because it has the wrong word on the box, and that is the only thing wrong with it.
A magnetic strip holds the handful you're actually using
The screws that go missing aren't the ones in the box, they're the 6 in your hand while you're lining something up. A magnetic strip or a magnetic tray on the bench gives them somewhere to sit, and it does the same job for drill bits and allen keys.
Old jars, if you've got a shelf to spare
Screw the lid of a jam jar to the underside of a shelf and twist the jar on and off as you need it. It costs nothing, it uses space that was doing nothing, and you can see what's in it from underneath. The only rule I'd put on it is don't do it above head height with glass.
Dividers stop a drawer turning into a bin
A drawer full of loose fasteners is just a tin lying down. Dividers, either bought or cut out of scrap timber, give every size its own lane. Cardboard works for a while and then gives way the first time something heavy lands on it, so timber is worth the extra half hour if the drawer gets real use.
Label it, or you'll be back where you started
This is the step everybody skips and it's the one that decides whether the system lasts. Write the gauge and the length on the container rather than just "screws", because "screws" tells you nothing at the exact moment you need to know something, and a marker and a strip of masking tape is plenty.
Keep one box that leaves the shed with you
If you're forever working at the other end of the block or round at somebody else's place, keep one small caddy with the fasteners you genuinely reach for, and top it up out of the big containers rather than carting the whole lot with you and losing half of it.
Shop related products
- MACSIM 8-10 X 32mm Chipboard Screws Yellow Zinc. The size most people reach for first, so it's worth having a full box of it.
- Macsim 1/4 x 1 Hex Bolt and Nut, Zinc Plated. Bolts and nuts stored together save you the loose-nut drawer entirely.
- Toolking Inspection Mirror and Magnetic Pick Up. For the screw that has gone behind the bench, which is where they all end up.
- Toolking T Bar Socket Bit Set, 22 piece. A set in a case is one less thing rolling around loose in a drawer.
Did you know we also stock 3 tray tackle boxes, plastic tool boxes, drawer organisers, heavy duty storage hooks and plastic labels in packs of 25 in the shop. Most of that isn't on the website, so give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what's on the shelf.
More from us
- Fasteners and fixings. Screws, bolts, anchors and the rest of it.
- Hand tools. What goes on the bench next to them.
Read next
- What tools do you actually need in a home shed or workshop
- How to hang bikes and sports gear on garage walls
- How to use a combination square for accurate measurements
My own shed is a work in progress and I reckon it always will be, but being able to put your hand on a 10 gauge screw in under a minute is the whole point of the exercise, and it's a lot more satisfying than it has any right to be.
Cheers,
Candeece
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