Question

This is borderline related, but i thought this would be a good place to ask. we just moved into a new place, so i finally have an unfinished basement with TONS of room for storage and organization. the last house we had an attic that was disorganized and i could never find what i wanted. Now that we have space and shelving, im looking for ways to organize all of my spare stuff. im in the process of re-doing my automation, so i still have a bunch of stuff on my desk instead of in place, like switches, light strips, a few outlets, bulbs, tablets, mounting tape, etc. and on top of that, i also have lots of old cables, connectors, the usual stuff we hold onto and dont want to get rid of. so what im looking for is good storage. something cheap, that i can get a bunch of so i can sort, organize and label all of my storage. this way, when i need to get a tablet to mount, or an HDMI cable, or grab a motion sensor, i can go right to the location, get what i want and get to work, instead of spending 10 or 15 minutes looking, not finding what i want and just buying a new one. how are you all storing and organizing cables and tech you dont use all the time but want somewhat handy? i was thinking about something like this but im open to suggestions
https://www.amazon.com/Plastic-Draw...NPJRQ

Answer 1

I have a few things similar to this and another one that has much smaller containers for smaller things.  

Answer 2

I get lateral file cabinets off marketplace or the like for free or up to $20. They’re cheap, lockable, and have heavy duty drawers.  

Answer 3

Had them for several years.  

Comments

I have one like the one on the far right now. it woks well enough, but i need like 8 times that amount of storage haha. or to get rid of some stuff. so probably just more storage

Answer 4

Now we've been slowly sorting stuff out and moving it into upgraded stuff

Answer 5

Donate them

Comments

@debroahdebs978 who?  

Answer 6

Here's how they are now in the new desk setup.  

Answer 7

@sudor48 has the right idea here. The plastic ones are flimsy and will piss you off if you need to access them regularly. I had those styles and then went to a mix of metal file cabinets for things I touch semi-regularly and plastic “postal style” stackable boxes for less used items

Comments

Its not something i would get into all the time, just whenever i need a random cable or device. once things get settled in, ill probably only need something once a month or less, so i can deal with a plastic setup i think. it might be worth getting one nicer set, though, for batteries and tablets and stuff i might need to access more often, though

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@imperturbation91375 think about weight. I’ve had bottoms bust out. The tracks warp. It works but it’s a headache.  

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Yeah, thats fair. but it would be mostly cables and connectors that i just need a home for i have one 3 drawer unit thats been packed pretty full for a couple of years and it still works great. ill have some small tablets and other smart home tech to store, but hopefully ill have time to get those installed soon.  

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Use what works for you

Answer 8

Clear bins. The get some index card pockets to put on the outside. Use index cards to label what's inside the box. For smaller boxes use business cards.  https://www. amazon. com/gp/product/B0007LTI8C
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...2I2FS

Answer 9

We have a cabinet at work that have the hanging bins in it. It's slick. It would work perfectly for gadgets and thingamabobs. I think they're kind've expensive, but would last forever and might be worth the investment.  

Comments

Hmmm. i really like that. only concern is there might not be enough large bins, but theres so much space i imagine i could make it work. do you have a link?  

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We got ours from uline. I googled cabinet with bins. You won't be disappointed.  

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@irresponsive43023 I was able to do a reverse google image search and found the web page. Some really cool stuff but it gets expensive Haha

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@imperturbation91375 Yah it does! But they're still really cool.  

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Yeah they all look awesome. maybe one day ill pull the trigger on something like that. for now i just got some small drawers similar to that link from target that ill get in the next day or so. thatll take care of what i need for a while

Answer 10

I've had a small bit of vindication on my cable & gear hoarding. The need to set up a remote/distance learning for our middle schooler had me digging through audio, video, usb and networking cables. Along with mice, keyboards and, of all things, mouse pads. Not really something to celebrate given what's going on, but I'm glad to be able to re-use what I had, and not have burden the delivery folks with shipping new ones.  

Answer 11

I get those same plastic drawer storage towers that you linked to on Amazon at yard sales for a dollar or two each :D got lots of them in various sizes from small to large for my "horde" of parts and cables :) works great, label on the front of each

Answer 12

Cables I stick in one of those over the door shoe storage things. I organized by type and have a little label on the outside. I had in boxes for a while but it was a mess to find what I wanted.