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The parts and tools contents of the workshop, organized by likeness, after emptying all of the shelves and drawers — and after a cursory cull.
Photo: Toban Dyck
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Previously, this was our grease table/lubrication shelf. I built a funnel rack (each funnel drains into a container at the bottom of the pipe) and a grease-gun holder out of ABS pipe, augmented an old shelving unit to fit under the rack for aerosols and mounted a towel dispenser to it.
Photo: Toban Dyck
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Steel storage made out of ABS pipe and wood (left).
Photo: Toban Dyck
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Throughout this process, I came to appreciate there are very few things as visually pleasing as a well-organized pegboard. This was a rewarding project. I built the drill-bit holder out of white and black ABS pipe. I fastened the ABS to a board, on the side of which I wrote the corresponding bit sizes.
Photo: Toban Dyck
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Another shot of the tools and parts organized by likeness. This proved a convenient way to take stock of what we had, what we had in duplicate, what we needed to keep, what we didn’t know we had and what we needed to get rid of.
Photo: Toban Dyck
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The full panorama of our workshop following the completion of my first round of organization (there is more to come). I purchased two of the shelving racks, one of which is situated in the centre of the back wall and the other along the wall on the left. They are sturdy, deep enough and a great way to keep items off of the floor.
Photo: Toban Dyck
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The east wall of the workshop. I reorganized the drawers, added a pegboard, hung more tools on the existing pegboard, built and welded cord hangers, bought a bin organizer for small items and purchased and labeled containers.
Photo: Toban Dyck
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A tarp-strap and ladder rack I made out of angle iron and steel rod. It’s handy. We’ve used it a lot already.
Photo: Toban Dyck
If you think you’ve heard all there is to hear about my workshop organization project, bear with me, for I have unearthed yet another parable, albeit an unintended one, from his process.
“Perfection is the enemy of done,” is a quote that gets repeated in this home quite often. I don’t know who said it, and I don’t necessarily trust the internet enough to just Google the source. Every part, tool and toy has a home. The floor space is open and unobstructed. And before consensus is reached among the readers of this column that I, Toban Dyck, don’t actually work in my workshop and that I just play around with tools and stuff, I serviced our seeding tractor, the immortal Versatile 750, in this newly organized space.
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I picked up on something while I worked on prepping that tractor for the growing season. This “something” was at first intangible. This time, the once-familiar act of greasing zerks and changing oil felt unfamiliar and new — in a good way. I was on the creeper, under the tractor, about half-way through servicing the drivetrain, when this amorphous, intangible gut feeling of things being different began to take form.
The most relevant analogy I can think of right now is if the tractor is the picture, the workshop is the lens through which I was looking at it. A clean lens begets a clear image. The cab of the tractor, which I had not previously given much thought to, suddenly became something I wanted to make as clean and organized as the space in which it was getting serviced.
So, I cleaned the cab. I felt compelled to. Its dirtiness stood out in the workshop.
Similarly, many of my building projects have become more precise. I know where my T-squares are and I can access them with ease. I have the space to lay potential projects out during the conception phase. I am conscious of the quality of my work in a way I wasn’t before.
It’s like my dad always told me, if you keep your vehicle clean, you’ll naturally want to take care of it. This is true of the workshop.
The space is done. It’s not yet perfect, but it is done. I am happy to be at this stage and I look forward to using it during the growing season.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. I did a lot of research on shop organization over the past few months. Similarly, if you have any suggestions, email me. Many of you have shared tips with me. I am grateful for that.
If you have the time, I’d urge you to take up the mantle of farm/workshop organization. You won’t regret it.
