Cleanest Way To ORGANIZE TOOLS! Tips And Tricks! 

The color coding based upon use is interesting. Colorizing adds a level of sortability when cleaning up. Similar to the color coded Fast Cap KISS drill bit set.

When I was an automotive tech many years ago I worked next to the shop foreman who was a master tech super smart guy who turned 120hrs a week easily. Anyway this guy had a huge 3 bay snap on $30k tool box completely full and a roll cart to match. He would look at his work order pick out what tools he needed arrange them in the roll cart and do any job in the shop super efficiently and when he was done he would clean all his tools and put them back up neatly in his box from the cart. He didn't believe in a messy work area or going back and forth to your box all day because time is money. He was a real professional technician not a grease monkey. I have always tried to model myself after him and it makes for a better experience all around.

An organized shop that can get good and messy is exactly right. Once you know where stuff belongs, you don't have to sweat about "making" the mess. You just collect all the tools when done and put them where they belong. Love your shop!!!

Wow. I just wish you and I lived close enough for a coffee from time to time. I am in the process of converting our 1910 “carriage’ house into something that I can be proud of. Just finished painting it’s block walls and installing a mini-split for year round comfort. I have purchased a 72 inch Husky rolling cabinet similar to yours and have begun organizing. This video is PERFECT timing. I too have a few health issues and will say a prayer for you from time to time. Love your attitude. - Dan

"An organized shop with a designated "messy/work area", but everything is easy to clean and reorganize" would be perfect for me

I am a road me mechanic. Work forced us to use kaizen foam and organize our tools. Reluctantly did it. Now I love it. There are times when the mess is unavoidable but being able to finish a job and know I have all my tools is great and saves me money from buying replacements. Plus’s I feel more comfortable buying a more expensive tool because I am more confident I won’t loose it. The foam pays for itself.

When the project "urge" comes upon me, having tools and supplies ready and waiting really gets the momentum going!

I'm in complete agreement. My shop is very organized (not like yours, but I know where everything is all the time-mostly--where is that steel wool again??!!). But while I am working, my bench and surrounding surfaces get pretty messy. In fact, I know when they are too messy because that's when I start misplacing things because they are under other things. Then I stop and restraighten up and start again. My motto is, "If you can't find it, stop and clean up." Also I would say, the smaller the shop the more organization is a must. I HAVE to put everything in its place or I have no room to work. That's my 2c.

Maggie is the bomb!! Clean, organized shop is sexy. As an auto tech for 35 years, I hated not finding tools where they should have been

A clean shop allows me to focus on my project. As my workflow adapts to my workspace, I make one or two organizational improvements each month. My efficiency improves with each project and I get excited to do more organizing.

Hi 👋, Guys and Girls, great tutorial , as a retired English gentleman living in France, not sure about the gentleman, 😂 living in France, specialist jointer cabinet maker , for over 40+ . Definitely being clean and tidy make you more efficient, having the right tools for the job at hands , also is safer, so using wheel cart type storage is a excellent idea, and making sure the floor area around you is clean, I used to work by myself, in my work shop 7mts x 30mts + parking area for my van so I could load and unload in the dry . Over the last 10-14 years I was mainly making doors windows and staircases, as I was doing work on barn conversions and renovation project. And as they say, there is a place for every thing and everything in it’s place, And cleanliness is next to godliness, from what I have been told, 😂 stay safe, keep up the great work, Phil from the moulin France. Were I am now living,

I am somewhat OCD myself but I like it that way. I know where all my tools and hardware are and I can get a project done more efficiently. When I do a project my shop does get a little or sometimes a lot messy but not to the point where it can be a hazard messy. So yes, I think a shop getting messy during a project is a good thing. Afterwards I clean up and stay organized. I am a retired journeyman carpenter and welder. I love working in my shop. I am now getting into the epoxy resin projects. Epoxy river tables, shelves, wall hanging pictures etc. and I'm loving it.

10mm wrench and socket prove it's Izzy's way. I just keep mine in a safe 🙂

I think it's normal to have a messy shop while you're working on a project. But it's fabulous to have an ultra-organized shop, to be able to set things back where they belong at the end. Congrats on the awsome shop

Kudos to Maggie for the sorting. I'm down to about 3 coffee cans that I have to run through now that I'm getting my shop more organized. I've got only a couple of drawers with Kaizen, but thinking of replacing my built wood cabinets with the rolling metal cabinets like you did. Kaizen would definitely be great for those. Keep 'em coming Izzy, I love to see your videos. - Chris

Fantastic, Izzy! I absolutely agree, organization is a necessity! Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

A clean shop is the sign of a sick mind! Love the colour coding idea. Clean or messy, the bottom line does the shop get the job done, the way you want it and on time.

If you don't organize your shop you're not organized. Anyone argues that would rather argue than organize. Enjoy your videos, and thank you. A lot of us tend to negotiate the basics.

If it works for you, it’s not overboard! My shop is a disaster area to the point where I don’t use it anymore, so this is great food for thought and great motivation to clean up and organize. Thank you!

I by no means am a professional and my “shop” is my three car garage where the third bay is my shop. So I would consider myself an above average DIYer. I do most of my own auto repairs and home projects. I have just now started to organize my tools in a manner with tool cabinets with labels and the drawers organized with similar plastic dividers. I do like the idea of foam for some of my drawers. Having my tools organized has turned jobs into less frustrating experiences because I now know where each of my tools are and like you said, I have many times purchased sockets multiple times because I could not find it. So for me, I agree with the organization while it doesn’t make me a better mechanic or carpenter but the lack of frustration knowing where my tools are because they are organized is well worth it. This video has helped me with ideas to take some of my organization to the next level.

"An organized shop that you can make a mess in". Well put.

It’s what works for you and that’s what counts. I like my shop clean yet multiple projects going because ya know life happens, it gets chaotic. At which point I stop everything and straiten up for my own sanity. Shop is all ways evolving on top of that so am always in a state of flux. Hope your health rebounds love your channel.

Don't worry about doing your videos in a chair or wheelchair. That doesn't matter to me. You and Maggie are a great team in your videos. On the clean shop or messy shop I have a big problem- No shop ! Yep, very little space and small toolboxes here and there. Any suggestions ?

Your Lady is a Saint for tackling that hardware project! Thanks for sharing!.

Thanks for sharing. This is something I’ve been struggling with for a long time … spending too much time looking for things in my shop and occasionally buying something I thought I needed only to discover weeks or months later I already had one but it was buried somewhere … so I’m moving in the direction of getting a lot more organized and this video is super helpful.

The answer to your question is, yes! Great video. While in the military as an aircraft mechanic, this is how we kept the tools organized. It was easy to ensure you had ALL your tools before you left the job. A missing tool on a C-5 Galaxy is a big deal.

Just having all that hard wear organized would be a major accomplishment for most people. Every step you take is organized, I got to believe that’s the way to go

I love that you’re doing this. Organizing things by how much you use them is such a good idea and it’s the driving force for my shop organization. I also really love the cart that has all the most important stuff on it. Great idea.

I always believed in organization , meaning each specific thing must be found in one single place , saves a lot of time . During a job evererything gets messy for sure , but it’s much more easy to get back to organized again and so on. So long life to organization!!!

Thanks, Izzy. I would agree that an organized shop allows for greater productivity. This is especially true for those of us in a smaller shop, where moving things around just to work can take valuable time away from our projects. The more organized I am, the more work I am able to do. Keep up the good work. As someone who also suffers from a disability, you are motivating me to get my butt in gear!

A chaotic shop is a safety concern, I try to clean up the area I work in each day as I leave the shop. This helps me when I return to the shop as I feel i know where things are, in their rightful place and presentable to work without possible safety issues. Keep doing what you are doing Izzy and thank Maggie each day she is willing to work with you -Amen

I call it “organized chaos”, that organized at project start, chaos during the progression of the project, back to organized at finish clean up. Loved the video, gleaned some ideas from it, thanks.

I agree - an organized shop that can get messy is a great place to work and be creative……and at the end of the day it’s easy to clean up! Thanks Izzy for the great videos 👍👍

Love the useful carts and the foam org system. Nicely done!

Organisation, you know what you have got, Messy, you don't .... i even organise my beer cooler in ABV% .... Love from Yorkshire, England fella !

Just recently decided I needed to organize my collection of bolts, nuts and other assorted hardware. I had the habit of just buying more screws, etc, because I didn't know what I had. I also would throw the bolts and screws in buckets and gallon cans. After organizing, I now realized I have a lifetime supply of 2.5 inch yellow screws. 3 boxes worth. So yes, it's worth being organized and being able to just put the bolts back after the project instead of half assing it.

"Gaze on them in awe..." - totally made me giggle. Great Video!

I'm with you on this, Izzy. My shop was a messy garage and outbuilding that seemed to always accumulate junk from the house. I finally had enough and cleared it out one weekend and left everything out on my drive under a tarpaulin while I sorted out the workshop. My saw was already on wheels, and my metal working/car/bike tinkering tools were in a metal tool box on wheels so I got another metal tool box like your Husky ones and made wheeled carts for all the machines. I organised all my screws and components and got a lot of larger plastic crates for all the stuff "that will come in handy one day". I am so pleased I took the time to do it. I can now find things I want for projects easily and my tools are all organised to be right where I need them. The one advantage you didn't mention is that it means that when you do make it messy while working, it is dead easy to clear up again as everything has a place. (And a lot of the junk that was left on the driveway went to the tip and not back in my shop!)

Love that drawer to cart thing!

PERFECTION!!! clean versus messy? My shop is ALWAYS MESSY! (my wife says so).

As far as I'm concerned,you do what works for you. Youre level of organization is amazing. I used to be pretty anal about things like that when I had my shop. Everything had it's place. Way easier to find tool or part/ hardware when i knew where to look, saves a ton of time. I took better care of my tools and kept them clean when organized. Its way easier to figure out if a tool was lost or walked away. Yes, 8t takes time to ne as organized as you are, but its really not that expensive. I never got to the point that i was using foam yet, i had just started looking into what kind of foam i would use(kaizan was definitely at the top of my list), amd probably would have started transitioning over to foam. Unfortunately we lost the house, and i dont have a place to do any work now. Keep up the good work, it looks great.

I always glean something from your videos, Izzy. I hate looking for stuff and try to have a place for everything. Now I do turning in my shed I also have two of some things to save time and effort. Keep up the good work 🌞

Having run my business out of the back of trucks and vans and using storage units for long term storage of equipment and supplies for years, it is so nice to have a shop where everything has a home( or almost everything). Being able to lay hands on a specific tool or box of hardware instantly keeps the work flow moving and reduces the frustration factor. The more a shop is organized, the more efficient the work. A clean, uncluttered workshop is helpful, too.

_Absolutely_ the best thing I got for my workshop was a wee iLife v1 robot cleaner (got it cheap on fleabay broken and fixed it). Wakes up in the morning and cleans the workshop floor - soooo nice to keep the floor clean. Cons - haaates cables and soft items near the floor - just move them 😊😊

I think everyone would enjoy working in an organized shop. Putting things back when you are finished with them is a self discipline habit. I try to clean up my shop at the end of the day except for the area that I will be working on first thing the next day. Great video. Thank you for posting.

I absolutely love when everything has a home. Im super organized in the area of the shop that I work in and in my toolbox especially. its definitely more efficient to be organized, it cuts down on loosing or missing something and also make your everyday clean up process so much quicker and thoughtless. I can toss everything back in my toolbox at the end of a late night and it takes me maybe 10 minutes and with a quick glance I can tell if something didn't make it back to its place.

I’m a fan of Kaizen. Love the tip of cutting into smaller modular sizes. This allows for the inevitable rearrangement without tossing the full drawer sheet. Also, I didn’t know you could order cut sizes so thanks. There’s clean/dirty and organized/disorganized. I can work in clean-organized and dirty-organized. I absolutely hate working in dirty-disorganized. My goal is doing what you’re doing. Luckily I’m already halfway there.

Being disabled, owning a very productive shop, I build adaptive equipment for people with disabilities bikes, wheelchairs I have organized Chaos is what I say. I have my electrical cart. I have my main toolbox. I have a couple service carts but I also have two large tables a 6 x 8 and a 6 x 12 and both tend to get filled rather quickly. I also have an electric bike lift. What seems to happen as I go from one project right to the other and about once every week if not twice, I do a major cleanup and put everything back away to start all over again I hate having to organize it but I love working out of an organize shop because it bothers me having to work in a dirty shop. I also depending on my ability as I get older, I am in a wheelchair. I might be more I’m a walking paraplegic now at 10 to get around very well but when there’s a large mess on the floor because I use a rolling stool most the day if there’s zip ties or just a mess that’s on the ground it slows me down and inhibits my production

You are Right in a lot of ways and Hats Off to the lady that helped, Comfort and Nicely placed tools are my heart zone; It’s easier to Work in that kind of shop and I love your Ideals.😎😇

Thanks for sharing I think that an organized shop but a messy shop is the way to go I’ve been trying to get all my tools organized tired of looking for things when you need them so I love what you are doing and would love to be able to put the Kaizan foam in all my tool boxes. Way to go Maggie for going through all that hardware that takes a lot of time so👏👏👏 . Can’t wait to see the shop all done and see you guys get back into build videos

Thank you for all of the ideas. I am always thinking on how to make my shop more organized and efficient

Izzy you are a damn stud. Keep up all you do for the community.

Thank you for this video. I have been following fleets wood shop, He uses the same foam in all of his drawers and has the best cleanest and organized shops I have seen on RU-vid. You two are great. Thanks Alf 🙂🙂🙂

That's what I call an organized workshop!!! 💪❤️

My lord you are tops with organization. Forget what everyone tells you, your kickin' it right.

I've spent a lot of time organizing my shop and I would do it again without a doubt! I know where everything goes when it comes time to clean up. I've had people say I don't use my workshop because It's too organized (it's the exact opposite); It only takes me 10 minutes to put everything away at the end of a project. Investing the time up front to be forever organized is 100% priceless.

Love the nut/bolt box!

You Are the King of Glean! Your videos are well organized, performed, lighted, composed, and sound controlled. The content is always understandable. It is inspirational and freely allows our minds to take your thought process and work it into our own situations. We can glean from you because you educationally organize and present in a logical manner.

I love it! I keep alot of tools in my semi truck so i think something like this would greatly help me stay organized

This is exactly how I want to set my shop up. I never thought of the cart which is an amazing idea. The tools can stay organized even out of the box.

Izzy, you are right on point. I was lost because I had to move from a 3-car garage shop to a 1/2 garage shop. Most things I do I just go and move everything out into the street and then try to get some work done and by the time I'm done I'm wiped and don't even feel like doing anything. I would die for a shop like yours I am very anal about clean and organized and it drives me crazy not to have it. I love your videos they are very informative and you don't put me to sleep like some other ones. Thank you.

I like your Organization very much... I have found for me that being organized is what I try to do while doing a job, but I end up making a mess no matter what so, at the end of a project I clean up... But I have seen others that are just as productive as I am that make messes and only clean as much as needed to do the next project.... in my opinion it is based on the person and how they grew into their trade...

Wow. Fantastic demonstration. Thank u

The fact you did a demo on the foam… you just got a sub my guy. That’s exactly what I was looking for 😊

I find the organized shop is a time saver for me. It really saves me time looking for items. It also lets me know what’s missing with a quick glance.

Two of the most productive people I know are me and my sister. I am very much everything has a place. She is very much, “I know where everything is because I put it there”. Hyperorganizing my sister would severely cut down on her productivity because setup and teardown time would add time to her flow. For me, knowing exactly where to find any tool at any moment is key because “finding” a misplaced place tool is a flow killer. There is no better or worse, just what is best for you in your working space. I have several tools that there place on the bench: pencil, #5 hand plane, 1/2 inch chisel, square, 2 quick release clamps… They have designated homes as well but these few tools are not worth moving from the bench. Find your flow, try things that you think will improve it, don’t regret going back.

Wow, Just Wow... Prayers up for the back issues...

Ty RU-vid for recommending this channel to me. Excellent presentation! I subscribed and I’m looking forward to seeing more of your content.

Izzy, Izzy, Izzy. Does your mind ever take a break? Your now have a literal woodworking surgery! I can see that a lot of thought has gone into the arrangement. Perfect! 👍

Love it, my OCD would be happy for ever! It works for your fantastic shop and with trouble getting around. My shop is half a single car garage and my small tools and fasteners would go in one of those cabinets, so I go with a wall cabinet and shelves over the bench with frequent users in it and everything else sorted by type.

I'm sure these thoughts are shared by others, but altogether: I have repeatedly bought some tool or supply that it turned out I already had and just couldn't find. That was the trigger to get organized. Like Izzy, I couldn't see going to the time & trouble to make cabinets (especially with the price of good plywood) and replaced all my open stands with these mechanics tool cabinets. Drawers are so much more useful and clean than open shelves! I've laid rubber liners in them, which keep tools where I set them, and I sometimes rearrange them so I'm not a candidate for cut-out foam (yet). Now when I go down to my shop, everything is neat and I can focus on whatever task I want to do. When I'm done (or even along the way), tools go straight back to their homes, and a quick brush &/or vacuum and it's ready for when I come back. Takes nearly no time to keep it that way, which is the real value of organizing. Once done, keeping it up is much easier than not.

Wow!!!! Amazing!! Thanks for great ideas !!

You inspired us to organize our tools in our garage. We are over the moon learning about the Kaizen foam!

I hope and pray your back heals and you get relief. ❤

Glad to see a video that is helpful for physical limitations

Great video. It's really hard to organize and it's really good to see different methods but also it's good to just get going on something whenever you can. That way it's gonna be fun. A shop where you can get to the things you want, and in the case of a shop, many things can be dangerous by nature. So eliminate the clutter and danger so you can move and retrieve as fast as your brain wants to work, that means you'll accomplish the tasks and probably be motivated to do more of what you enjoy.

You said it near the end. Starting with a place for everything and everything in its place before starting a project is my preferred method. Which I was able to practice what i preach.

Awesome...love it...hope you get relief from your back pain.

I've been considering doing the foam for my tools for a while now. When I was In the Airforce and worked on jet engines our Maintenance docks had foam with cut outs for our tools for Tool Accountability. The boxes were always kept locked when not in use. Before and after Maintenance & before and after breaks you would check your toolbox to ensure all tools were in their place to ensure tools were not left in an Engine or a component or rolling around somewhere on the floor. It really helps to prevent Incidents and destruction of the engines and potential loss of life. The reason I haven't done it is because I have assumed it would be difficult to cut the foam. I want to eventually have some boxes locked in a shed out back for my upcoming work area and having them organized and in the foam would be the key to ensuring I don't misplace my tools while working outside. Thank you for sharing the info for the foam and kits to aid in forming it.

I think you are right about organizing haveing a clean shop just makes me feel better then haveing a mess I'm definitely more productive when things are organized

Based on all your work and videos I would say if you think it worth doing then it is. Many thanks for sharing.

Great advice. Thank you so much for the video. I'm in the process of organizing my place and this helps a lot.

Messy during the builds, but well organized at the end of each day. I love the Kaizen....now you got ME thinking....

great video. when we moved to TX, i had to rework my two car garage shop and set it up for woodturning. like your shop, i bought two of the

I don't have a shop, nor tools. But somehow you convinced me that I need this 🙂

Sincerely, thanks for being just plain great

A 10 minute nod is just that with an organized shop, A 10 minute job in an Unorganized shop sometimes Never gets done( without at least 1temper tantrum) I’m with you on the organization I literally worked out of 5gal . Buckets got about a year ( it was always stressful) then I got a toolbox (no more tools. At first) it was amazing how work I got done just by ortwhat I already had.

I gotta say, with the recent sequence if injuries and surgeries ive endured recently on top of having Asperger's, this is right up my alley. The only thing id have to do differently is find a way to have things displayed. I have object permanence issues, and as a result if i cant just eyeball over where it goes, itll nevergo where it goes.

As a dental lab technician and hobbyist woodworker, I learned decades ago that organization of your tools makes you more efficient. I don’t know when Kaizan Foam was available, but I French fitted my work tools into an MDF board about 35 years ago so that I could immediately go to the drawer and find what I needed. It was incredibly frustrating to not be able to find the tool in the drawer where you knew it was because the drawer was such a mess. I make a mess on my bench, but when the job’s done, the tools go back where I can find them immediately tomorrow. The time I spent organizing my drawers has been paid back many times over as I never have to search for a tool anymore. I think that hyper-organization not only saves you time, makes you efficient, but also saves your sanity. Now I need to organize my shop like my workplace!

Thanks for the input. I've never found ultra precise organization scalable. Everyone is different though, and all needs are different.

Great video, you've covered several topics that I've been looking for information on as I make my garage shop. I've purchased the Husky 6' rolling tool box, but I just filled it and haven't organized it yet. I know the draw organization is going to depend on your main product focus with some draws being basic like sockets, wrenches and other hand tools. My garage shop will be centered around an 5'x10' CNC so I've already taken up a lot of space.

love the cart setup

I put a bigger focus on being about to see the tools I need, so I have focused on getting the tools grouped by function and normally resting at at 45degree angle. I had a nice French clet system but I have moved and have not figured out a plan here. At the moment it is just wheeled wire shelves grouped by function. Thanks for sharing what you are up too

Wow that is a level I have never achieved. Frankly this gives me stress just thinking about organizing to this level. I think everyone is different and it’s important to know how you work and what level gives you the most peace. I guess I’m in the middle. I find this very impressive and enjoy watching your videos and always pick up something that works for me, just like you said. Keep up the good work 😊

I totally agree with your conclusion, Izzy, including all the good things you have to say about Maggie and all her hard work. I offered to do some woodworking tutoring for my wife’s cousin, who I knew had a touch of OCD. I had no idea! He had a professional kitchen’s worth of cabinets installed by a kitchen and bath dealer in his garage. Every drawer and organization, somewhat akin to kaizen foam, but this was at least 20 years before that was available. I would set a tool down in the middle of using it, and when I would look up, he would be wiping it clean, and putting it back in the drawer! After our training, I told him that his need to be hyper-organized was holding him back from being productive. His woodworking challenges were’t being caused by his inability to use his tools, but instead by his obsessive need to have them all in drawers or tucked away in their original boxes. Thanks for sharing and it’s so smart of you to plan for the future. Scott

Watching Maggie sorting hardware gave me an idea. Attach a drop down table extension to the end of the rolling cart. Then sit down on a tall swiveling barstool and sort away saving your back. ✌ 😃

I found myself convinced for a thumbs up midway into the video an then twice more along the way just to realize I have already gave you one. Maggie and you rock! Keep your heads up, I wish you and all the best.

i like the idea of a clean shop. of course i do not have one. but i would welcome you and maggie coming over and doing my shop like yours

i finally bough an 11 drawer husky cabinet.. so many years having tools being stored everywhere.. i was able to centralized all my most used home tools.. organization is key

A place for everything and everything in its place - my yet unachieved ideal. We spend too much time looking for that “tool” so we need a level of organisation. in making things we make mess as well I tried both, keeping things clean during the process and leaving it to I am finished to clean. My take away so far is not to go too far in any one direction ie spend all your time keeping things squeaky clean. Keep up the good work mate always enjoy your videos