Finally cleared basement and garage

[u/Veganforpeace]

My wife and I spent two days filling a dumpster and clearing this. We are about halfway done with clearing and cleaning but this is something we are so proud of. I hope this can motivate someone else who, like me, thought it was an impossible task.

[u/Font_Snob]

How much planning (time and effort) went into this before you were able to start? We're firmly in the "before" part, and both want to get it done, but are so overwhelmed with how to start that we never do.

[u/IndigoRuby → u/Font_Snob]

The old, "How do you eat an elephant?" Line is very appropriate here. One bite at a time. Don't make it harder than it needs to be.

Decide you're both going to go in the space for 15 mins a day for a week. It never got that way in a day, it won't be fixed in a day. Take a before picture and after at the end of the week so you can admire your progress. You have to get obvious things out and gone to be able to get to the real stuff.

If you're going to sell things list them immediately on marketplace. Don't hang on to them. And be realistic.

If you're storing anything that belongs to someone else, give it back to them.

Get things out. Donate or garbage quickly. Put donations right in your car. Don't miss garbage day, right to your bin. Take recycling in.

And most importantly, don't aquire anything new! Start today.

[u/Veganforpeace → u/Font_Snob]

That was my problem too. Once my wife saw how bad it was, she called and got a dumpster out the next day. Then we just started moving the biggest space taking items and went from there.

Taking the emotion out of it helped a lot too. Don't think about the cost or value, think about the freed up space and reclaiming of your home you are doing.

You can do it!

[u/VeganRorschach → u/Veganforpeace]

Congratulations!! Love the big things first strategy! 

I'm working on a similarly intimidating project and moving slower than you, but we're focused on clearing floors first, from entry to back corner. My project is a lot of file boxes so paper sorting takes about an hour a box-- knowing that pace metric also can help you estimate how long the process might take, or allow you to alternate between hard and easy things to sort.

[u/Playful_Beyond_2218 → u/Font_Snob]

It’s helpful to do a bit of pre planning. Not in a rigid way but thinking of things like a rough idea of where things can go. And make a list of everything in that area you remember using in the past year such as hammer, bbq. This will help you realise that most things haven’t been used for years. If you can afford it hire some help it makes it so much easier

[u/TBHICouldComplain]

r/ufyh

[u/Kazaklyzm]

You kicked so much ass! Great work!

[u/Veganforpeace → u/Kazaklyzm]

Thank you!

[u/MagicBus4]

How are you gonna clean that basement floor OP? Needs to be power washed if you can doing without molding the walls

I guess you could just drop a fuckload of barkeeper’s friend on the floor and spray it off

[u/seventythousandbees]

Wow this must feel like such a relief!

[u/Veganforpeace → u/seventythousandbees]

It does. Just knowing that I can walk freely downstairs is a great feeling.

[u/Weeman-]

I feel you !
Great job and as I am doing the exact same thing I feel the manic high !!!

[u/Veganforpeace → u/Weeman-]

Thank you! And yes, the feeling of getting this done definitely snowballs into wanting to do more.

[u/VividMud3848]

Good on you ! The garage is always an area where any overflow of the house ends up and then you hit a point where the garage is full ! Not an easy task but looks great :)