As every gardener knows, keeping your tools and supplies organized can be a constant battle. Wheelbarrows, shovels, gloves, pots, bags of soil – it all tends to pile up into a messy jungle of clutter. But you don’t have to resign yourself to disorder. Enter the storage bench: your new garden organization hero.
Storage benches provide the perfect solution for tidying up your gardening gear while saving your back. Featuring handy built-in shelves, cabinets, drawers, and hooks, they keep everything neat and easily accessible. No more rummaging around overflowing sheds or tripping over tools scattered across the yard.
Benefits of Investing in a Garden Storage Bench
Outdoor storage benches designed for garden use offer many practical advantages:
- Consolidate supplies in one handy spot instead of spread out across garage and shed
- Save your back strain from constant bending to access ground-level storage
- Keep tools protected from weather damage compared to lying on the ground
- Provide a convenient seat for tasks like weeding, pruning, or repotting plants
- Flexible for storing virtually anything from fertilizer to knee pads to planters
The right storage bench becomes the ultimate garden assistant. No more wasting time tracking down that one trowel buried in your shed. Simply walk over to your bench and grab what you need.
Choosing the Ideal Size
First and foremost, carefully measure the space where you plan to use the bench. Standard sizes range from 3 to 5 feet long. Even an inch or two makes a difference for maneuvering around the bench. Also verify you have adequate walkway clearance so the open bench doors or drawers don’t obstruct pathways or block access.
Also consider what items you will frequently access and their dimensions. For instance, verify long-handled tools will fit or if the shelves can fit several stackable planter pots. You don’t want important supplies spilling out from cramped quarters.
Optimal Height and Clearance
Bench seat height often ranges from 18 to 24 inches. If used mainly as a seat for gardening tasks, opt for seating comfort by avoiding a height that strains your knees or back.
For multi-functional use as a standing workspace, look for bench seats at least 36 inches high and sinks/work surfaces at 34-36 inches. This allows comfortable use while standing or sitting on an adjustable-height saddle seat or stool.
Also inspect storage area clearance, especially if hanging frequently used tools like pruning shears. Measure their lengths when open to prevent constantly knocking your knuckles on shelf edges trying to pull them off their hooks.
Assessing Critical Features and Functions
Several key considerations can help you select the ideal bench for your unique needs and preferences:
Materials and Durability
Construction material directly impacts weather resistance and durability:
- Wood: Cedar and teak have natural weather-resistance if properly sealed/stained. Avoid soft woods prone to rotting.
- Metal: Powder coated steel offers superior corrosion resistance. Wrought iron is also quite durable.
- Plastic: Resin benches reinforced with aluminum or steel withstand sun, rain, and snow well but may show cosmetic wear over time.
Also inspect thickness of structural timbers and sheet metals. Thinner = more prone to sagging, warping, or denting over time.
Storage Capacity and Options
Look for generous storage with some or all of these handy features:
- Adjustable shelves and drawers to customize configurations
- Cabinets or woven baskets for corralling smaller items
- Hooks, holders, or holsters conveniently storing often-used tools
- Lockable storage for safely securing expensive supplies or chemicals
Avoid skimpy shelves barely large enough to hold a few small pots. Look for depth and divided compartments catering to both large and small items.
Weight Capacity
Before cramming a bench full of heavy bags of soil, bricks, and cinder blocks, inspect its weight capacity. Many plastic models only support ~50 lbs per shelf. Wood or metal benches often handle 100-300 lbs if properly reinforced.
Distribute weight evenly across shelves and avoid bottom-heavy loads threatening tipping accidents. For heavy-duty equipment/supply storage needs, steel lockers may offer the greatest capacity and safety.
Work Surfaces
Some benches incorporate fold-down work tables or shelves offering temporary expanded work space for tasks like potting plants. Look for solid, smooth surfaces that resist staining and easily wipe clean. Consider functionality extras like:
- Built-in drainage holes/trays preventing soggy messes
- Integrated sinks for cleaning up without going inside
- Optional Queen Anne style cabinet doors creating an elevated enclosed workspace
Mobility Options
Wheeled benches allow easily repositioning your mobile workstation around the garden to be close to your tasks. But these wheeled wonders must roll smoothly even when loaded down. Inspect:
- Wide, sturdy wheels and axles
- Thickness and construction of pull-out handles
- Wheel locks preventing accidental rolling
Also consider surface terrain. Wide pneumatic wheels better grip gravel compared to narrow plastic wheels suited for smooth pavement.
Assembly and Portability
Benches shipped as ready-to-assemble kits offer big savings on shipping costs. But make sure you’re up for the task of deciphering instructions, wielding tools, and wrestling parts together for potentially hours.
If shipping pre-fab benches across country or overseas, break-down benches stack together into a slimmer package. Just be sure connecting hardware and any pre-installed features arrive intact after transport.
Maximizing Your Investment With Flexible Functionality
The right storage bench pulls double, triple, or even quadruple duty as more than just garden gear lockers. Expand their usefulness with versatile functionality like:
- Crafts workstation: The ample surface area provides an ideal hobby holder or painter’s easel when parked on the patio or deck.
- Poolside towels and toy storage: Stash stacks of dry towels and all those floaties cluttering up the pool house.
- Mudroom catch-all cubbies: Mitigate mess near entryways by corralling hats, gloves, shoes and other outdoor accessories.
- Garage workshop: Durable metal lockers organize tools, automotive fluids, gear, and equipment.
So before reserving that bench just for garden use, think creatively about other ways its storage superpowers can maximize value for your dollar.
Prime Placement: Outdoor vs Indoor
Outdoor and indoor bench placement each come with distinct advantages and considerations:
Outdoor Advantages
- Immediate access without trekking back to the shed or garage
- Often backyard tasks require outdoor tools, so logical to store together
Indoor Advantages
- Protects tools from sun, rain, snow damage
- Deters rust and corrosion
- Maintains organizational tidiness even during inclement weather
For outdoor installation, analyze sun exposure. Constant baking under direct sunlight degrades paint, fabrics, and materials much faster. Strategically positioned shade trees help, but also favor benches offering:
- UV-resistant wood stains or paint finishes
- Rust-inhibiting powder coated or galvanized metals
- Stabilizers blocking harsh rays from degrading plastics
Also evaluate drainage and moisture considerations:
- Elevate off wet ground with foundation blocks or gravel.
- Select water-resistant materials like cedar planks.
- Incorporate ventilation slots and slats so air circulates freely.
Leading Brands and Top Recommendations
With storage benches now offered by big box retailers, niche boutiques, and direct-to-consumer eCommerce sites, excellent choices exist at all budget levels. But favor options earning high ratings and rave reviews for quality construction, durable finishes, and reliable functionality delivering years of service. Here are a few top brands to consider:
Keter
This storage juggernaut receives high praise for attractive, weather-tough resin designs complementing any exterior. Their Samoa collection offers styles with adjustable shelves, wide wheels, and auto-closing hinges.
Suncast
Trusted name in outdoor storage and organization provides versatile utility for yards and patios with their java resin folding storage seat. It includes a padded seat cushion and generous space for stashing everything from gardening tools to pool floaties.
Rubbermaid
Their rugged roughneck line lives up to its name with durable double-walled plastic construction able to withstand all-weather abuse. The flip-top seat even supports up to 300 lbs if needing a sturdy resting spot.
Get Creative: DIY Storage Bench Ideas
For the motivated DIY-er, storage benches also make beginner-friendly, weekend wallet-friendly projects. Almost anything can be repurposed into personalized garden storage with minimal tools, time and skills, such as:
- Plastic deck storage boxes
- Wooden Crates
- Metal Lockers
- Dressers or filing cabinets
- Pallet shelving
Raid the garage or thrift stores for abandoned furniture crying out for new life holding your garden goodies. Sand off old paint or polish up wood tones for benches oozing recycled charm and character you won’t find on store shelves.
As any gardener can attest, keeping endless tools and supplies organized can quickly get out of hand without a solid storage solution. Garden storage benches banish clutter and hassles by consolidating everything into one handy furniture piece purpose-built for tidiness and accessibility tailored to garden needs.
Just remember crucial decision factors when investing in your organizational aid-de-camp: durability, optimal sizing, weather resistance, weight capacity, versatility, and extra convenience features helping tackle garden tasks with minimized stress and headaches. Then kick back on that padded bench seat and enjoy the fruits of your organizational labors!
