Organizing Solutions for Deep Shelving

**monkeywrangler71** · 05-27-2011, 11:39 AM

I touched on this a while back in relation to my food storage, but this applies to a lot of other people in various closets and cupboards. I currently have deep shelving in my cold room, as well as my kitchen cupboards. In our old home we had deep shelving in the bathroom.

Do you have deep shelves in your home? How do you utilize it efficiently? What do you find challenging? What are some of your best ideas for organizing a deep shelf to ensure access to items at both front and back?

**wheezie** · 06-14-2011, 07:01 AM

I have deeeep shelves in my pantry/food cabinet (made by my wonderful FIL). It's great, but things get lost in there. LOL I still don't have a solution, so I'm hoping you get more answers.

**savvy_sniper** · 06-14-2011, 08:08 AM

I don't know that I have a solution for you, but here is what I do in my pantry. I store larger items (that you can see over the items in front) and large boxes/cases of thing in the back. It is not ideal, because you have to move the stuff in front to get to the stuff in back. BUT the tall stuff in back can at least be seen and the boxes/cases aren't things I need to get to on a regular basis. I also mark the boxes/cases in large print so it is easy to tell what is in them (if it didn't already come that way).

I know some people keep a written inventory and some even keep it posted on the wall in the pantry/near the shelving.

That's all I got!

**Judi Dial** · 06-14-2011, 07:41 PM

My new "thing" about this is that I put all the small stuff (envelopes mostly) in medium sized plastic bins, and label them. The bins aren't so heavy I can't get them down and it organizes all the smaller stuff.

IHTH!

Judi

**Debbie-cat** · 06-14-2011, 07:59 PM

No ideas as I have the same problem.

**BeachFun** · 06-15-2011, 06:48 AM

I have this problem with my pantry and have found a solution that works for me.

I purchased large (16-18" diameter) lazy susan's to store my canned items. I am able to fit 2 on a shelf. I put most of my canned items on this and then store larger cans that do not fit in rows between the lazy susan's. Nothing has been lost on those shelves in over 6 months and retrieving an item is now a piece of cake.

**NikoSan999** · 06-15-2011, 07:00 AM

No clue. But it's a pain in the butt. Like someone said stuff gets lost back there.
I started off with rows from front to back of like items...one row corn, next beans etc..rotating them are next to impossible.
Since, for now, stockpile is in another room on metal shelving with both sides access, I don't worry so much about it. I rotate best I can and use what's in these two tall deep pantries. When the corn is gone I get from the other room from stockpille. I know the cabinet stuff needs to be used first.
I don't know that I would intentionally do deep deep shelves again. Thought it was a great idea until I had to dig for stuff.

**greekislandgirl** · 06-15-2011, 10:13 AM

I have this too in my pantry cabinets. I love NikoSan's idea about having things in rows. I do think that is the best way, especially if you have a lot of each thing.

What I have been doing is to have one shelf (the most accessible one) that has one of everything in it, it's a deep shelf but I have the big stuff in the back and the short stuff in the front. Then my other shelves have the extras. This way I don't have to hunt around among 16 cans of tomato sauce to find a can of tomato paste or whatever. But it still means moving things around a bit if I want to get to the big bottle of vinegar or whatever.

**Libby** · 06-15-2011, 11:34 AM

MW - you said you had a cold storage room? How large is it? If its the kind where you open the door and see a shelf running left to right - are you able to remove them and install heavy duty plastic shelving on the left and the right? You did say the closet was deep therefore if you have the room, this may be better for you. You could open door and step in and either turn to the left or right to see whats on either shelving unit.

I like the idea of organizing things in rows as well with the rows running front to back, this way you know every can in the first row going deep is all peas or tomato sauce or tomato paste or baked beans etc. You can organize the row by height with tallest at back or the 'freshest' at the back and older at front if going by expiry dates.

I hope that makes sense.

BTW: I'm envious - every time I try to stockpile and get the cupboard organized, dad comes along and fishes through everything totally spreading everything out and scrambling it. Its to the point where I need to empty the shelf to see what we have before deciding if we can make a specific meal due to ingredient requirements.

**houstenh** · 06-22-2011, 12:10 AM

MW, If you can spare the space, leave the back of the shelve empty. That way, you can easily add items to the back and pull the oldest items to the front.

**Brat** · 06-22-2011, 05:42 AM

I put things that I don't use to often like roasting pan and things behind. I also use cardboard flats to store can goods and things this way if I need the things in the back I can pull a flat off and get to the things in the back.