Outdoor Storage Benches,
Cabinets, and Boxes

Outdoor storage benches are a great way to not only store a huge variety of items neatly out of sight, but they also provide extra seating for your patio or yard area.

I'm a big fan of covered storage...when you're organizing, everything stays looking so much nicer (and cleaner!) and stays protected from the elements when the items are completely enclosed.

Some of the many things you can store include:

• patio chair cushions
• outdoor tablecloths
• kids' toys
• dogs' toys
• garden hoses
• garden tools
• birdseed, suet, and extra feeders
• plant seeds, fertilizer, and other yard necessities

And there are so many outdoor storage benches designs and materials available! You can choose from wooden benches, molded plastics and resins, metal benches, benches with cushions...the list goes on and on.

Outdoor Storage Cabinet

In addition to outdoor storage benches, an outdoor storage cabinet is an easy solution for neatly storing items that you regular use outside (and it’s much nicer than having to find space inside your house to store them!) In addition, it’s convenient to store outdoor items close to where you actually use them.

Outdoor cabinets are different from their related indoor cousins in that they need to be designed to withstand more rugged temperatures, wind, rain, and other exposure to the elements.


Great things to store in an outdoor storage cabinet:

Your cabinet is a handy place to store all sorts of yard tools like rakes, hoes, shovels, and hoses. In addition, you can also keep your smaller gardening implements close at hand when you're in the mood for a little planting or weeding. Potting soil, planting pots, hand gardening tools and yard gloves fit nicely on a neat shelf, next to your watering pot, sprinkler heads, and nozzle attachments.

You can also keep your pool accessories and toys, grilling implements and barbeque tongs, and patio furniture cushions and pillows handy and safe from the elements.


Construction materials:

Most are made of either plastic resin, wood, fiberglass, or aluminum. Plastic models tend to be the most affordable, and offer a wide variety of styles, sizes, and features, such as grid floors, grooves for shelves, and other handy options.


Things to consider:

• Will you be storing pesticides, fertilizers, ice melt, or other chemicals? If so, choose one that you can safely lock.
• Do you plan to store any items that need to stay dry? If so, make sure to choose a waterproof model.
• Have you measured the dimensions of the space you plan to put your outdoor storage cabinet?

Outdoor Storage Box

Along with outdoor storage benches and cabinets, an outdoor storage box is a simple, very effective storage solution for all of the odds and ends that accumulate as part of our outdoor living and entertaining lifestyle.


Places a storage box can come in handy:

Since they often don't take up much space, you can use one on your front porch for rock salt, outdoor gloves, and small gardening tools; on your patio with chair cushions; near your grill so you can store grilling implements and matches, close to your gardening area with plant seeds, your watering can, and knee cushion to keep your knees comfy when you're weeding.


Great things to put in them:

You can store a multitude of great stuff in one of these handy storage units, including patio furniture cushions and picnic tablecloths, grilling tools and scrub brushes, gardening implements, hoses, bird seed, or ice melt (for those of you who live, like I do, in an area with ice and snow).


Most are made of either:

• Wicker
• Resin Plastic
• Wood
• Teak

You can choose one that is strictly utilitarian, or one that blends in with your outdoor décor.


Features to look for in an storage box:

When you are choosing, there are several considerations to keep in mind.

Some features that can influence your choice might include:

• choosing a box with a lower height that allows the box to double as a bench, which can give you additional seating on your patio or porch.
• selecting a more durable construction if the box will need to endure harsh climate extremes of either very hot or very cold
• a stay-dry design and construction material that will help keep cushions, gardening tools, or other items from getting wet
• and a solid latch to keep out curious squirrels hoping to reach your stash of bird seed

Outdoor storage benches, cabinets, and boxes are simple, highly useful organizing tools that can be functional, practical, as well as pleasing to the eye.

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