Organized Storage in Cupboards: A Cheap and Easy Solution for Your Home or RV

The unused space on backs of wooden cupboard doors can easily be used to store small items.

Besides freeing up space inside of cupboards, it makes things like first aid supplies, and pot lids visible and easily accessible.

Using inexpensive picture hanging hardware -- eye screws and tough flexible wire -- you can keep several small items ready for instant use.

It makes sense to keep home medical supplies on the back of a cabinet door.

You won't have to go searching through the soap, toothpaste, shampoo and makeup when you are really wanting to kill the sting of an insect bite, or cover a minor cut with antiseptic and a band aid. Your first aid book can also be tucked in with your supplies, just to make sure you know where to find it when it is needed.

The supplies you need for this easy storage solution are inexpensive, probably costing less than five US dollars.

1. A packet of eye screws, which has a closed loop on the top rather than a screw head. They come in different sizes. Pick the ones that are best for your particular need.

For the first aid supplies, 17/33" or 1,3 cm eye screws were used. The ones for the pot lid hanger were a little larger.

The length of the screw will also depend upon how thick the wood is on your door. Make sure you don't get ones that will poke all the way thorough to the other side.

2. A roll of picture hanging wire. The wire is often a strand that has ten or twelve metal "threads" twisted into a strong, thin, flexible rope which is easy to bend and twist together at the connection ends.

You can even get both of these items together in a combo picture hanging kit, but it might have only two or four eye screws. If you are thinking thinking of stringing six or seven lines, it might be more economical to buy the items separately

A pair of needle nose pliers with a built in wire clipper is helpful for screwing in the eye screws and cutting the wire.

A knife with a sharp point-- or an awl or icepick. This is a good tool to start a small hole in the wood for the location and the entry port for the eye screw.

Usually you can hand turn the screw for a couple of rotations, then finish seating it by using the pliers to hold and turn it until only the eye shows and it is oriented either vertically or horizontally.

What else can you store like this?

Instead of medical items, some people may want to put their everyday ritual products for hair care or dental hygiene where they can be easily found while still in a drowsy morning state. Open the cabinet and it's all in plain view.

Keep in mind that lightweight items an inch or less in depth work best for storing with the eye screw and wire idea. Small, lightweight plastic tubes that are tapered are ideal for this system. These are also the items that are easy to lose in a well-filled cupboard, and often they are not self-standing.

Glass bottles, jars , small appliances, and other heavy or breakable items probably need to be stored elsewhere. The lighter and more easily lost items, are best secured in this system.

Depending upon what you want to keep in the inside of your cupboard door, the width and thickness of your wood, and other variables, you may want to use larger eye screws and heavier wire.

Before you decide on the placement of the hardware, you need to determine that the screws and the items being held will not interfere with the sides of the cupboard, the shelves inside or the contents of the inside space. Use your powers of visualization and do some measuring, or even make a pattern if you are unsure of how things will fit. Another good thing about this system is it is easy to alter if mistakes are made.

For hanging pot lids, especially on a larger door, you may want to use larger eye screws.

You will also need to leave your wire a little slacker to allow for the size of the lids.

Again, you will need to determine the level of the wire, so the lids will fit without interfering with any shelves or hardware. Try them for fit before you secure the wire to the outside fastener.

Having your most used lids on the inside door near the stove is very convenient and much easier than having to search through pots and pans stacked inside the cupboard.

You will probably think of other ways to use this simple hanger. It could even be a way to hang ties, scarves or other small items on the back of a bedroom door.

Yes you can buy special racks and hangers for the back of your doors, but I have found that they are more expensive, harder to install and never quite fit the things you want to put in them. Some might be appropriate for heavy or bulky items. These ideas can take care of a lot of small stuff.

Even without the wire system, cupboard door backs can become a handy place to post calendars, phone lists, often used recipes, instruction sheets and other useful information.

Get rid of clutter by using those hidden places to organize the things you want to find easily.