How to Organize Under Kitchen Sink: Simple Steps for a Tidy Space
Struggling with how to organize under kitchen sink chaos? You’re not alone! It can feel like a daunting task, especially with limited space and awkward pipes in the way. But with a few tips and tricks, you can upgrade your space to a functional and tidy area that works for you.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the exact steps I took to maximize the space under my sink, and share how I transformed my under sink storage from cluttered mess to streamlined and space-maximizing systems!
This post is about how to organize under kitchen sink.
How to Organize Under Kitchen Sink
One of the projects I wanted to tackle before the end of the year was my under kitchen sink organization. It’s one of those spaces that gets accessed frequently, and cluttered quickly! The storage space under my kitchen sink isn’t ideal – it has tons of pipes in the way – so I knew I wanted to make the most of the space I have.
1. Clear Out Under the Kitchen Sink
The first step to this kitchen storage & organization project is to start with a clean slate! Remove everything you currently have stored under the kitchen sink, so you can assess the whole space and take measurements.
Once I removed everything, here’s what I was working with:
2. Fix Peeling Particle Board
Since we moved into our home 2 years ago, it’s bothered me that the particle board under the kitchen sink is peeling. I’m not sure why or how that happened – but decided now was a good time to fix it!
My husband cut off all the peeling sections of the particle board, filled it with Bondo Wood Filler, and then let it dry. Once it was dry, he sanded the surface to make it smooth, and then added edge banding for a seamless, brand-new look!
This simple repair made such a huge difference, now it looks brand new! Of course, you can skip this step if this doesn’t apply in your case. Or, if you don’t want to tackle a DIY, you can cover it with something like this protective silicone mat instead.
3. Organization Strategy: Maximize Space & Find Systems
When looking for under kitchen sink organizing ideas, I knew I needed to take advantage of the available depth and height of the cabinet space. Pull-out sliders are an amazing and easy way to maximize depth, and tiered or stackable organizers are a great way to maximize height! Here’s what I used to organize each item:
Cleaning Products
I used a 2-Tier Acrylic Sliding Organizer to organize the cleaning products (on the left side of the cabinet). I love that it’s 2-tier, which allows tons of storage space, taking advantage of both depth and height!
The tray easily slides out to access products at the back of the cabinet, and the partitions conveniently separate all the products. Plus, it’s a 2-pack bundle so you can either use both under your kitchen sink (if you have space), or use the second one in a different storage space!
Garbage and Recycling System
This may be unique to the city I live in, but in Vancouver we have a super complex sorting system. I needed bins for garbage, recycling, as well as 2 different kinds of plastics – plus compost! I also have a pretty small kitchen, and didn’t want a trash can taking up any space on the floor. So, I wanted to find a compact system that could fit under the sink.
The best garbage storage solution I found was this pull-out organization system from Ikea. Similar to the sliding organizer for the cleaning products, the pull-out system is super convenient for cabinets with lots of depth. I opted for the smaller bins (5 gallons), but there’s tons of different configurations with larger bins if you have more space.
If I had room for 2 pull-out systems I would have installed both, but unfortunately the pipes didn’t allow for that. So, I installed one pull-out system with 2 bins, and then had the other 2 bins sit on top of a stackable organizer (more on that in the next section!).
For compost, currently we use leak-resistant compost bags, but there’s tons of other options out there like a compost bin that can mount to cabinet doors.
Clear Bin for Dishwasher Pods
My cabinet under the kitchen sink is right next to the dishwasher, so it makes sense to store dishwasher pods in this cabinet. I happened to have a leftover acrylic bin from my pantry, so I used it to store the pods.
In the future, I may change it to stackable pull-out drawers like these, to take advantage of the height, but for now using what I had made sense.
Stackable Organizer for Cleaning Rags & Garbage Bags
The last thing I wanted to organize was my cleaning rags and garbage bags! These are both items that I use frequently, so having easy access was important. I opted for a stackable organizer with pull-out drawers to allow for bins to be stored on top, while adding a drawer for easy access to the cleaning rags and garbage bags.
The exact product I used isn’t available on Amazon any more, but this stackable pull-out drawer is super similar! Plus, it has 1-tier or 2-tier options, so you can choose the one that works best for your space.
Other Organization Ideas
Here’s a few other ideas for under sink organization that may be useful in your space:
- Under sink door organizer – this has an adhesive backing, so it’s super easy to stick onto a cabinet door
- Cleaning caddy – if you want your cleaning supplies to be portable, store them with this under sink cleaning caddy!
- Expandable cabinet organizer – most under sink cabinets don’t have pull-out drawers, this is a great option to add pull-out storage without having to custom order drawers!
4. Finishing Touches: Cover Caps
The last “finishing touch” I added to the under-sink space was cover caps (I used these ones from Ikea). Personally, I think covering the unused holes gives the cabinet a more finished and “clean” look. Plus, it’s super inexpensive and easy to do. I got 100 cover caps for only $3.99!
Here’s what it looks like under the sink now – so much better! hope this inspires you to organize under your kitchen sink.
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