Tack room organization?

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mydaddysjag

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So, the barn is starting to come together and actually look like something, and Im starting to get excited. I must admit, im most excited to organize my tiny tack room. My barn is just a tiny thing, 12x24. Its divided into three stalls, 8x12, but dividers are going to be removable so that we could have a 16x12 with a 8x12, two 12x12, etc. I have a large A / small B gelding, and no plans on ever breeding, so we went for the 8x12 stalls. Actually, they were going to be 8x10 first, but after we laid it out, I didnt think they were big enough.

I only have one horse right now, but we build the barn so that I had a spare stall because we do plan to get another horse in the future. We were hoping to get something this summer for a buddy for Domingo, but were going to need that stall to store hay. Next year we'll build a hay barn, and then its horse shopping time!

Anyway, what great ideas do you have for organizing a tiny tack/feed room? I have two carts, bags of feed, bags of pelleted bedding, rubbermaids of horse clothes, brushes, etc.

Actually, I have a ton of stuff in the basement, but It sure would be nice if that stuff found its way to the barn.

Pictures would be great!
 
Tack rooms are supposed to be organized?
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Tack rooms are supposed to be organized?
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LOL!!

I store all my grain in totes - really keeps the rodent population down, plus less mess than dealing with split or spilt bags.

I found a lot of little milk crate like containers at the dollar store - they are about 8 x 8 x 8". Keeps things togther and a little more organized - shampoo in one, fly sprays in another etc. seems to work for me.
 
Wish I still had pictures....years ago, a friend - who is always super organized lol - had the best tack room I've seen. She had a partial divider midway across the room which gave her more wall space, one side had saddle racks I think and the other had blanket racks, etc. I intended to use the idea when we built our barn but somehow the tack room became a storage room while we built and it just never happened. Good luck with your barn, always exciting to build a new one!

Jan
 
My tack room is very well organized. It has to be as its a small space (10 X 10) and when I need something I don't want to waste all day to hunt it down.

I have every inch of it well utilized:

I have cabinets mounted on two walls. Got them free from a re-model house we were working on. Each cabinet has a designated use and are organized according to medicines, hoof supplies, clippers and clipper accessories, and you guessed it, one entire cabinet just for scrunchies, ribbons and bows.

The cabinets are not flush to the ceiling so I have a plank type shelf going along the very top of them giving me an extra foot and a half or so. That is for things I don't usually need a lot such as spare buckets and extra feeders, paint etc.

On the other two walls I have utility shelves, the kind where you can adjust the shelves to the height you need them. The shelves are also organized according to stuff:

Bathing supplies, grooming totes, tool box, hardware, spare light bulbs, towels and rags, paper towels, etc. On the bottom two shelves I have Rubbermaid containers: Extra halters, sheets, winter blankets, show halters, fly sheets, coolers and fly masks. All containers are labeled.

In two corners hanging from the ceiling I have those 4 prong hooks that are great for hanging up lead ropes and halters.

Stuff on the floor:

Along one wall under the cabinets I have four garbage cans for feed since I feed a variety of things.

For flooring I have rubber interlocking from Sams Club. They were the only place I could find the large size.

Now here's a hint for you: FREECYCLE! Keep an eye on it or post for cabinets and shelving. Also you can call around to the mobile home lots. Lots of times they have some that were reposed and have to re-do them and might be dumping the cabinets. Also call some contractors that are doing re-models and ask. You'll save them and extra trip to the dump. Offer to take their cabinets off their hands. Also check at Goodwill and places like that.

Hope this helps.

This is when I was getting it organized.

tackroom-1.jpg
 
In my own defense the floor in our collapsed last year due to flooding so we do not put a lot in it anymore. We do keep feed in plastic barrels in there and some brushes.

I wish I could install a bunch of cabinets in there to store stuff with no dust and spiders
 
I have an old refrigerator in my little barn. It was my parent's first one, so not only a collector's item and conversation piece but handy for keeping some medicenes and grooming stuff in. I don't want to get rid of it, and this is as good a place as any to store it! (Someday I'd like to have it restored.)

Lots of pegs on the walls for hanging harness bags and halters. Tubs for grain and metal trash cans also. I have a metal water tank just the size of a bale of hay. I keep the open bale in it to feed out of and that helps with mess. (If I didnt' have room, it would be the first thing to go however. But you could try that in the stall where you are storing hay.)

Shelving of some sort is a must.

A hazard of any space is the tempation to use it for storing other stuff. This non-horse stuff will get in your way so try to resist in the first place.
 
Im a member of the small tack/feed room club too 12x15..I actually thought it was huge until i started putting the horsey stuff in it...geeze what happened to all my space :arg! I have lots of shelves and 2 cabinets too. but by the time I got a few bags of shavings and a few hay bales its fills up fast. I have lots of blankets, sheets slinkys that are in labeled plastic totes and they seemed to take up the most room ( 2 per horse plus a couple odd ones ) so I put a wide shelf in each stall..high enough so your not hitting it w/the pitchfork. Most people have a least 1 high wall, maybe the back wall. each horse has its own tote and Im able to fit their extra things up there too..maybe a brush,pick,anything that might come in handy. For me
 
oopps ..pressed the wrong button. For me w/dogs its a pain to keep going in and out and locking door behind me each time so I like having lots of things right in the stall with me.If any one has seen Peanuts new foaling barn on MS you will see I have an opening from the stall into the tack room we have a cabinet that still needs to be put in there but will eventually have doors on both sides with just foaling stuff...blankets and the like. Although diane wants to put her t.v. in there.
 
Other than our harness and saddle racks (photos on our website), we have a six or so foot tall plastic cabinet for bottles and brushes. I like cabinets over open shelves because everything stays out of the dust less, and can be closed to look less cluttered.
 
My tack/feed area is a small (12x16) building my hubby moved in for me and I lined and painted the interior and added shelving. Its an old sheep shack (originally, then it was a grainery, then a storage shed) with rounded roof. It had 3 areas, but I removed one wall, so I now have an area about 10x12 for feed, and one about 5x12 for tack. Its much more full now, these pics were taken right after I finished it.

Here is a veiw in the door to my feed/tack shed (the doorway to the right is into my tack area:

mini shed - view in the door.jpg

Here's the feed area:

mini shed - feed area.jpg

And, into the tack doorway (sorry it doesn't show much):

mini shed - tack area door.jpg
 
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