"What's your storage method? "

Fortunately I have a pantry.
Soups on one shelf, veggies on another, etc.

Big behind small and I use a cabinet shelf to take advantage of height that also raises items so I can see them in the rows.

We remodeled our U-shaped kitchen 5 years ago and with no room for a pantry, I included upper and lower lazy susans in the corners. One is exclusively for canned goods. Just a few months ago I had a brainstorm and reorganized each canned goods shelf, grouping cans in categories alphabetically. Not in an OCD way (I hope!) but general categories. Then brought out my label maker. I made 3 or 4 labels per shelf. For example, top shelf is Condiments/Snacks/Syrups. Second shelf is Fish/Preserves/Soups. Bottom shelf is Beans/Ethnic/Mixes/Tomatoes. I generally remembered which shelf items are on but didn't remember exactly where. Seeing the labels when I open the cabinet, I even know which way to turn the shelf. Now I never have a problem finding things. DH âÂÂhelpsâ me unload groceries and I used to be at a loss over where some things landed. Now even he follows these labels. I read on this board that labeling is important not just for ourselves, but for everyone else in the home. How true!

This is not a cheap way to go, but in a tall cabinet that had no shelves, I used a narrow-ish Elfa shelving system with the cans on their sides in shallow drawers.

Another system I have used in not as tall a cabinet, is that I found one of those step-up plastic shelving organizers, such as used for spices, but had broader shelves, can-size, and I put one on each side of a cabinet, not in the back, and had a line of other cans down the middle between.

Both of these methods work better for items for which I have multiples, like soups, certain canned veggies (green beans and different canned beans) or fruits, because you can see the one "in front" and know mostly what's behind and not really hunting too much, though you could line things up any way needed.

I think canned goods should be kept in a kitchen cabinet. There the temperature is good that will prolong the shelf life of the canned goods.

Here is a link that might be useful: San Diego Locksmitth

Welcome Lockspam...I mean Locksmith.

Love you mustangs! You calls 'em as you sees 'em!

pammyfay, I'll second rjvt's method. This way, the "drawers" come out to you where you can reach the contents easily and can see the items in better light. Beats trying to navigate the dark reaches of the back of the cabinet. Some people set items on their sides in the "drawers". Also, since I live in a small house, I like that I can add extra shelves or use the wire shelves, resulting in "no wasted headspace" (got that from talley_sue). And since my 'fridge doesn't have sliding shelves, I use this method there as well. I use 11.5" deep ones in the upper cabinets, and 17.5" deep ones in the fridge. They're available in different sizes and colors(and cheaper than the clear ones). Hope this helps!

Here is a link that might be useful: the pull out bins I use

I'm a bin organizer too as you can see from this picture of the pantry! I have used that same online source that Animalnut mentioned to get bins. I love bins and have even used ice cube bins from the freezer that I have gotten from thrift stores for $1.

My home was built in the 1950's. Altho it is small, they planned lots of storage. I have both a food closet "pantry' and a cedar closet in my basement.

If I had the space (and the money!) I wouldn't mind one of these:

Here is a link that might be useful: Shelf Reliance Rotating Pantry system

In my fantasies, I have a set of shallow and closely spaced roll-out shelves w/ canned goods lying on their sides.

Like Frankie's idea.

My problem with under counter storage is that it is too deep to effectively use the space if you have smaller items such as cans. I had the deep shelf problem in my last house. I got around it by moving my canned goods to a closet area with shallow shelves. I then used the deeper shelves for the things that take up more space like the the toaster oven and dehydrator.

My cousin bought the Cosenza Side Table from fashion4home.com for me as a birthday present and I didn't have anywhere to put it, so it ended up staying in the kitchen. It ended up being a really great place to store canned goods and other random things I didn't know where to put :)

Here is a link that might be useful: fashion4home

That reminds me--for many years, I stored the canned goods in the buffet.

Adellabedella: that "deep base cabinet" problem is why I want to install slide-out drawers, to lay the canned goods on their sides. So that I can pull it out to get to the stuff way in the back.

After shuffling my canned goods all over the kitchen (and finding some of the same cans with every reorganization, suggesting it wasn't working, exactly!), I finally put them on a small open shelf unit (a spindle shelf, open from all sides) in the kitchen. They're semi-organized, though the rows get mixed if I have more of one thing, less of another, than I expected, or have a can or jar of something not in the system.

This way they are easy to see (so I am automatically aware of what I'm running low on) and easy to stock from the shopping bag and grab when I need them. And when the can of... peaches or mandarin oranges that I've had for several years is always in my face, it's more likely I'll think to use it when someone wants a snack.

I'm quite conscious of the fact that the shelves look a bit like a grocery store, but you know what, grocery stores work, and I spend a lot of my time in them so I'm quite comfortable with the look in my home! Plus, it's an old house and the kitchen looks a bit atypical anyway.

KarinL

Success! A combination of the small white wire riser shelf, which I already had, in the back, the plastic 3-level risers on the side and a double lazy Susan (yippee! it fit!), plus there's remaining space in the front to stack tuna cans.

Now I just have to weed through the bin of extra spices that I'd kept there and find a better place for those. For now, they're on a shelf in a small Ikea storage buffet in the kitchen.

This was a good reorganization task, because it also made me look at all the cans' expiration dates. About 5 cans had to be tossed.

Many years ago I was skimming thorugh Family Handyman magazine. I found simple plans for a pantry that goes behind a door. Here's where I keep extra canned goods.

Dian57, I have always lusted after that skinny shelf. Thanks for bringing it up again.