Manuals and warranty information can be tricky to store because they are all different shapes and sizes. And you probably have 1,000 of them- one for every single thing in your house! (Don’t you think that companies should have to make them all the same size to make our lives easier?) Today I’m going to give you a great tip for how to organize manuals and warranties.
Ever since moving out on my own {ages ago} I have stored all of my manuals and warranties in a file cabinet. You can probably imagine how “organized” they are, especially after all these years! Pretty much I couldn’t fit one more thing in the file cabinet because I had so many manuals shoved filed in there. I decided I needed a new system- take a look:
Here is what you’ll need:
- 3 3-Ring Binders, labeled with the categories listed below
- Plastic Sheet Protectors
- Sticker & Marker to label your folders
Directions:
- Put your plastic sheet protectors inside your binder.
- Sort your manuals and warranties into piles by category: electronics & toys, appliances and furniture. Now would be a good time to throw out manuals for items you no longer own {I had more than I’d like to admit}.
- Label each binder on the spine so you can easily see the categories
- Placed each manual/warranty into a sheet protector in its proper binder.
Once I was finished I placed the binder on the shelf in our storage closet. Now I have tons of extra room in my file cabinet and the manuals are easy to find when I need them!
Have fun organizing your manuals and warranties!
About the Author: Anna is the creative blogger from Ask Anna. She loves to answer your household questions about cleaning, organizing, decorating and more! Anna was a monthly contributor on Somewhat Simple in 2011- 2012.
This post originally published on Somewhat Simple in February 2012
You can also get some thicker pocket page holders for 3 ring binders for the heavier manuals at office supply stores. Some sets come in pretty clear pastel colors. I use them for all kinds of things in binders. Glad I found your website. I love organizing too. š
Awesome! Thank you, I’ll have to look for those!
Anna
http://www.askannamoseley.com
That’s a great idea. The binder is really cute, too!
CAS
This is a great idea! My filing cabinet looks a lot like yours did. To add to this–I’d suggest another binder for your home, meaning for those items that are a part of your home as opposed to things like vacuums that come and go. The former owners of our home provided us with just such a binder when we bought the house. It included manuals and receipts (or at least dates of installation) for things like the furnace, faucets, windows, cabinetry, counter tops, etc., as well as paint chips for the different paint colors used in the home. That was SO helpful! We have made a lot of changes since then, but I am planning to keep that binder up to date.
Great Idea! I have done this with other “manual”, cookbooks, childrens jounals ect. The only thing I do different is put the receipt in an envelope (for that item) and staple it on the inside of the warrenty. Alsio you might want to make copies of receipts and keep withinsurance documents in case of fires, ect. Love the Info!!!!!!!!!Thanks
I love this idea. Thank you. Mine are only semi-organized. I think I’ll need several binders though. One for computer stuff, one for appliances and tools, one for electronics. Something else for my ever-growing-never-shrinking to so list!
May I add one small addition/suggestion? Tape or staple the receipt inside the manual. I place mine on the warranty page. Then you always know where to find the receipt, should you need it. It is also a good idea (although, I admit, I usually forget to do this) to photocopy your receipt. Sometimes they fade and you can’t read them any more!
I love this! I want to do this today!!! Thanks Anna!
Thanks for this! I’m going to try it!
This is a great idea! I have all my manuals in a basket in a closet – at least they’re all in the same place, but they’re not in any order. Once they become numerous – and you have ones for stuff you don’t even own anymore – something needs to be done! I love this solution. I think the owner’s manual for our TV is as big as your binder though – I think it’s in 25 languages!
That’s how I organize mine, it is so easy to find stuff now! I just wish I had thought to get a cute binder like yours, but you can’t beat free, and we still keep the binder in the filing cabinet. Thanks for sharing!
So inspiring! I might have to do this this weekend!
Great idea! I am going to try that this week.