If you live in an apartment or unit, your car space is probably doing double duty. It is where the car goes, sure, but it is also where the bikes, the camping gear, the suitcases, the surfboard, and the boxes you have not opened since you moved in all end up. There is no shed, no spare room, and no garage workshop to absorb the overflow, so the car bay becomes the default dumping ground.
The good news is that a standard apartment car space holds far more than most people realise, once you stop stacking things on the floor and start using the walls and the ceiling. You do not need a renovation, a builder, or body corporate drama to do it. With a few mesh panels, a cage, and an overhead rack, you can turn an awkward, cluttered bay into organised, secure storage in an afternoon.
Here is how to get the most out of the space you already have.
Your car space is bigger than you think
Before you buy anything, it helps to know what you are working with. A standard Australian apartment car space is roughly 2.4 metres wide by 5 metres long, with ceiling heights commonly between 2.1 and 2.7 metres in basement and ground-floor car parks. Stacker and tandem bays vary, so measure yours before you plan.
That footprint is more generous than it looks. A 2 metre high mesh cage running along one wall can hold the equivalent of a small garden shed worth of storage, all while leaving room to park. The trick is to think in three dimensions: floor, walls, and ceiling.
A quick word on strata and body corporate approval
This is the question that stops most apartment owners before they start, so let us deal with it early.
In general, freestanding mesh cages and non-permanent partitions are treated as your personal property rather than an alteration to the building, because they do not attach to or modify any structural element. Storage that simply stands in your own allocated bay, with nothing drilled into shared walls or the building structure, usually falls outside the things a body corporate needs to approve.
That said, rules differ between buildings and between states, and some schemes have specific by-laws about what can go in car parks, including fire-safety clearances and height limits. The safe move is to have a quick look at your by-laws or send your strata manager a one-line email before you install anything permanent. A freestanding setup that needs no drilling is almost always the path of least resistance.
This is general information rather than legal advice, so always confirm with your owners corporation or body corporate if you are unsure.
Our freestanding storage cages require no drilling and are easy to remove. Check with your strata, then get in touch with our team if you have any questions.
Step one: start with a zone plan
The fastest way to make a small space feel bigger is to give everything a home. Before you buy a single panel, sketch your bay and divide it into zones based on what you actually store:
- Sporting and outdoor gear: bikes, surfboards, golf clubs, camping equipment.
- Seasonal and rarely used: Christmas decorations, luggage, winter doonas.
- Tools and DIY: drills, hand tools, paint, garden bits.
- Valuables: anything you want locked away.
Once you know what goes where, the right products almost choose themselves. Heavy and rarely used items go up high on a ceiling rack. Valuables go behind a lockable cage. Frequently grabbed gear lives on a wall panel at arm height.
You can map the whole thing in a couple of minutes with the free Mesh Storage layout calculator. Enter your bay dimensions and it tells you how many panels, posts, and gates you need, plus an instant cost estimate.
Turn your car space into a proper storage zone. Use our free layout calculator to plan it out, then shop mesh panels and cages for apartment garages.
Common layout options
Most apartment car spaces suit one of three setups. Pick the one that matches how much you need to store and how much room you can give up.
- The single-wall partition. A run of mesh panels along one side wall, with a gate for access. This is the lightest-touch option and ideal if you want storage on one side while keeping the rest of the bay clear for the car.
- The L-shaped corner cage. Uses two existing walls and adds two runs of panels to enclose a corner. You get a fully secure space using minimal materials, which keeps the cost down. This is one of the most popular setups for apartments because it makes use of structure you already have.
- The full enclosure cage. A four-walled storage cage that stands on its own anywhere in the bay. Best when you want a complete, lockable room for bikes and valuables and have the floor space to spare. Compact cages start at around 1.3 square metres (1140 x 1140 x 2040mm), which tucks neatly into a corner.
Make the most of vertical space
This is where apartment storage is won or lost. Floor space is limited and shared with your car, but the walls and ceiling are almost always wasted. Here is how to use every metre of height.
Hang gear on wall-mounted mesh panels. A welded wire mesh panel stands 2 metres tall and gives you a full wall of vertical storage. Add hooks, bins, and shelf brackets to the mesh and you can hang bikes, tools, hoses, and helmets off the floor and out of the way. Because the panels are an open grid, you can rearrange the hooks any time your needs change.
Store bulky, rarely used items overhead. The space above your car bonnet and along the ceiling is prime real estate for things you only reach for a few times a year. A SPACIA overhead garage storage rack mounts to the ceiling, holds up to 360kg, and has adjustable hanging height so you can clear the car below. Camping gear, luggage, and seasonal boxes belong up here.
Build upward, not outward. Whatever you store, the rule is the same: go vertical first. A 2 metre high cage or panel run uses the same floor footprint as a waist-high shelf but holds two to three times as much.
Secure your valuables with a lockable cage
An open car bay offers zero security. Bikes, tools, and sporting equipment sitting in a shared basement are an easy target, and an opportunist only needs a few seconds.
A lockable mesh storage cage solves this without boxing your gear into a dark, sealed locker. The open mesh means you can see everything at a glance and air can circulate, which prevents the musty, damp smell that closed lockers trap. At the same time, the rigid welded panels and a lockable gate are far harder to force than a flimsy locker door. Visibility itself is a deterrent: a would-be thief can see there is a lock and a solid steel barrier, and moves on.
Protect your gear with a lockable mesh storage cage, built tough for Australian conditions. Browse the range.
Not sure where to start?
If the whole space feels overwhelming, let what you own decide what you buy:
- Got bikes? You want vertical hooks on a wall panel, or a cage you can lock them inside.
- Got boxes and luggage? An overhead ceiling rack is your best bet for the bulky, rarely touched stuff.
- Got tools and gear you use often? A mesh panel wall system with hooks and bins keeps everything visible and within reach.
- Got valuables? A lockable cage gives you a secure, see-through room.
Most people end up combining two or three of these, and the modular system means you can start small and add to it later.
Use our free layout calculator to plan your perfect apartment garage setup in a couple of minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need body corporate approval to install storage in my car space? Freestanding cages and non-permanent partitions are generally considered your personal property and usually do not require approval, because they do not attach to the building structure. By-laws vary between buildings and states, and some have car-park clearance or height rules, so confirm with your strata manager before installing. This is general guidance, not legal advice.
Will a cage fit in a standard apartment car space? Yes. A standard bay is around 2.4m wide by 5m long. Compact cages start near 1.3 square metres and fit into a corner while still leaving room to park.
Can I install without drilling into the floor or walls? Yes. A freestanding configuration stands on its own with nothing drilled into the structure, which is ideal for renters and for keeping body corporate approval simple.
Can I take it with me if I move? Yes. The modular system disassembles and reinstalls, so your storage moves with you to your next apartment or garage.
How much can I actually store in one? A 2 metre high cage or panel run along one wall can hold roughly a garden shed's worth of gear, using floor space you are not parking on anyway.
Ready to reclaim your car space?
You do not need more square metres, just a smarter way to use the ones you have. Plan your zones, go vertical, lock up what matters, and your bay can do far more than hold the car.
- Plan your setup with the free Cost Calculator
- Shop storage cages
- Shop mesh partition panels
- Shop garage and overhead storage
- See the Apartment & Garage solutions page
Turn your car space into a proper storage zone. Plan it with our calculator, then order everything you need in one place at Mesh Storage.
