Unconventional File Cabinet Uses

A lot of people find themselves with multiple file cabinets when a business closes shop or a marriage brings two people and their furniture together. No matter how you find yourself owning two file cabinets or even one file cabinet with no obvious use for it there are a few creative ideas to put that file cabinet to good use.

If you have a 3 or 4 drawer vertical file cabinet with little or no use for some of the drawers you can make unconventional use for the upper drawers to store miscellaneous items from around the house. If you take the hanging file cabinet rails out of the upper drawers then the space is essentially the same as a chest of drawers. If you are low on space in your closets or drawers you can easily stack folded clothes from out of season, extra sheets or towels, or even store replacement home goods like paper towels or plates as these are often purchased in bulk and stored at home until use.

Another unconventional use for a file cabinet is to use it as a storage unit for office products. Rather than filing up your extra drawers with hanging file folders and paperwork which you might not necessarily have to hold onto use the extra cabinet or drawers to store all the miscellaneous items found in an office that aren’t in use.

Place your paper cutter and other larger pieces of office equipment in the drawer for storage. Store replacement printer cartridges, and office products like printer paper, notebooks, writing implements, etc. in the cabinet until you need them. Doing this will keep your desk storage areas free from the clutter that doesn’t get used but once in a blue moon.

You can also use a file cabinet near the kitchen or pantry as a way of keeping track of your recipes and pantry inventory. A short 2 or 3 drawer file cabinet may be of particular good use too because the flat surface can give you added working space much like a pantry counter top. And like the office storage this may be a good additional way to store pantry items especially in houses with a small or non-existent pantry.