Storage Solutions

[jowens]

HI Everyone,
Just wondering what kind of solutions everyone has come up with for storing frequently used items... mic cables, lamps, expendables, clamps, etc... what does your space look like, have you built a rack with a design that works well? Looking for ideas for a high school where one place will have to serve as lights and sound storage.


Thanks in advance
~Joe

[jerekb]

At my school we keep lights in the back of the cats hanging on extra pipe space, A room with 2 cabinets containing miscelaneous stuff and pegs that we maid containing all our cable, there fairly high up there is a table below and we built a step to reach all the pegs. Beneath the table we keep our scrollers and portable audio equipment. For gels we have a large tables with a bunch of little squares in which we keep the gel tubes. I can post pictures later if interested?

[loki]

At our school to keep the audio stuff we have a draw in the top of the Amp Rack (Sitting next to the stage) and two Silver cases for the rest of the small stuff. Big stuff all lives on its own or in a road case

If interested i can post pics.

[cgimusic]

We are completely unorganized at my school. Everything just goes in to a locked filing cabinet.

[scottmcleod]

Everything was completely disorganized when I arrived.

Since then, I've organized, ran a complete season of shows, and now it's in a semi-organized state.

(mostly because I'm the only tech here, and sometimes it's hard to find time to clean to an "impeccable" clean, beyond the basics tidying...)

In the booth:
- Pegboard (x2) one for audio/dmx/video cables (long pegboard hooks), the other uses small pine shelves resting on the longer pegboard hooks. Things like gel-frames are stored on shorter hooks. Tape rings (safety chain through multiple rolls of tape) are stored on short hooks, as well as c-wrenches, tapes, etc...
- Pegboard (x2) (SR stairs up to the catwalk) - These pegboards store things like tools, drills, more gel-frames, etc... The rear-most store heavy U/G cable, SOCA cable, etc...

The pegboards were constructed by butterfly-bolting 1x3's vertically to the wall (3 per board), and then just screwing the peg-board to the 1x3's. Works beautifully.

For audio adapters, I use small plastic cases that I get at the dollar store (which happen to sit nicely on peg board hooks ;-) )

For cable management, I get the DURAMAX 6pk of captive velcro straps at the dollar store. Yep. 6pk for 1$. Can't beat it! (Dollarama carries DURAMAX in Canada) I've probably bought 30-40 packs of those straps...

Any other Q's?

[gafftaper]

Pegboard in the booth is awesome.

On stage you need a locking cabinet for mic cables, tape, a few microphones, clear com, batteries... a little bit of everything. For security reasons it's probably not best to store it all in there, just what you need for a basic show. Keep the rest of your expensive stuff in the most secure place you can find.

Milk crates for coiled mic cable.

Here's my crazy one. Gun cases are great for microphones if you have to carry them around a lot. You can get cheap pistol cases for under $10. they will nicely protect 3 or 4 microphones.

Also in general small clear plastic tubs are great for storing all kinds of stuff. I don't have to move my microphones around much so they are all in their original storage bag with their mic stand clip. All organized and labeled in clear plastic containers.

Get a small nut and bolt sort of organizer from the hardware store for you adapters.

Do not underestimate how important a velcro strap on every cable is. You save hours of time over a year if your cables never get coiled.

[lieperjp]

For us we have large wooden pegs for large cables such as extension cords, long speaker cables, and snakes. Pegboard for shorter cables. We only have a few of the adapters that we do have, and they are split between three small tackle boxes (one in the booth, one in storage, and one for transport if we have to do something in another building.) All our mics are in their original storage bags with clip, and numbered. These are split between three large rolling suitcases - one for SM57s, 58s, and the like; one for wireless mics; and one for recording mics. Everything else has its own spot on a shelf (though it's rare to see anything in the right spot!)


I finally spent a week sorting the gels from the last 30 years, that was fun to compare each gel to the swatchbook. Have them split between three file boxes - a large one for the stage lights, an even larger milk-crate style file box for the scoop gels and a smaller box for the footlights. The large drawer filing cabinets (like you would see for large art paper or for flat blueprint or poster storage) make great uncut gel sheet storage. Easy to build, even easier to buy at your local office supply store (though expensive.)

[scottmcleod]

Originally Posted by gafftaper

Pegboard in the booth is awesome.

Milk crates for coiled mic cable.

Here's my crazy one. Gun cases are great for microphones if you have to carry them around a lot. You can get cheap pistol cases for under $10. they will nicely protect 3 or 4 microphones.

Not crazy at all. I've got 2 cases at home for my mics ;-)

Milk crates = <3

You need to reinforce them with a short piece of 2x4 though if you're going to stack them (8 high like I do... with heavy things like barn doors and portable dimmer packs). They're screwed to eachother, and screwed to the wall.

My solution for the stage was to leave 1 mic stand, 1 cheap wireless mic, receiver, cheap behringer mixer & RCA to 1/8" cable, and tie the whole thing into the amps upstairs...

Keeps people out of my booth for simple auditorium use.

[ship]

Just had a call from someone that no longer works for our company today in asking about specifically Simese CamLoc twofer code compliance, but in general how to deal with a place he would seek to improve but finds those as it were often and in many ways not ready for it.

Best advice I gave him was twofold. First and in part was it took over nine years for me to develop my department and ability to do what I do both equipment wise and questions not asked wise. Second and part "B" of that is a sort of patience but if proper do so anyway type of thing - "No guts, no glory." For the immediate stuff do it and if you have to support the more important types of stuff you change - this after learning the system - really learning the system without making waves, often if in position and it won't break the budget just do it. Those changes often later will prove themselves and if minor wont' be questioned much.

Second set yourself up for the long term changes and plans. Cite initial problems with major modifications perhaps even yearly in making it known and with time as other stuff is also cited to not work out so well go to the plans you have. Granted what you plan had at best be really planned out and reasoned or even if cheaper or more expensive, short of it working well as a plan it's a still born plan.

Long term... that's the concept mostly. Do you have a five year plan for where you work and associate in having ability to change things or more ***** and moan about the short term stuff and ability? A goal to work towards will always if even in part be much easier to achieve than that of an immediate need. Scale down immediate needs for what can be achieved and goals for what than can be strived towards and you might have something there especially once thru hard work your trust becomes sufficient that your changes to the system get weight behind.

Frequently used items... many ways to do such things including after show inventory based on easy to get at easy storage or locked up storage for important stuff that also implies a certain inventory. Manage the gear and where it's put don't matter as much especially if open access.

This said, just went to my anvil today and attempted to hammer down a front of a light but found my mini-sledge hammer missing. Someone on a tour borrowed it one day and as I'm told, he gave it to someone that gave it to someone who in the end didn't ensure I was able to use my personal minie sledge today when I needed it a week later. Went into my personal tool box for a 16oz Eastwing hammer and found it also missing in not knowing who "borrowed it" but didn't find the necessity to make sure in being personally responsible for it ensure it got back to me.

Ah' the missing gear and in this case the stuff I paid for and not as if the shop didn't own their own tools and they do to get lost as it were by irresponsible people. Personal gear/shop gear, in the end don't matter, the shop just bought me both hammers to replace my own tools so I can function in having my own tools for the company needs.

Anyway, missing gear, properly organized gear, properly marked gear don't matter it depends on thos storing it. My personal tools... I lock up my tool box on the weekend and am frequently the last to leave for the day yet it still doesn't stop my tools from winding up a week later as with some metal shears yesterday a week or month later found in someone else's tool drawer that I have been looking for but she didn't even know was there.... Tool in my tool chest of them I know what is mine and not... somehow in only one drawer she didn't note an extra odd shaped tool over a week later ... I understand.

Still though that's a concept of skipping going out to lunch and bringing it in saving and buying one's own tools at some point over even the extent of "my tools are still on a semi-, can you loan me a ratchet and socket so I can function in the shop now that I'm off the show?" Gee, I own at least seven ratchets personally setemming back to when I did shows in having at least two socket sets and another for the home, but I understand in that need to go out to lunch every day in wasting money verses if you need a second set of tools, perhaps saving up for them.

And thats' all way seperate in supervison of the gear you are charged with in making sure what your shop owns remains with your shop and gets back to where it belongs after use. Over the past couple of months more than one road box full of extra feeder cable has been found empty of the 4/0 type SC near an exit door at McCormic Place that needed for immediate needs be need to be immediately replaced for the next show needing it. Such an overall copper price actual theft above and beyond some laborer on stage seeing a cable to be told to pick up, throw it into the nearest box to go out the door he or she sees without attempting to send that cable to its proper owner. This much less even as a very highly paid "professional" in the industry, perhaps de-loom it from others short of as a professoinal - "got a problem with my abilities" nicking down to the conductor while de-looming it from other cables. No, gee, sir! you make much more an hour than I do and have many years more experience in destroying cable than I do.. Hard for me to say anything to you about your lack of ability in doing so..

Anyway, if you manage properly you can either A store stuff anywhere that's efficient or not efficient. You know you got 10 or 100x of X amount of cables, either the computer or you track them. Missing one, you search about and search more than contact the last user as soon as you know you are missing one in charging for or having them find your missing cable.

If you immedately seek to find a problem in storage by way of what is missing, you don't really have a problem in that way of supervision. On the other hand if efficiently stored, from drum for storage, to rigging cabinet to piles in a certain location, more a management question of it in making it efficient than that of a place for it question.

[jeffmoss26]

We have a large plywood panel with hooks in our tech room that we use for storing most of the cables. Small adapters and stuff go in drawers in our work table.