How to Organize Your Truck and Clear Out Your Cab

We love pickup trucks. They’re the ultimate go-anywhere, haul-anything vehicles — ready to take you from the worksite, to the campsite, to the kids’ soccer practice, with room to spare.

But there’s one problem: That big, beautiful truck bed, with all its cargo space, has no protection from weather or thieves.

So what do you do?

If you’re like most truck owners, you start stacking up tools and gear in the back seat, or shuffling it in and out the cab every time you go into a store. Next thing you know, your back seat starts looking like grampa’s wood shop.

Lucky for us, there’s a solution to the back seat junk show.

Take a seat on the tailgate, and let’s get into it.

BEST OPTIONS FOR TRUCK BED STORAGE.

Like grampa always said, “don’t start cleaning ‘til you find a trash can.”

In this case, the trash can is a metaphorical place to put all the tools and gear piled up in your back seat. Or a literal trash can, if you have trash back there.

After all, there’s a reason you have all that stuff back there (and it’s not just because you’re lazy). And we guarantee that if you don’t come up with a home for it in your truck, it will return to your back seat.

So you need a dedicated place to store your tools. One that’s out of the cab, but still secure and waterproof.

And the good news is you have options.

The classics are truck bed caps and tonneau covers. But then you have a new problem: all your stuff is floating around inside the black hole of your truck bed (even if it is now shielded from the rain).

Plus, it’s just not nearly as easy to throw large items in the bed if you need to — say — move grampa’s collection of broken-down woodworking tools.

BEST BET: GET DECKED

OK, obviously we’re biased. But this is why we invented the DECKED Drawer System: to solve the back seat junk show AND organize your gear in a more functional way.

Function is key, because a functional system will allow you to keep using your gear without turning your truck back into a mess right away.

DECKED Drawers make it much easier to find and retrieve your gear (no crawling required). And you can still pile or strap large items on top without getting in the way of your Drawers.

Overall, we feel the Drawer System strikes the perfect balance between secure, weatherproof storage below — and open, usable cargo space above. Plus, the system is fully compatible with truck bed caps, tonneau covers, and all manner of folding and pop-up campers. So you really can build the perfect camping or work setup for your needs.

HOW TO BUILD YOUR ORGANIZATION SYSTEM.

Now that you’ve decided on the perfect organizer (cough, couch, DECKED), it’s time to do the actual organizing.

STEP 1: ASSESS YOUR MESS

Take stock of your back seat and make a list of the items you’re frequently riding in your back seat. This will help you map out a plan of what you want to keep in your truck and where to put it.

STEP 2: PICK OUT YOUR PACKOUT

List out the items you always need in your truck, then the items you sometimes need, and then the items you like to load up on the weekends for activities or camping. Or during the work week for big jobs, if you’re in the trades.

Lay it all out in front of you, so you can map out an appropriate system.

STEP 3: BUILD YOUR STORAGE SYSTEM

There are many paths to the top of this metaphorical mountain. But in general, you’ll want to figure out a system that can easily carry all of your regular tools and gear in a way that’s both organized and accessible. Then make sure the system is prepared for bigger jobs, too. As a rule, build out your system for your storage needs now, and add a fair amount of storage for the future. We don’t want to go right back to the back seat junkshow, do we?

Need inspiration? Check out our Badass Builds page.

STORAGE SYSTEMS FOR WORK TRUCKS.

If you use your truck for work, you’ll have different needs than the weekend warrior. Here are some specific tips for people in the trades.

• For maximum space efficiency, we recommend DECKED D-co Cases for your tools. They fit perfectly in DECKED Drawers, and stack up on their own in your shop or garage. Note that not all tool boxes or packouts will fit in DECKED Drawers, so do a little planning on what you need before you make your purchase. Luckily, you’ll have plenty of space for larger packouts on top.
• Dividers might just be your new best friend. You can quickly slide them in and reposition them to keep your gear organized and in the right place.
• For long items like levels, we recommend sliding them into the side access space around the wheel wells. Keep in mind that these areas aren’t weatherproof, like the Drawers. But they do provide a lot of extra storage, if you’re able to get by without using the provided Stash Bins.
• Depending on how much gear you use for your job, you might benefit from a Drawer System with a CargoGlide sliding bed tray on top. Luckily, they’re designed to work together better than peanut butter and jelly. For this setup, we recommend tools and smaller items organized in the Drawers below — then larger items like compressors and taller packouts on the CargoGlide above. This way you have two levels of sliding storage, and won’t have to crawl in and risk throwing your back out on the job.

SYSTEMS FOR CAMPING OR RECREATION.

If you’re going out on the weekends for big camping or hunting trips, or you use your truck for sports and recreation, you’ll want to factor that in when developing your setup.

• Dedicated Drawers: A classic move for Full-Sized Drawer Systems is to dedicate one Drawer for truck tools and recovery gear, and the other Drawer for recreation. So tools, straps, jumper cables, etc go on one side. Then you can either keep the other Drawer empty to quickly load up, or permanently run your camping or recreation gear in the other Drawer.
• D-Co swap-out: Another great way to manage your gear is to get a few extra D-co Cases or bins. That way you can store your camping or recreation gear in your garage (they stack up really well), and quickly swap them into your Drawers when the weekend rolls around. (Take a look at our Camping Gear Guide here)
• Ge to know the side-access areas on either side of your Drawers. These can often fit tons of longer items like camp chairs. Don’t forget that the DECKED Drawer System doubles as an extremely cozy camp bed. Read our Truck Bed Camping story for more info.

ENJOY THAT BACK SEAT.

Now that your tools and gear are all organized, out of the cab, and easily accessible —please — go vacuum your back seat. And if your grampa is still around, maybe swing by and offer him a ride.