- 1). Examine current storage room layouts and search for potential new storage spaces throughout your theater and shop. Don't overlook smaller closets or rooms with higher ceilings as potential sites for shelving or overhead storage. Make every effort to store all materials and items off the floor. Locate paint supplies near the "paint sink" area and lighting instruments near the stage or in the catwalk areas.
- 2). Move all lighting instruments off the floor. Build proper instrument storage bars using Schedule 40 steel pipes 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Limit the length of the pipes to 6 feet to avoid hanging too many instruments on one pipe. Anchor each 6-foot storage pipe to a wall, ceiling truss or sturdy frame in a manner that absolutely guarantees the pipe cannot work or break loose from the anchor. Position the pipes in 30-inch increments from the floor or from a lower pipe to accommodate longer lighting instruments like jumbo ellipsoidals. Limit the need to use a ladder to reach these hanging instruments if possible. If you have several storage locations, sort instruments by customary stage use.
- 3). Clamp all instruments to the storage pipe and thumb-tighten the clamp screws closed. Drape the cable "tail" over the pipe. Safety-cable the instruments to the pipe. Any labels on the instruments should be easily read from a position on the floor.
- 4). Store other lighting accessories by threading safety cables through them in manageable "bunches" and hanging these from pipes as well.
- 5). Move lighting cables off the floor. Mount two-by-four studs securely on a wall. Drive hangers or large-penny nails in the lumber approximately 30 inches apart on center. Tie coiled lighting cables with string and then hang one loop of cable on each nail. Tape a note on the dangling cable connector head indicating the length of the cable.
- 6). Store paint cans on shelves off the floor. Do not stack cans, one in front of the other or on top of each other: All cans should be visible at a glance and easy to retrieve. Remove labels from empty cans, rinse them thoroughly, and turn them upside down on the shelf.
- 7). Seal all paint can lids firmly after every use. Keep a rubber mallet near the paint sink for this purpose. If the can label is missing or incorrect, make a new label. Place a "thumbprint" of the paint on the label and indicate the amount of paint left in the can.
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