---
title: "Junk Yard shortcuts"
url: https://storagestudio.us/wiki/junk-yard-shortcuts
category: "Junk Yard"
tags: ["junk yard", "keyboard shortcuts"]
summary: "Four keyboard shortcuts work from any app — open the Junk Yard (⌃⇧J), save the clipboard to it (⌃⇧C), start a new note (⌃⇧N) and move the edge curtain between the top and right (⌃⇧D). Change or switch them off in Settings → Shortcuts."
updated: 2026-10-01T05:36:16.000Z
---

# Junk Yard shortcuts

Four keyboard shortcuts work from any app — open the Junk Yard (⌃⇧J), save the clipboard to it (⌃⇧C), start a new note (⌃⇧N) and move the edge curtain between the top and right (⌃⇧D). Change or switch them off in Settings → Shortcuts.

The [Junk Yard](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/junk-yard) has four keyboard shortcuts that work from any app, so you can reach your scraps without opening Storage Studio first. You can change each one, or switch it off, in Settings → **Shortcuts**.

## The shortcuts

| Shortcut | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Open the Junk Yard | ⌃⇧J | Opens the full board in a window of its own |
| Save clipboard to Junk | ⌃⇧C | Saves whatever is on the clipboard now as a scrap |
| New note | ⌃⇧N | Opens the board with a new note ready to type |
| Toggle dock position (Top ↔ Right) | ⌃⇧D | Moves the edge curtain between the top and right edges, and briefly shows it in its new place |

(⌃ is Control, ⇧ is Shift.)

```mermaid
%% caption: What happens when you press Save clipboard to Junk
flowchart TD
  A[You press the shortcut] --> B{Junk Yard turned on?}
  B -->|No| C[Nothing happens]
  B -->|Yes| D{Capturing switch on?}
  D -->|No| C
  D -->|Yes| E{Is the clipboard a password or marked temporary?}
  E -->|Yes| C
  E -->|No| F[It lands on the board as a new scrap]
```

*Flowchart — What happens when you press Save clipboard to Junk. Outline:*

- You press the shortcut
  - leads to Junk Yard turned on?
- Junk Yard turned on?
  - No: leads to Nothing happens
  - Yes: leads to Capturing switch on?
- Capturing switch on?
  - No: leads to Nothing happens
  - Yes: leads to Is the clipboard a password or marked temporary?
- Is the clipboard a password or marked temporary?
  - Yes: leads to Nothing happens
  - No: leads to It lands on the board as a new scrap

**Save clipboard to Junk** is handy if you've turned **Watch the clipboard** off and only want to keep the odd thing: it still works then. It doesn't work while the **Capturing** switch in the board's header is off, and it never saves a password copied from a password manager. See [Clipboard capture, pins and how long items last](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/clipboard-capture).

The edge curtain itself has no shortcut — you open it with the pointer. See [Opening the Junk Yard from the screen edge](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/opening-the-junk-yard).

## Changing a shortcut

1. Open Settings and choose the **Shortcuts** pane.
2. In the **Junk Yard** group, find the action you want to change.
3. Use its switch to turn it on or off, and pick a different combination from its menu.

Each combination can belong to only one action, so a combination already in use — including the Apps grid shortcut, ⌃Space by default — is hidden from the other menus. If a shortcut doesn't seem to work, macOS or another app may already be using that combination; pick a different one.

The **Junk Yard** pane in Settings also has a **Shortcuts** group with the first three actions. The dock-position shortcut is only in the **Shortcuts** pane.

The **Hot Keys** chip on the [Home screen](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-home-screen) lists your current shortcuts and the curtain's gestures at a glance.

## When the shortcuts work

The shortcuts work whenever the Junk Yard is turned on, in every [performance mode](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/performance-modes). If you turn the Junk Yard off in Settings → **Junk Yard**, they do nothing until you turn it back on.

See also: [Keyboard shortcuts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/keyboard-shortcuts) · [Changing keyboard shortcuts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/shortcuts-pane) · [The All Apps grid and its shortcut](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-all-apps-grid)

## What links here

- [Changing keyboard shortcuts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/shortcuts-pane)
- [Clipboard capture, pins and how long items last](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/clipboard-capture)
- [Keyboard shortcuts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/keyboard-shortcuts)
- [Opening the Junk Yard from the screen edge](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/opening-the-junk-yard)
- [Searching and editing Junk Yard items](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/searching-the-junk-yard)
- [The Junk Yard](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/junk-yard)
- [The Junk Yard won't open or stops capturing](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-junk-yard-wont-open)