How To Know What Storage Unit Is Best For You

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How many ‘things’ do you think you have in your home? A few hundred? A few thousand? It will probably surprise you to hear that the average American household contains around 300,000 different items. It’s no wonder that storage facilities are so popular; they offer a much-needed service.

However, knowing that you need a storage unit and knowing what storage unit is the right one to choose are two different things. There are many storage options to consider, and the last thing you’ll want is to find you have rented a container that is too large (so you’ve spent too much money) or too small (so you can’t fit everything inside). Therefore, it’s crucial to work out how to know what storage unit is best for you. Keep reading to find out what you need to do.

Declutter First

Although when it comes to storing items, you probably want to find a self storage unit that will fit everything you currently have, is this really necessary? This is an important question to ask yourself because it might be that if you were to declutter and rid yourself of some of your possessions, you could save yourself money by renting a smaller storage space.

Of course, decluttering is not mandatory – no storage company will request that you do this before hiring a unit – but it is a good idea. If you can reduce the number of items that have to go into storage, either by selling them, giving them away to charity, or throwing them away in a responsible manner, you may well be able to find a storage space more easily.

Once you only have the items left that you want to store, box them carefully, note what’s in each box, and write some information on the side of each container. In that way, when they are in the storage unit, you’ll be able to find everything much more easily.

What Is The Purpose Of The Storage Unit?

Once you’ve been left only with the items you really do have to store, you’ll need to determine what the purpose of the storage unit actually is. For example, if you’re going traveling or you’re moving house, you won’t need constant access to the unit, and you won’t need to retrieve things piece by piece – the items will go inside in one go and then come out again the same way. This means you can hire a smaller unit and stack everything tightly inside as you won’t need space to move around in there yourself. You can even stack a lot more on top of other things without having to leave room for racking and shelving, for example.

If, however, you are using the storage unit as a spare garden shed or additional storage and you will need access to get things and put them back, it’s better to hire a slightly larger unit than you might think. This will give you the room you need to get inside and find what you want – make sure there is room for alleyways and paths through the boxes, furniture, and other items.

Measure Everything You’re Storing

Most storage facilities will have a variety of different size, and sometimes shape, units to pick from, so once you have found the right self storage near me company that works for your budget and location, you should also be able to find the right unit. Don’t forget to look for extra elements, too; do you need a climate controlled storage unit, for example? Make sure you know this in advance so you can narrow down your choices.

Once you know what needs to be stored and which self storage facility you want to use, you should measure everything you want to put into a storage unit. There is no point in paying for any space you don’t actually need, so once you have the measurements, you can know which units you can fit everything into and which ones are no good. The best storage unit companies will have a storage unit size guide and a size estimator so you can be totally sure of choosing the right option. Plus, you can always ask the experts here at Storage Area if you have any doubts; we’ll be able to help you right away and show you exactly which units will work for your needs.

What Else To Look For?

Remember, although you may well have found a budget-friendly storage service with a unit that will fit your requirements – and your possessions – you will need to do some additional research to ensure that this is the right place for you to store your things. We’ve already mentioned the potential for choosing climate controlled units, and this could be very important, especially if you are keeping materials like silk and leather that could be damaged without climate control in place and other sensitive items.

However, you may always want to think about the security aspect of a storage facility. If you are entrusting your precious things to the place, you’ll want to know that it has security that runs 24/7, for example. Plus, what sort of security is this? Is it simply cameras and alarms, or is there a guard? As well as this, if you have 24-hour access to your items and you want to go there late at night, is the area safe? This is especially true if there is no physical guard there to help you if something were to go wrong.

Visit The Facility First

The only way to be one hundred percent sure that you are happy with the self-storage facility you have chosen is to visit it. Although this won’t be possible in some cases – you might be shipping your items across the country, for example. However, if you can visit in advance, you should. You’ll get to see the unit itself, the security protocols, and the location. Added together, this will help you determine whether the self storage company you want to use is the right one for your needs.


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