As spring approaches, many of us will be considering how to declutter our homes and make use of the great weather to make home improvements and possibly even move to a new house.
If you’re looking for some short-term storage, or perhaps even some long-term storage, of your worldly possessions, then investing in a storage unit is a great idea, but it can be a little confusing for first-time storage unit renters to know how to make the best of the extra space they now have.
Why Use A Self Storage Unit?
Storage units can be a great option for families who are looking to move to a new house, or perhaps even for people who just need a little bit of extra space if their own home doesn’t provide that.
Many people use local storage units to store things such as valuable possessions, business items such as dropshipping, or even dirtier hobbies that they don’t want to bring home.
Using a storage unit for these purposes is a great way to keep the clutter out of your house.
What Will You Store?
For the most part, there aren’t many limitations on what you can store in a storage unit, but each storage unit company does have a list of its own prohibited items and recommendations.
As a general rule, storage units are clean and waterproof and kept at even temperature, which makes them an ideal place to store most everyday items.
Here are six tips for first-time storage unit renters to help you get the most out of your new storage unit and to keep your possessions safe.
Tip One: Inventory
Possibly the most important tip on this list, and something you should do before you even consider getting a local storage unit, whether you’re based in Denver or even Tampa, is to create yourself an inventory of exactly what you need to store and for how long.
This inventory can be kept up to date as you move things in and out of your storage unit, but the most important thing is that you know exactly what is in your unit and where it is in your unit too.
Tip Two: Strong Shelving
Investing in good shelving in your storage unit is a must, as your possessions will need to be stored correctly to ensure they are safe for you to move about.
It’s up to you how you use your storage space, but we would recommend getting strong shelving and using strong boxes to store items.
Tip Three: Clear Boxes and Labels
We really cannot understate the importance of using good boxes in your storage unit.
The best type of boxes that we can recommend is strong, clear plastic boxes, with labels attached to the front that correspond with your inventory and/or floor plan.
Keeping things organized in your storage unit is going to be difficult if you don’t know what is in the boxes and where the boxes are.
Sometimes, it’s impossible to keep items in clear boxes; for this case, we recommend using colored labels and having a color scheme set up. For example, you may wish to use blue for kitchen items, and green for outdoor items, etc.
As an added tip, make sure you add labels to your boxes and update your inventory as the box goes into your storage unit. It’s far too easy to think that you will be able to do this later on, but from experience, we can tell you that you’ll end up forgetting and getting yourself out of sync.
Tip Four: Stack Your Boxes Correctly
Once you have everything boxed up and you know what you’re going to be putting in your storage unit, it’s time to consider where your boxes are going to go.
It doesn’t take a genius to work out that putting heavy boxes on top of lighter boxes is a bad idea, just as putting fragile items in places where they can get broken is a bad idea.
Make sure heavier items are stored at the bottom and lighter items at the top. It’s also a good idea to put heavier items in the smallest box they will go in so that you don’t overpack a box and make it too heavy to move.
Tip Five: Seal the Boxes Correctly
We have worked with many storage unit providers over the years, and we’re confident that most storage units are rodent-free, but this doesn’t mean that your boxers should be left open or unsealed.
There are many reasons to seal up a box, but the most important reason is that a sealed box is much easier to transport and move around, and you’re less likely to drop things out of it or have things drop into the box and perhaps damage items inside of the box.
It depends on which type of box you use, plastic boxes will generally have their own clips or handles to close the box down, but cardboard boxes and the like may require taping down with strong parcel tape.
Even some plastic boxes may need additional help with more parcel tape, but this is a great opportunity to get your color coordinating right by using colored parcel tape to denote the contents of the boxes.
Tip Six: Leave Room for Moving Around
Many first-time renters of storage units don’t consider how they are going to move around the unit and how they are going to use the space.
When planning where your items are going to go and where your shelving is going to go, it’s vital to leave enough space for you to maneuver around.
Leave a little bit extra space than you think is necessary, as this will allow you to pull boxes and items out and move them around much easier than it would be if the space was only just big enough for yourself.
Get in Touch
If you are looking for a self-storage unit in your area, then our friendly team is happy to help.