How to Prepare Your Belongings for Storage
Self-storage is becoming more and more popular as a great way to declutter without the pain of throwing beloved items out. It can make moving house easier and is a great way to store stuff during the university break or a gap year. However, just throwing items into self-storage can leave them susceptible to damage.
It’s important that all belongings going into storage are carefully packed away and appropriate containers used. Taking the time to organise belongs properly will save a lot of time when it comes to unpacking them further down the line.
Try these tips if you’re about to pack up and ship some of your possessions off to storage for the first time…
- Dismantle furniture but keep the individual parts together with some string. Place fixings together in a small bag and tie in a knot or use a cable tie to secure.
- Clean everything that is going into storage otherwise – either wash, dry clean, hose or wipe down with antibac. Because items will be in close proximity, one soiled item can damage others leading to an unpleasant surprise when you retrieve your goods from their temporary home.
- Fold clothes and place them in suitcases or vacuum packed bags to prevent insects and damp from damaging them.
- Label everything. This allow you to know exactly what is in each box and put it in the right room if moving house without the tedious task of hunting through dozens of sealed boxes for that one specific pair of gloves, picture or kitchen appliance.
- Buy bubble wrap and use it generously on all breakable items. These should be wrapped individually before being put into a strong box.
- Use wardrobe boxes to hang suits and shirts in, this will ensure that they remain wrinkle free whilst in storage.
- Fill all boxes to the very top. If you leave any gaps, the boxes will crumple when stacked in the storage unit.
- Store heavy boxes on the bottom and lighter boxes on top. Put boxes of breakables together but don’t stack them on top of one another or put them too high up.
- Invest in plastic stackable boxes if you know your belongings will be stored for a longer period of time. They will prevent moisture and damage better than cardboard.
- Keep fridges slightly ajar – this will allow air to circulate and will stop a nasty smell and mould from forming.
- If storing a chest of drawers, place items inside each drawer, this will make maximum use of all space. Breakables are better protected in solid drawers than boxes.
- Take inventory as you pack. This will ensure you know exactly what you are storing and exactly how many boxes you need to pick up when you come to retrieve your items from storage.
- Place expensive electrical items off the floor – if your storage unit gets flooded, having them higher up should mean they are safe from damage.
- Ensure there are no foodstuffs mixed in with what you instead to store.
Do you need help moving items to storage? Van Man York are experts in moving your items safely.
