All the smart gadgets that you own today, I’m sure most of them provide a large data storage capacity as it’s a necessity of the digital age. But what about real-life storage capacity? The things you don’t want around but want to keep as much? Well, self-storage units offer just the services that you need!
According to the U.S. Census Bureau data, an average American is known to move residences at least 11 times during their lifetime. Whether you’re taking baby steps towards better living standards, or it’s your work taking you places, you’ll need a temporary self-storage facility to keep your possessions safe until you are ready to settle in. Renting a self-storage facility means you can use up the space as you like without worrying about the things left out.
It’s not just the matter of transience that makes Americans turn towards storage facilities. According to a survey, most Americans outgrow their living spaces within two years. As the size of the average American house increases, many residents convert their attics or basements into liveable spaces. Many southern states like Texas do not even include attics or basements in modern constructions to cut costs, and the climate does not demand it. So it’s the services for self-storage Corpus Christi, and other such cities offer have made life convenient for many in Texas. A long-term self-storage unit is an ultimate solution that has enabled many residents to preserve their belongings safely and efficiently without compromising on the available space.
The best advantage of a self-storage unit is that it grants more freedom and control over possessions.
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Ideas for Your Self-Storage Units
So make sure you manage your self-storage units in a well-thought-out manner so that you continue to enjoy that extra room in your house peacefully. Here are ten ideas for your self-storage units.
1. Choose a Suitable Size
Selecting the right size of storage unit is a little tricky. Renting a small size may become too small for you even to get in. On the other hand, renting too big can be heavy on your pockets. A smart way to make this decision is to go through the pricing options in detail. Consider disassembling any furniture items so that your storage items occupy minimum space and you can decide the perfect size you need.
2. Pack Everything Appropriately
This step is crucial for your items to last longer or forever. Make sure you go through some online tips to make everything go smoothly. You don’t want to overload a box beyond its capacity or have irregular-sized packages that may never fit properly in the limited storage space. Don’t let this experience haunt you, so figure out the smart ways of packing your items. Small decisions like clear plastic boxes instead of cardboard ones can save you from future hassle.
3. Label and Document Everything
Remember Monica from F.R.I.E.N.D.S the show? She can be an inspiration for this part. It would help to have those organizer journals with color schemes and tags to ensure a complete directory of the stored items. You can save pictures of the contents of the boxes so that you have a visual memory of the things inside. If you’re not a fancy journal person, keeping excel sheets on your laptops or phones could be the alternate option. The purpose is to make sure you keep a list with you all the time. Once you have completed the list, put labels on all packed items and boxes.
4. Use Limited Space Efficiently
Sometimes, stacking up all those boxes up to the ceiling can be the most dangerous way of storage. They might come falling on you all at once on your next visit to the storage unit. It is better to place racks or shelves inside in case of too many boxed items to avoid such accidents.
5. Plan for Better Access
Long-term self-storage units need to have those aisles left out. You don’t want your storage space to look like a dump of old possessions. A simple rearrangement can make it your personalized museum of memories.
6. Electrical Appliances
If you are storing appliances, make an extra effort to pack the power cables and fragile parts in bubble wrap to avoid any damages. There’s no point in holding these if they will not work eventually.
7. Extra Care for Wooden furniture
Show some extra care for the furniture that you want to store. Everything needs special packaging and treatment, from leather furnishing to wooden frames to keep pests and moisture. Storage companies have climate control facilities for every unit, but there is no harm in being extra careful.
8. Donate or Sell Often
No, it doesn’t mean you sell or donate everything but keep a note on your recent purchases. Maybe, there are items in your storage that you may never need in the future, e.g., that old vacuum cleaner or your old bike. Depending on the value of the items and your generous mood, make early decisions to free up space in your unit. It will perhaps leave you feeling satisfied as well.
9. Get Insurance
There is no right way to convince you of the uncertainties that might come your way because that’s life for everyone. Getting insurance only means you have something to hold on to if something goes wrong with the unit. Do check out all the insurance plans for the storage units and make a wise decision to save your money.
10. Keep Your Storage Directory Up To Date.
You don’t want to spend hours looking for an item in the storage compound that you took out last week and forgot. So make sure you keep updating your directory in whatever form you have whenever you take things out or add them.
However you organize it, a storage unit would eventually become your place of convenience.
In a Nutshell
So by now, you’ve hopefully gotten some useful ideas on how you can store your belongings to preserve their lifespan. Self-storage units are spaces that can be used for securing valuable, creating extra space to work on projects, or storing expensive items such as cars, bikes, and even jewelry.
It’s critical to consider why you’re using a self-storage unit as a facility. Before jumping on this bandwagon, read the paperwork such as terms and conditions, customer policies, guidelines, and the liabilities waiver – should any of your belongings get damaged in the self-storing unit’s premise.
If you like this article and feel that we may have missed out on some pointers, please add them in the comments section below.