Self-Storage Locker Tips: Storing Your Possessions Safely

Over the last few years I have purchased the contents of many abandoned and foreclosed self-storage units at public auctions. I find a lot of useful and valuable goods in the units, but many times I find things have unfortunately become damaged and unusable because the renters didn’t take time to pack and store their possessions properly. For example, I love books, and it hurts me to have to dump box loads of books that have become mildewed! Happens all the time. So I am giving you the benefit of my experience and offering some valuable tips to ensure that what you put in your self-storage unit comes out in the same condition as it went in. Just remember to keep your rent paid, or I may end up with all your stuff!

Before we get started, let me encourage you to weed through your possessions and get rid of anything you don’t need, or is already junk, before renting the unit. Why pay for valuable space (larger units cost more, duh) to store junk that should be thrown out anyway? Stuff that is in good, usable condition that you don’t need can be donated to Goodwill or the local thrift shop and benefit someone else.

Some units are climate-controlled, but most aren’t, so you must remember that your possessions need to be protected from dust and moisture. Pack as many of your belongings as possible in cardboard boxes or plastic storage tubs to keep dust from settling on them. Believe me, those units can get pretty dirty! Large pieces of furniture can be covered with old sheets or drop cloths.

Be sure that any books and other paper items you need to store are absolutely dry before packing them up, to avoid a mildew-laden mess later. Line the box with plastic before packing it, to protect the contents from absorbing moisture from the atmosphere.

Books should be placed flat in the box. Packing books on end can stress the spines and cause them to split. Record albums and CDs should be packed flat to avoid warping. Use several small boxes instead of a few large ones if you have a lot of books. Those boxes can get heavy fast when you’re lifting them, and heavy boxes will tend to split open.

Appliances are also vulnerable to mildew, especially washers, freezers, refrigerators and dishwashers. Clean and dry the inside of appliances before putting them in storage, and then prop the doors open once they are in the storage unit. I have seen some pretty disgusting refrigerator interiors, and it’s a shame that a once good appliance should be allowed to get in that condition.

Most storage unit facilities will offer boxes specially made to store dishes and glassware. This adds to your expense, but if the items are something you truly value, it may be worth it. Otherwise, wrap them in ink-free paper (to avoid ink stains) and place them carefully in small boxes. Use more paper to fill any empty space in the box. Mirrors and pictures need extra protection also, and should be cushioned with bubble wrap and stacked on their ends inside the box. Delicate knick knacks should be wrapped individually in bubble wrap, and any empty space filled with paper. Mark the boxes as "fragile."

When storing clothing, draperies, linens, or other fabric goods, be sure they are clean and dry. Woolen items should be dry-cleaned before storing them to make sure that no moth larvae hatch during storage and make a meal of them. You can get wardrobe boxes that allow you to hang the items, but in my opinion they probably aren’t necessary. Fold these items neatly and pack them in plastic-lined boxes or plastic tubs. I’ve even found fabric goods stored in plastic trash bags, and they don’t seem any worse for wear, just wrinkled.

Wipe down any metal items (such as lawn mowers, bicycles, or tools) with machine oil before storing them to discourage rust. Any gas-powered equipment should have the tank drained. Most self-storage facilities have rules against storing gasoline, paints, cleaning fluids, or other flammable liquids. No explosives either, please.

You can save space by removing the legs from large tables, and stacking dining room chairs seat to seat. It’s tempting to stand the sofa on end to save space, but it can warp the frame, especially if it is a hide-a-bed, and the end of the sofa that is resting on the concrete may mildew from the dampness the concrete draws. Use old blankets to pad wooden furniture if you stack one piece on top of another.

Once you’ve got everything boxed up safely, it’s time to start filling your storage unit. I shouldn’t have to tell you this, but put the heavier boxes at the bottom of the stack; boxes with fragile items go on top! As the boxes settle over time, any box that is not filled to capacity will become compressed. Your nice neat stack will begin to look like the leaning tower of Pisa. Don’t pile your boxes so high that it becomes an avalanche waiting to happen. I have lived through this experience when cleaning out a unit. Fortunately, the only fatality was a blender and a few glasses; no human injuries were sustained, but it was touch-and-go there for a while.

Don’t store opened food products that will attract insects and rodents. Pet foods, bird seed, sugar, flour and other grains, biscuit mixes, and cereals will invite pests into your self-storage locker. If you don’t need these right away and have no where else to store them, give them to someone that can use them.

Please don’t store one-of-a-kind, irreplaceable objects in your storage locker. Legal documents, pictures, valuable antiques, or anything with sentimental value may be lost to you forever if your unit gets foreclosed. I doubt if anybody rents a unit with the idea that they don’t want their stuff back, but sometimes we meet with misfortune and just can’t keep all the bills paid.

Which brings me to my last point: Many units are filled with so much junk that I’m not surprised they get foreclosed. I suppose the renter just gets tired of paying to store useless stuff they don’t need and lets the unit go. Consider whether you really need all that excess stuff in the first place. If not, donate the usable items and take the rest to the dump, and you’ll save me the trouble of doing it for you!