Once you stack things inside a Self-Storage facility, it is easy to think that all the work is done. Now that all your materials are in a safe self-storage facility, protected from pests, insects, and theft, what could be left to be done?
Answer: a lot.
There are a lot of things you need to be mindful of when keeping your stuff in a self-storage facility. The below-listed tips will ensure that after your possessions have been lugged from the moving truck or car, they will be stack things inside a self storage facility in such a way that no harm befalls them.
1. Place goods on plastic pallets
There are many reasons for choosing plastic pallets over the more-popular wooden and timber ones while seeking personal storage solutions.
For one, plastic pallets are more durable. They are less likely to break down and be damaged. They are also more likely to withstand different types of weather. Unlike wooden pallets, they do not have nails, splinters, and broken boards and are also constructed in one single piece.
Most of all, they aren’t prone to common wood dangers like rot, infestation, odor absorption, and fumigation.
For all these reasons, prefer plastic pallets over wooden or timber ones while you keep your goods at the self-storage facility. Also, make sure that the plastic being used is recycled for environment conservation too.
Use sturdy plastic boxes and containers to store your items inside a self-storage. Make sure that the boxes are not too heavy to lift or too large to stack on top of each other.
2. Put heavy boxes at the bottom
This one is a no-brainer.
Keeping heavy boxes at the top will only crush and quelch the boxes below it. If those boxes contain even a few pieces of crockery or other fragile items, then the risk of damage increases.
Hence, when planning for personal storage services always put heavy boxes at the bottom so that the materials below them are not broken.
3. Do not stack more than 8 feet
After putting the heavy boxes at the bottom, you figure it’s alright to stack as many lightweight boxes on top of the heavy ones as possible. Wrong.
When you create a box pyramid taller than 8 feet the danger to the boxes at the bottom increases. This is because, after 8 feet, the structure becomes precarious, and all the boxes start to sink and sag.
Remember, 8 feet is the magic number for your self storage needs.
While storing inside a self-storage, stack from heaviest to lightest, start by stacking the heaviest items on the bottom, and work your way up to the lighter items.
4. Take care of plastic boxes
Going by the durability of plastic, it is easy to assume that they’ll be able to bear a lot of weight. However, it is essential to take care and know how much weight the plastic boxes can bear. If not much, then stack them. If they are stronger, make sure to check the maximum weight that can be borne by them.
5. Create alleyways
Another common mistake is to take all the boxes and arrange them against one or two walls.
Now, while arranging you would be working inside out-, meaning you would stack the boxes against the wall first and then fan out. However, this will pose problems when you want to take something from the boxes against the walls. They will be too inaccessible, and you’ll have to remove the other boxes in the way.
A better idea is to create alleyways, whether it’s a personal self-storage facility or a storage space for rent. Stack boxes as you want but leave walking space between them so you can navigate easily and retrieve boxes as you please.
6. Label the correct way
Do not label so that the handwriting faces away from you. Label all the boxes so that they are visible as you walk.
If possible, color code them, so you don’t even have to spend time reading the labels. Just look at the color of the pen or the post-it and voila! You can tell what the box contains.
7. Place appropriately
If you need to access certain things frequently, placing them at the back of the unit is not the best of ideas. Hopping over boxes or rearranging them every time is not the most time-efficient method.
Hence, determine well in advance which boxes and what items you’ll need regularly, and keep those up front.
8. Leave the corners empty
Do not fill every corner of a personal storage unit with stuff. Before storage, declutter properly and give out all unnecessary items. This way, you can keep the corners empty. This will allow you to freely walk around the self-storage room and also ensure there is space if anything needs to be moved out or in.
9. Use no more than 2 box sizes
Using boxes of varying sizes will make the self-storage unit appear all higgledy-piggledy and might also make stacking the boxes difficult. Also, if you happen to pack fragile items into the bigger boxes that have to be kept at the bottom… trouble, trouble, trouble!
10. Don’t store anything perishable
The self-storage facility owners will mention the same, but it is worth repeating here as well. Do not store anything perishable that could pose a possible threat to you and the entire self-storage facility.
11. Go vertical instead of horizontal
A typical storage tendency is to store things horizontally instead of vertically. The word ‘stack’ implies a vertical approach. While people might use it for boxes, they miss it for other things. However, try to use it wherever possible.
This includes hanging up bicycles, guitars, and any other equipment that can be hung on the walls. This also means making judicious use of the shelves if they are present in the personal storage unit and keeping your items, adequately wrapped, on them.
12. Have a map
Looking at your personal storage unit, you might think that you’ll remember where you have kept everything, but you won’t. Even if you have all the boxes labeled out, it’s helpful to have a rough map of the place that outlines where everything is kept. As a best practice, try to divide the personal self-storage space into sections and keep things accordingly.
Moral of the story? Your storage woes do not end when you bring your stuff to the self-storage facility. They end once you have all of your items properly stacked inside the personal storage unit. Part of a competent storage strategy for secure self storage for home contents is storing all of these items optimally so that they stay safe and sound.
