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Having a storage unit is such a perk these days. A lot of us don’t have the space in our homes to store all our extra belongings. And it’s not even that we’re pack rats. But we may have a smaller home or apartment and not want to cram all the mementos and seasonal or holiday items into our livable space. This is a totally normal desire. And renting a storage unit will help free up valuable storage space in your home and help you streamline your organization. Here are a few tips to help you maximize your storage unit to optimize its potential.

If possible, it’s good practice to choose a climate-controlled storage unit. A climate-controlled unit will help keep the humidity and heat down in the summer months and keep the cold from causing damage in the winter. Since cold, heat and moisture wreak the most havoc on our belongings (especially antiques or other fragile mementos) it’s important to minimize those factors. 

You’ll also want to clear out and declutter your home. We recommend doing this before choosing what size unit to invest in. You might have more belongings or less than you think. Go room by room sorting through closets and cabinets. Make piles or designated areas in your home or garage. Create a keep pile, a donate pile and then a trash pile. This will help you purge and get rid of belongings that are just taking up valuable space. It might mean that you can rent a smaller unit as well if you have less items to store than you originally thought. 

Then you’ll want to organize your keep piles and begin to put items back in your home. Put away items that you use regularly first to make sure you have adequate space. Leave out seasonal décor, seasonal sporting or outdoor goods and mementos you don’t need access to on a regular basis. These can be placed in storage so your closets and cabinets in your home are less packed. 

Next, you can begin to transfer items to your storage unit. For this step, plan your layout in the storage unit. You could even draw this up quickly. Knowing which corner you placed Grandma’s armoire in verses where the Christmas or Hannukah decorations are stored will help you out big time later in the year. So, map out your plan of attack. Place larger, heavier, and less frequently used items in the back of the unit. Play tetras a bit to stack lighter boxes or totes on top of heavier boxes or furniture. Make sure nothing fragile is on the bottom. Organize by leaving items you do need access to more regularly near the front of the unit. 

Follow these steps to help maximize your storage unit’s potential. And give us at Cheriton Storage a call today to hear more about the options we have available!