There are many reasons why you might need storage during your home moving process, some of the most common are, having renovation work carried out on your new property, downsizing and moving abroad. Before moving your furniture abroad, you might need to look for a permanent place to live or test it out before committing to an expensive international removal. Downsizing can be very difficult to manage during the hustle and bustle of moving to a new home, often its easier to send some furniture to storage so you can decide at a later date what and where you need your furniture. These days it’s quite common for home movers to send their furniture to storage whilst they renovate a new property, this is often the best place for it to be stored safe and sound.

If any of these sounds like you or you need to move furniture into storage for a different reason we can help. We have compiled some tips to help you with your removal and storage.

What not to put in storage

There are obvious items that you cannot store in a storage facility, explosives, fuel and live animals to name but a few but there are also some less obvious items you are not able to store.

Here is a list of the items you cannot store at Big Padlock self-storage.

• Perishables – This is usually overlooked and left in moving boxes. But perishables such as food items and even pet food should not be kept in a storage unit as can attract pests. Once insects and rodents locate food they can come from the surrounding area. Not just eating all the food but potentially damaging your other belongings.
• Live animals – Obvious as it is, you would be surprised what we have come across. You may not store animals, living or dead, in your storage unit. This includes hibernating animals!
• Hazardous materials – A hazardous material can be anything that would cause serious damage if spilt or opened. Examples include chemicals, odorous/noxious gases, petrol, compressed gas etc. These materials can potentially catch fire, explode or cause health risks, and you could be held liable. It is also likely that your removal company would be unable to carry the above items.
• Untaxed or uninsured vehicles – Whether it’s a car, van, boat, trailer or motorcycle. Unregistered vehicles cannot be stored on the facility unless the road tax is kept current, and in your name.

What you can put in storage

So now you know what you can’t store, here is what you can store.

• Registered vehicles – As long as you have the proper documentation, you are permitted to store or park your vehicles at a storage facility. It is important to check the storage facility is large enough first as Big Padlock branches vary in availability of vehicle storage.
• Electronics – You are able to store your computers, video games, stereo systems and the sort in your unit. Make sure all batteries are removed, as they can be corrosive and could damage your electrical items over time when not in use.
• Furniture – The most common thing stored at our storage facilities! You should consider covering upholstered items and bedding with plastic covers for protection, you can ask your house removal company or storage provider about these.
• Clothes – This is another popular item for self-storage. Make sure to box it up neatly and label items clearly. You could also vac pac to save space, Mothballs can offer protection if you are storing for over 3 months. If you want to keep your clothes ironed or crease free we recommend wardrobe boxes.
• Household appliances – All appliances vary but problem items include fridge freezers, make sure you fully defrost your fridge freezer if it is coming into storage is best to ensure all appliances are completely cleaned out and leave the door open slightly on refrigerators and ovens to prevent mould and bacteria growing on the inside.

Packaging your items

It is important your items are kept safe. When storing items, it is important to package them correctly to offer the best protection. Especially if you’re planning on keeping your items will be having a lengthy stay with us, if you're using a removals company to move you into storage they will require that your things are packed to a good standard.

Below are some of the top things to consider when packaging your items:

Use correct boxes

Typically, you’ll need one large box for every 4 small boxes. Use the smaller boxes for heavy items such as books, plates and glasses; the large boxes for lighter items like bedding, pictures and clothes.

Don’t over pack

Make sure your boxes do not weigh more than you can comfortably lift, no one box should exceed 25 kilos in weight. If a box feels like it is getting too heavy, mix things up, add cushions to boxes of books or tea towels to boxes of plates.

Label everything

Looking for that pair of shoes? It’s there somewhere? Don’t make the common mistake of not labelling, you can waste hours unstacking looking and re-stacking your storage unit looking for item. If you’re leaving your things for long periods of times, it’s always best to be organised. Also, add ‘this way up’ arrows as you don’t want to have possessions broken or damaged when moving them around.

Tape matters

You will never know the frustration of buying poor tape until you have a house to pack and your tape keeps ripping. Buy quality tape! This will prevent items from becoming separated from the rest of the belongings and reduce waste.

Hang it up

You wouldn’t keep your good clothes in a pile at home, so why pile them in a box here? Use hanging wardrobe boxes. This allows your clothes to breath and prevents from becoming damp and dirty. It’s also advised to use cedar chips or mothballs to keep any potential insects away.

Top tips!

• Keep stuff off the floor!

Rule number one is to make sure your soft furnishings are off the floor. Cardboard and wood will survive on the floor, but soft furnishings and mattresses should never be in contact with the floor.

• Plan for the upcoming weather.

It is important to keep any items you may need access to near the front of your unit. If your storing for more than 6 months its highly likely the temperature and weather may change. If you're storing in the middle of summer and expect to store until winter, keep a bag of winter clothes near the door to your unit. The same is true if it’s the middle of winter when you store.

• Decide how you want to use your unit.

At Go Panda, we will always ask our customers if they intend to access their unit. If you are certain you need no access to your stuff whilst its in storage we stack floor to ceiling with no space left anywhere.  This is not suitable if you need access to your unit and the best thing to do in this situation is to stack high but leave corridors throughout your unit to access anything you might need.

• Label

You won’t remember everything you packed and where it is located, especially if leaving it in storage for a long time. Labelling your belongings clearly can save you a lot of time and effort when eventually returning to collect all your belongings.

What can I fit in a storage unit?

Storage units of all sizes are available at Big Padlock sites, they range from 25 square foot(sqft) to 500 sqft. Big Padlock has a handy storage size guide to display what might fit in where.

At Go Panda, we would always aim to fit around 750 cubic ft which is a standard two bedroom property within a 100 square foot unit.

This article was written by a Go Panda, Removal company Bristol in association with Big Padlock