Boxes piling up. Life growing more and more messy. The garage which began to resemble a prop in a hoarding documentary. It is then when self storage is no longer an option, but a necessity. Visit us!

The issue is the following: the majority of people misuse storage units. They lease an area, dump all stuff and move on. Three years on, they continue to pay monthly on things that they cannot even recall their possession. It is not storage – it is a costly method of not deciding what to do with stuff that you ought to have disposed of long ago.

See and tell.

Visit the facility prior to the signing. Is it clean? Do the corridors have sufficient lighting? Are the staff members conversant with what they are talking of? Poorly ventilated and damp unit will silently ruin furniture, electronics and important documents. That is no good to your grandmother.

Climate control: is it worth it or not?

Units with climate control are more expensive – very expensive in some cases. However, when you are storing clothes, electronics, art or musical instruments, the additional expense would be worth every penny. Garden tool and spare tire storage? You are likely to be able to afford to do without it and save the money.

Do not use it as a dumping-ground.

The one thing you can do to your storage experience that will have the greatest impact is to change your thinking about it. Label every box. Where possible use same size boxes. Stay a path along the middle of the unit. Store the commonly used objects at the front. All this sounds self-evident until you are standing in a unit one day, at 8pm on a Tuesday, and are scrambling over a treadmill as you seek old tax records.

Do not overestimate the size that you require.

The majority of the population over rents. The smaller unit, intelligently packed, with vertical stacking, is bigger than you would think. Know what you are storing, prior to committing yourself, do not allow the facility to sell you more square footage than you will utilize.

Long-term vs. month-to-month lease.

Month-to-month will provide you with flexibility. Discounts are normally given in long-term leases. Assuming you will use the space at least one year or longer, do the calculations – it may pay to pay up front to save you a significant sum of money.

Don’t make a cheap lock.

Disc lock is much more difficult to cut than an ordinary padlock. Small detail. Big difference.

Self storage can be very helpful, and it is actually being used intentionally: a breathing room in times of life transition. Wasted, it is merely a monthly payment of things that you ought to have taken care of.