Packing for Self Storage
when Packing for Self Storage packing your personal belongings isn’t as simple as just cramming boxes until nothing else will fit. Jamming all of your stuff into your storage bins without thinking it through can be a recipe for disaster. We’d like to offer a few tips on how to pack your items while keeping you and your belongings protected. Here are some facts to keep in mind when packing for storage:
Dust accumulation inside of storage units is one of the biggest problems that you are going to face when packing for self-storage. To better protect your property, always ensure that there are no items left loose, unwrapped or unboxed. Anything left uncovered can gather a surprising amount of dust very quickly and ruin your favorite coat.
When packing your precious knick-knacks, ensure that you fill all of your boxes to capacity. The contents of half-empty boxes can move during shipping, and shifting contents are often the cause of significant damage to your goods. One other side effect of half-full boxes is the dreaded corner collapse of your boxes. Space left inside of the box can cause the edges to collapse inward, and the collapse has the potential to send and the entire stack of boxes to come tumbling down.
One of the best ways to ensure that your belongings do not rattle around in their boxes when packing for self-storage is to use foam peanuts as filler. These little things provide an ingenious way to “fill the gaps” in your storage boxes and can prevent some of the damage caused by tumbling or falling boxes.
Wrap all fragile items separately. You can use Newspaper (do they still make those?) to wrap your small, fragile items individually. Pack the breakable items tightly into solid or reinforced boxes (an example of a strong box is a Dishpack box), filling any remaining gaps with more newspaper or foam peanuts until you get a nice snug fit.
One thing to keep in mind when using regular old newspapers for packing is that the ink from the “News” part of the paper sometimes can get all over your fingers and your plates, cups or fragile ornaments. An excellent solution to this problem, if it is within your budget, is a product called Newsprint which is of the same texture and weight of regular newspapers but without the printed word, so you avoid ink smudges on your fingers or stuff. Retailers often sell Newsprint by the pound.
Mark “Fragile” on all of the boxes containing breakable items. You can find red colored labels specifically for marking boxes that include delicate items. Clearly label all boxes on multiple sides so that you or your movers can quickly identify the contents.
These are just a few facts that we thought you might find helpful. If you have any questions or if you need a FREE estimate for your move in or out of storage, please call us at 1-347-308-6290 and mention this article. We also have a handy form on this website that makes it easy to contact us.
