Preparing Your Storage Unit Before You Add Items to It

Many people rent and use storage lockers or units to hold the things that they are not using and do not have space for in their home. Often the items put in the storage unit are valuable to the owner in some way, so making sure that they are safe is critical, and preparing the storage unit before filling it is important.

Cleaning the Unit

Most storage companies require people to sweep out their unit when they empty it, but when you rent a storage locker or unit, it may have been sitting empty for a little while. Take a few minutes and sweep out the unit and knock down any spider webs that are in it. This is an excellent time to look for things like mouse droppings and signs of insects in the unit as well.

If you see signs of any insects, spray a commercially available insect spray around the bases of the storage unit walls, and you can place a few traps for mice in the unit as well so that if any are running around, you catch them before they get into your stored items. 

Mice will chew through boxes and containers to get to what is inside, so if you can attract them to a trap, it will catch them before they get into your things. Remember to check the traps often, though; a dead mouse can start to produce a strong odor of decay very quickly.

Cover the Floor

It is a good idea to get some wooden pallets and place them on the floor inside the storage unit. The pallets will keep your boxes off the floor a few inches, protecting the cardboard from water and allowing air to circulate under the stack, reducing the risk of mold forming on the bottom of the boxers. 

Used pallets are fine, but try to get them all the same heights so that things sit flat on the pallets. If there is a lot of height difference, stacking boxes on the pallets can result in an unstable stack and a larger chance of them falling over. 

Place Shelving in the Storage Unit

If you have a lot of smaller boxes that you need to access from time to time, adding a set of freestanding shelves to the storage can help organize the storage unit and keep the small items off the floor so you can find them easily and avoid damage. The items can be put on a shelf that is near the door, so all you need to go is go over and open the storage door to access these items quickly.