Top 10 Tips to Organizing Your New Storage Unit
Organizing your items when you first move into your unit can be an overwhelming task: Where do I start? How should I place my belongings in my unit? How much space do I need? Organizing and packing your storage unit doesn’t have to be difficult. If you go in with a plan, the right boxes, and a marker, you will be all set! Once you have your bearings in your new unit, packing and unpacking will be a breeze.
Best Practices When Organizing Your Unit:
- First and foremost, create a master list – before even renting your unit. Seeing all your items written down in one place will allow you to conceptualize how many boxes you’ll need and ultimately how much space you’ll need to rent. Once you’ve created this list, use the Prime Storage Space Calculator to help determine the right unit size for your needs.
- Identify the items you may need to access while in storage. Make a note that these items should be packaged and placed into the unit last. Everyone tends to package the items they need the most first. Do not make that mistake! You want these boxes to be conveniently in the front.
- After identifying which items need to be closest to the door, create a general layout for your storage unit. The items you don’t intend on needing should be nicely tucked away in the back.
- Heavy items should always go on the bottom so they do not crush nor ruin any fragile items.
- Pick ONE box size for most, if not all your items. People tend to pick different boxes depending on the size of the item. The problem with picking different sized boxes is that it is difficult and less efficient to store in your unit. With boxes that are all the same size, it is much easier to stack and maximize your square footage.
- Label each box you pack. Do not put a box in your unit until you have written the contents on your box. We recommend writing a list for the top AND the side of the box While this might be a bit time consuming, it will save you a huge headache later when you’re going back for a specific item.
- Be sure to leave a little aisle for yourself so you’re not crawling over any of your items if you need to get to the back of your unit.
- Shelving is good if you have a lot of fragile items that you do not feel comfortable stacking. Inexpensive shelving can be easily bought online or at your local big-box or hardware store. Wire shelving is a top choice as it is durable, generally sports adjustable shelves, and is quite cost-effective.
- We aren’t all organization experts with a system as flawless as organization guru Marie Kondo. It’s okay to make mistakes. Getting a bigger unit can allow room for “error” for any unexpected items you may store.
- Choose a Prime Storage unit with climate control if you are storing furniture, antiques, or other delicate valuables. A Prime Storage facility manager can assist you with determining whether or not climate control is best for your belongings.
Keeping these ten tips in mind will make your transition into a unit smooth and will help keep you organized for later usage and storage! For any further questions, reach out to the Prime Storage location nearest to you and speak with the General Manager about unit options and availability. Prime offers a variety of unit sizes, both indoors and drive-up. View our available units now! Happy storing!
