A large garage, attic, or basement storage space can be a huge draw when considering a house to purchase, especially if you’ve been living in a cramped space without these storage luxuries. While it’s true that these spaces can be a lifesaver for storing decor, off-season clothing, or unused furniture, they may not always be the best choice for certain items.
Depending on the insulation, heating and cooling, and climate control in these common storage areas, it may actually be doing your things more harm than good to be kept in these places. Here are a few things you should not store in the garage, basement, or attic–and choose a climate-controlled storage unit instead with Green River WY Storage.
Valuable Wood Furniture and Instruments
Wood, with all its beauty and durability, is extremely sensitive to humidity and the climate, with the wood shrinking or expanding depending on the dryness or wetness of the room it is kept in. Antique furniture, with all its history and use, needs to be protected from the elements to make it to the next generation.
The most important furniture to protect is most certainly wooden musical instruments like pianos, guitars, and other stringed instruments like violins and cellos. A small fluctuation in the humidity, over an extended period of months or years, could damage these instruments beyond repair–and even if they could be brought back to playable quality, could cost a small fortune to restore.
Electronic Equipment
Because of the amount of money you probably have invested in your electronics, this may be one of the most important categories for you to make sure you are storing correctly. Moisture buildup can sneak into electronics slowly. Even a small amount of time spent in moisture could cause your electronics to short circuit when you turn them back on. For longer periods of time, rusting becomes an issue also.
Important Paperwork
We all know that paperwork is already a bit fragile, especially those older pieces of paper, which is why you don’t want to take any chances with your important paperwork deteriorating due to the elements.
Leather Furniture and Clothing
Leather is an investment that, when cared for properly, can become more beautiful and useful with age. However, time spent in humidity fluctuations can cause leather furniture or clothing to shrink, warp, and thin out. Don’t let this happen to your timeless leather pieces–use storage that will keep the humidity the same throughout the weather fluctuations of the year.
Artwork
It may seem like art is somewhat durable, especially those pieces that we can see in museums from hundreds of years ago–but that’s not true! Preserved artwork has been meticulously cared for, and even if your artwork doesn’t include a valuable piece, it probably still holds sentimental value, and you’ll want to make sure it’s protected from the elements!
There are many other things that could be added to this list, but these are some of the most common that well-meaning homeowners place in their home storage areas, not realizing that being stored at home is actually doing more harm than good. Even a week of travel on your part, and a lowered or raised thermostat while you’re gone, could wreak havoc on some of these items.
It is well worth the investment to procure a climate-controlled storage unit, where these items can be safely kept until needed, easily accessible, but most of all–climate controlled. If you are worried about some of the items in your storage area, give the experts here at Self Assured Storage a call–it’s our speciality and our pleasure!
