How To Save Money Whilst Renting A Storage Unit

Have you and your bank balance developed a negative relationship recently? We all know that the cost of living isn’t cheap and all of the little things like your weekly food shop add up. 

 

Think about everything you’re currently paying for and what you can cut out – most of us are all guilty of paying for a membership of some kind that we don’t actually use. 

 

But what about that storage unit that is half empty? 

Of course, you need the space to store your valuable items, but are you utilising the whole space?

 

 Storage units come in an array of sizes, so there’s a possibility you could downsize to save yourself some money. Check out our tips below to see how you can start saving for your trip to the bahamas…

 

1.  Check What Size Unit You Really Need

Storage units come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and a lot of people don’t actually know what the dimensions of a unit means. As a result, there are masses of people out there paying for space they don’t actually need. 

 

That’s why you should write a list of all of the items you are wanting to store to get a rough idea of how much space you need. Then you can really see what size storage unit you need. Storage facilities know their stuff and they can really a`help you in deciding what size storage unit you need. Then, you know you really are paying for what you get.

2. Downsize (If You Can)

If you are currently storing items with a storage facility, it’s worth popping over to your unit to see how much space you have left in there. If your unit is full to the brim, consider if there are any items that you don’t need anymore and could get rid of.

If not – maybe cancelling your once used gym membership is an option.

 

However, if you find that there’s enough space to fit a car in your unit, then what are you waiting for? Speak to a member of staff at the facility and talk about downsizing your unit. That way you can save money and utilise the space you have properly. 

3. Pack Efficiently

 

Believe it or not but packing efficiently can actually save you a lot of space – packing one small item into a large box will only take up more room in your unit. By choosing the right packing materials, you can wrap your materials securely and efficiently. This means that you reduce the risk of needing a larger storage unit to fit your poorly packaged items in. Not only that, but if you pack efficiently you can save money on buying packing materials. 

 

Below is some advice on how to pack items correctly:

 

• Hang clothes to reduce creases – if you want to pack them in a box, fold them properly. Not only will this reduce creases but it will also save space.
• Wrap breakable items in bubble wrap and secure with cellotape. Then place these in cardboard boxes and secure with duct tape. This will reduce the possibility of any damage. Make sure to label the box as fragile too so that you remember to be careful with is when it comes to unpacking it.
• Dissemble all large items such as furniture and keep all small parts like screws together in a plastic bag. This way you will be saving space.
• Wrap your homeware items in plastic sheets and tie them shut.
• Wrap books in paper before piling them into your boxes.
• Don’t overload your boxes – if you pack too much into your boxes then they will be too heavy to lift which will make the moving in process a lot harder. Plus, there’s only so much weight a box can carry and you certainly don’t want all your hard work going to waste by breaking a box.
• If you have any space left in your boxes, fill them with light material such as packing peanuts or tissue paper – this way, items won’t move around so much.

4. Sort your unit

Not only does how you pack your items save space, but so does how you store them. Think of it as tetrus – you can fit more items in if they fit together well. Our advice is to:

 

Stack similar items together

Put shelves in your unit to separate items

 

5. Bag a deal

Now it’s time to put your investigation skills to test and look around for a good deal.

 

It’s always worth speaking to your storage unit company to see what they can do for you. Some companies offer deals on their larger units and might offer you a deal if you are storing with them for a long time. By seeing what deal is best, even if it means saving as little as £1 a month, it all adds up and you’ll be saving money in the long run.