Five Top Tips for Packing Your Household Goods for Long-Term Storage

Preparing your belongings for self-storage can be stressful. You want to ensure that your belongings are safe and well protected. Find out how you can ensure you’re packing your belongings for long-term storage the right way.

Clothes

Your clothes are one of your biggest investments. You’ll want to ensure they are wearable when you take them out of storage. The best ways to ensure clothes stay safe during long-term storage is:

  • Just say no to plastic
  • Hang your clothes for better care
  • Use all-natural insect repellents

According to Cheap Movers (moving services Las Vegas), many people make the mistake of storing clothes in plastic to protect them from the elements. Unfortunately, this is the opposite of what you want to do. Moisture can make its way under plastic and become trapped inside. Instead, use a breathable garment bag that was designed for storage purposes.

Hang your clothes in your garment bags (as long as the act of hanging won’t stretch them out) to decrease the likelihood of wrinkles and tearing at the seams.

Spray your clothes with essential oils that repel moths and other bugs that might chew holes in your clothes.

 

Appliances

Your appliances might seem like they’d be easy to store, yet you need to prepare them properly for long-term storage. Some of the best ways to do this include:

  • Clean your appliances with water and bleach to ensure no food makes its way inside
  • Defrost your refrigerator and freezer before cleaning to ensure it won’t attract mildew and mold
  • Store your appliances with baking soda to help absorb any moisture or smells

 

Furniture

Keep your furniture safe during its time in storage by placing items on pallets or elevating them above the ground. This allows for additional airflow around these times in the unit. Place moving blankets between your furniture and anything placed on top of its surfaces. Don’t place any liquids on top of your furniture. Keep couches and fabric-covered furniture safe by using dust covers. And of course, most of the damage done to furniture happens during the moving process to or from the actual storage unit. Here are some tips for hiring a moving company that won’t damage your belongings on the way to storage.

 

Belongings

You’ll also want to keep your belongings safe in addition to larger items and clothing. Some tips for keeping other belongings safe include:

  • Pack glass items in sturdy boxes
  • Wrap glass in bubble wrap
  • Store books in a climate-controlled storage unit
  • Use dust covers on TVs and other electronic equipment
  • Pack most boxes by category or room for easy access

 

Storing Items

You want to ensure you can find your belongings when you need to use them in the future. Many people choose to group items by category or room. This is a great plan, but you should also consider when you’ll need to use certain items as well. Some of the best packing tips include:

Group Items By Use

This means you should box up items that you’ll need to use first. Dishes, cups, and cookware should end up in the front of your unit for easy access when you’re unpacking. You’ll also probably want to access your mattress sooner rather than later too.

Heavy Items on the Bottom

Always place heavy items on the bottom. You don’t want the heavier items to collapse the more delicate items beneath them.

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