Solutions for Decluttering Your Self Storage Unit This Summer

Even though the point of having a self storage unit is to declutter at home, sometimes self storage units themselves can become cluttered, messy, and totally chaotic. To avoid this and to keep your storage unit as pristine and organized as the first day you got it.

Today we’re going to go over some tips for decluttering your self storage.

4 Tips For Decluttering Your Self Storage

1. Take Time to Organize

One of the main reasons people’s self storage units in Vancouver get out of control is because life is busy and who has time to keep a storage unit organized? But taking those extra 20 minutes to keep things organized is going to pay off in a big way down the road.

If it is the end of a season and you are switching out holiday decorations or sporting gear, for example, take the little bit of extra time to ensure you are putting them in the correct rubber storage bins. Then, when you need them next year, you won’t waste half a day trying to find them!

2. Schedule regular decluttering sessions

One of the reasons that people get storage units is because they have a hard time letting go of things. So many of us have that habit of saying “I’ll use this one day” to every length of string, tool, or countless other random things. (Also included in this category is the “I’ll fix this one day” for every broken appliance, flickering lamp, and electronic device that’s on the fritz.)

So we get a self storage unit and proceed to load it up with all these stray things… but then it’s out of sight and out of mind, and suddenly years go by and you are left wondering why you’ve held on to this stuff in the first place. And then you head back to your storage unit to find it a cluttered mess!

The solution? Visit your storage unit a few times a year and move things onto the discard pile. Ask yourself: have I used this year? If the answer is no, move it along to the donation pile or even try to sell it to make some extra cash. This way your storage unit will be regularly decluttered, keeping it nice and minimal to only the essentials.

3. Keep it clear

We see it all too often that people load up their self storage units in Vancouver with black plastic garbage bags full of clothes and shoes, and rubber totes without labels.

To keep your storage unit from getting cluttered, it’s a great idea to use clear bins (as in see-through), and to write labels with lots of information on totes. Include as much information as your can think of:

1. Sports Gear: ball gloves, tennis rackets / Summer 2021
2. Xmas Decorations: lights, tree, wrapping paper / Dec 2020

Keeping track this way will make it easier to add to your storage unit, as well as when you need to retrieve things later on down the road.

4. Follow Your Plan

So many people have a great plan when they first get their units. They draw maps, keep a running list taped to the wall, install shelves, stack bins, and vow keeps things clean and tidy. But then… the plan, and the unit collect dust, and clutter builds up, too.

If you want to have an organized, clutter-free storage unit, try your hardest to stick to your initial plan. If your unit is for inventory for your business or old paperwork, file things in the order you first set out with. Whether that’s with the biggest, heaviest stuff at the back and working toward the front, or moving things through a series of cabinets. Whatever your system is, be sure to stick to it!

Even those with the best of intentions, who start out nice and clean, can end up with a disastrous and cluttered self-storage unit over time. All the tips on this list basically stem from the same idea — taking those few extra steps and that little bit of extra to keep things organized. It might seem like a hassle to label things and to clear an extra hour in your calendar a few times a year, but you won’t regret it when the time comes to find what you’re looking for!

If you have any questions about self-storage in Vancouver, we are always on stand-by to answer them.