Help me decide on a storage unit

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m finding myself a little perplexed by what shouldn’t be a difficult decision. I’m trying to figure out how much I should spend on a storage unit and what size to make it.

Here’s the deal. I’m moving into a friend’s condo for six months as sort of an extended house-sitting deal. His place has almost all of the furnishings I need, so, with the exception of my electronics, I’m going to be putting nearly everything I own into storage. Additionally, my girlfriend is going to be moving in with me in about three months, coming from across the country, and although she probably won’t bring much with her, we don’t yet know the extent of what she’ll have in tow.

The things I believe I’ll be putting into storage:
[ul]
[li]My queen-sized bed frame (I will probably need to disassemble it, which means it shouldn’t take up a ton of space)[/li][li]A shelving unit that I really don’t want to dismantle, and it’s maybe 5’x5’x10" (although I might consider giving it away, too)[/li][li]A futon (and its mattress) that is (very) approximately 6’ long, 2-3’ tall and maybe 2-3’ wide[/li][li]A couple of small file cabinets (each two drawers tall by one wide)[/li][li]A desk that disassembles into an 8’ long removable top and two small stands[/li][li]A table that measures about 4’x1.5’ that I think I can take the legs off of[/li][li]A papasan chair and small ottoman[/li][li]A rocking chair and ottoman[/li][li]A tall but narrow bookshelf[/li][li]Anywhere from 10-20 moving boxes[/li][/ul]
Additionally, my girlfriend may be bringing a bookshelf or two, a small desk, her queen bed frame, possibly a treadmill that folds up for storage, and an unknown number of boxes.

Even though I’m decent with arranging things into tight spaces when I have them in front of me, I am not good with spatial visualization for a project like this. While money is a factor to some degree, I can afford to pay a decent amount since I’ll only be using the storage for about seven months. My greatest concern is making sure I’ve got more than enough storage to account for my stuff and the possibility of whatever my girlfriend may bring.

I’ve been focusing on 10x10 spaces, which most storage places say covers a 1- to 2-bedroom apartment. This sounds like it ought to be accomodating enough, but should I err on the side of caution and go up to a 10x15? Or is 10x10 more than enough for all of this, if arranged properly?

Further, prices at these facilities vary quite a bit depending on whether the unit rented is one you can drive up to versus an inside first floor unit versus an inside unit on a different floor that requires an elevator ride. I’ve never had my own storage unit before, and I only plan to really use it three times (once to move my stuff in, once to add her stuff, and once to move all of our stuff out). Does it make a huge difference in labor depending on where your unit is located?

I’ve seen prices on various sites ranging anywhere from $69/month to nearly $300/month depending on the size and the location. I don’t really want to spend more than $150/month, but if someone tells me that I’d be some sort of lunatic to attempt a 10x10 space under the circumstances, I’d consider going higher.

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

2

I worked at a company that rented a storage unit for some stuff. We had the kind of storage unit where you could park right in front of it. That was certainly convenient, but the roll-up door didn’t make a perfect seal at ground level, so dust blew in. So if that’s a concern, make sure everything is under plastic or get an inside unit.

3

Beware of roaches and bed bugs when you move the stuff back and watch out of mice, when you move in. You can find a bunch of chewed up furniture if Mickey and Minnie have a camp near by :slight_smile:

4

Based upon what you describe, a 10x10 should be more than sufficient. Remember you can stack things, just like you would in a moving truck.

5

You know, that’s a really good way of looking at it that hadn’t occurred to me for some reason. I moved to my current place in a 14’ truck that was probably only about 5’ wide and maybe 6’ tall. Those are smaller dimensions than the 10x10x8 I’d be looking at.

Math is hard. :slight_smile:

6

Don’t go by prices on a website. There are all sorts of “fees” that free or discounted months entail. It might be the one room that is dank in the back corner. Call the place directly and ask, then ask if you can get the deal online.

Also, be SURE the place has good insurance, and value your stuff as if you had to replace it all in the event of flood/fire. Some places are dirt cheap and look just fine but lack in the insurance policies and deductibles they offer their tenants.

7

I agree that a 10 x 10 will do it. You can pile a lot of boxes on your filing cabinets, for instance.

Be sure to shop around. We used to have space in the area of a national chain, and when they boosted their prices I found an equal sized space a lot cheaper. Our is down a hallway, which is a bit of a pain but not too bad, and it doesn’t sound like anything you have is all that heavy.

We’ve never had mouse problems, by the way. Do talk to the people running it, and make sure they seem responsible.

8

And don’t forget to get insurance for the stuff if it’s valuable. My friend at work lost all her possessions in a storage company fire because they didn’t have insurance and neither did she.

9

The only storage unit I’ve ever used was at an outdoor drive-up facility (very convenient! they gave me a code to punch in and punch out and had video surveillance of everything, so you could be reasonably assured that your shit would still be there 7 months later). I could have gotten an indoor climate-controlled unit elsewhere, but it was up some stairs and I was moving a futon and boxes of heavy textbooks by myself. It wouldn’t have worked out. Plus it was more expensive that way. I got the smallest unit (5x10 I believe). This was about 5 years ago. It only cost me $35 a month iirc. I would consider a $69/month price tag reasonable, given the size of the unit you want and how much time has elapsed since I had mine.

But yeah, if you want something indoors or climate-controlled, it will naturally be more expensive. Nothing happened to my shit, but there’s no guarantee about yours.

10

I’m not at all surprised that the storage company didn’t have insurance to cover the stuff in a storage unit. Why would they? How can they possibly know how much stuff you have or what it’s worth? I’m expected to have renter’s insurance to cover the stuff in my apartment and I expect I’d have to have my own insurance for stuff I kept in a storage unit.

11

Nothing on that list has any serious monetary value. Little if any has any sentimental value, either. But I’ll look into the insurance issue.

12

I think that I would seriously consider the larger unit. Reasons? Don’t know just how much stuff the SO is bringing…more room means more access…I might have seriously underestimated the volume required to store my stuff…some things don’t really do well stacked…that long desk will really restrain how I can pack stuff…with more room, I’ll have a place to set up a place to go drink beer and watch football.

On second thought, how many of the items that you currently own are ones that you want to store? Perhaps there is an opportunity to divest yourself of goods that you can replace with new goodies?

13

A valid point, and one I’m still contemplating.

14

If none of this is top-quality furniture then I’d get a 10x10 and just sell what doesn’t fit. Maybe a 5x10. Stuff like the shelving and the coffee table you probably won’t regret loosing. The real expense would be if you move into an empty apartment and have to re-buy it all right away, but tables and shelves you can live without for a while.

For the boxes, sort through it and organize by how likely you’ll need to access it. Important stuff goes into storage last, or bring it with you. The less important stuff you might decide you can get rid of.