Our Comprehensive Guide to Keeping Seasonal Items in a Storage Unit in Cincinnati
Do you have enough room in your house to keep items you only use for part of the year? Have you been collecting holiday items or pool toys that no longer fit in your shed or garage?
A storage unit in Cincinnati can help you with seasonal items that don’t fit into your dwelling anymore. We have eight locations, including drive-up storage and climate-controlled facilities, to help meet your needs.
Read our complete guide on how to manage seasonal items in a storage unit for the best results.
1. Planning Your Seasonal Storage
First, assess what needs to be stored, whether it’s clothing, outdoor furniture, or holiday decorations. Group your items by category, and consider how frequently you use them to determine where they should go in your storage unit or if they should go to storage in the first place.
We recommend investing in proper storage containers, such as clear plastic bins for visibility or vacuum-sealed bags for clothing to save space. Label each container clearly so you know what’s in them. Consider a climate-controlled storage unit in Cincinnati for sensitive items like electronics or delicate fabrics.
Map out where your items should be placed in storage. For example, keep winter clothing and gear closer to hand as colder months approach. Utilize shelving or racks to maximize vertical space when organizing your storage unit. If you’re storing outdoor equipment, like lawnmowers or grills, empty all lawnmowers and grills of gas or propane before placing them in storage.
2. Clothing
Storing seasonal clothing in a storage unit requires careful preparation to ensure garments remain in good condition. If it’s time to trade out your summer swimsuits for winter coats, a storage unit in Cincinnati is perfect for keeping your closet spaces free of clutter for several months.
Choose high-quality storage containers, such as plastic bins with tight-fitting lids or specialized garment bags, to protect clothes from dust and moisture. Vacuum-sealed bags can save space in your storage unit and in bins. However, they might damage some fabrics over time.
We highly recommend a climate-controlled storage unit in Cincinnati to maintain a consistent range of temperature and humidity levels. This is especially true for items like wool, silk, or leather, which can be susceptible to changes in temperature. They can degrade if you’re storing them for a lengthy period of time.
Avoid using cardboard boxes for long-term storage, as they can attract pests or absorb moisture. Additionally, never store clothing directly on the floor. Instead, use shelves or pallets to elevate your items.
Remember, seasonal storage is often short-term storage for just a few months. So, you should check on your clothing regularly. Consider packing similar items together, like coats, gloves, hats, and sweaters. A mobile clothing rack on wheels is perfect for storing items that need hangers.
3. Seasonal Decorations
You decided to have a bigger Christmas this year, which means more holiday decorations all over the house and even outside. But you didn’t realize how much space your inflatable Santa takes up!
Just like there are different types of Christmas decorations, there are also various kinds of ways to store them. Consider a large plastic tub for your artificial Christmas tree. Stackable bins with compartments and handles are perfect for ornaments. There are also specialized plastic bins with handles for wreaths of various sizes.
Fragile items like glass ornaments should be wrapped in tissue paper or bubble wrap to prevent breakage. For lights, use cord reels or wrap them neatly around cardboard to prevent tangling so you can easily unroll them when it’s time to put them back on the tree.
You want your Christmas decorations to last as long as possible. That’s why you should get specialized bins and storage solutions before putting these items in a storage unit.
Sort items by type, such as ornaments, lights, wreaths, and garlands. Clean them to remove dust, pet dander, or debris before putting them into a storage unit in Cincinnati.
Climate control is important when storing winter holiday decorations, especially for items sensitive to temperature or humidity, such as candles, electronics, or delicate materials like fabric stockings. Store wreaths and garlands in dedicated containers to maintain their shape, and avoid placing heavy items on top of delicate decorations to prevent crushing.
4. Outdoor Equipment & Furniture
Your pool, patio, or deck offers a way to spend more time outdoors when the weather is nice. As the calendar turns to fall and winter, you might want to store your outdoor furniture rather than take up space at your home.
Your patio or deck furniture is designed to withstand colder temperatures. However, you might not have enough room at your home to store them. And you want them to last as long as possible. A seasonal storage unit helps you keep your closets, shed, or garage free from clutter when you don’t need outdoor equipment or furniture for a few months.
Remove the legs of tables if you have space considerations in your storage unit in Cincinnati. Otherwise, you can use tables as a foundation for stacking items. Consider investing in stackable chairs, too, that are easy to move and keep in storage.
5. Sports Gear
Sports in Cincinnati are often seasonal, especially when they are outdoors. When it’s winter, store your sports gear alongside other seasonal items. Consider baseball or softball equipment, football pads, helmets, and cleats, as well as tennis rackets, nets, and balls.
Sports gear is relatively easy to keep in storage in Cincinnati. Clean dirt, grime, and dust off several items. Consider keeping gear in specialized bags. For example, baseball and softball gear often have their own bags that are safe for the outdoors. They should be made of sturdy material that can withstand the elements for a few months in storage.
6. Gardening Tools & Supplies
You take pride in maintaining your lush outdoor space with blooms, fruits and vegetables, and your decorative plants. Shovels, hoes, planters, pots, trowels, wire, and all of your gardening tools help keep your greenery in order. Mechanical equipment, like tillers, make your gardening easier. Do you have bags of potting soil or mulch? If you have limited space on your property, self-storage in Cincinnati comes through for you in a pinch.
Clean off gardening tools before storing them. Wash off dirt and grime with water, and then dry thoroughly before putting items in the storage unit. Keep bags of items in their original containers, if possible, especially with dirt, mulch, gravel, and other loose items.
It’s vitally important to remove any fluids from gas-powered gardening equipment before putting it in a storage unit in Cincinnati. So, drain the gasoline, oil, and any other lubricants.
7. Climate-Controlled Storage Considerations
Several types of seasonal items might do better with climate-controlled storage in Cincinnati. Holiday decorations, like an artificial Christmas tree, garland, wreaths, and ornaments, might do better and last longer. Indoor decorations should probably stay in an indoor environment as much as possible. If your wreaths are made of natural materials, they should stay indoors.
8. Maximizing Storage Space
Stack your items, when possible, to maximize vertical space in the storage unit in Cincinnati. Put tables at the bottom since they are probably the heaviest, and you can stack lightweight items on them. For example, you have an outdoor table. You can turn the matching chairs upside-down with the backs hanging over the side of the table to save horizontal space in the storage unit. Make sure it is safe to do this!
If you have folding chairs or items that can be made more compact, do that to save space. This includes any removable legs or arms. Save any hardware, like nuts and bolts, in a plastic zipper bag so they don’t get lost.
9. Safety Tips
Seasonal items often mean moving them to and from storage when the weather may not be the best. Review the weather forecast, and choose a day when the weather isn’t rainy or snowy to take your items out of storage.
Have a buddy help you, especially when you have a lot of items or heavy items. Someone helping you can make the move in and out of storage easier. You won’t have to overexert yourself!
Don’t overstack things. Yes, take advantage of the vertical space in your storage unit in Cincinnati. But you don’t want to stack things too much above your head. When you stack items, they shouldn’t be leaning against a wall or be able to shift in any way.
Talk to Us About a Storage Unit in Cincinnati
Circle Storage has eight convenient locations for self-storage in Ohio, including three new state-of-the-art facilities in Blue Ash, Springdale, and West Chester. Contact us to see what’s available. We may also have move-in specials or deals to help make your storage costs easier.