Summertime Ottawa Self-Storage Tips

“Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” – William Morris

Summer is the best time to clear out clutter from your house and garage. The kids will be home for the summer and will need space for activities and sleepovers. Having a tidy home and yard will make you feel like taking advantage of the nice weather to entertain and have friends and family over more.

Summer, particularly, is a good time to regroup and take inventory and simplify your life – whether it’s because you’ll be travelling, have a student coming home for the summer, or want to get rid of things you don’t need to create a more serene space. Perhaps you’re thinking of renovating or putting your home on the market. These are all good, practical reasons for de-cluttering. But where will it all go? Self-storage offers a terrific way to quickly and efficiently deal with clutter and make the best use of your space.

What’s Helpful & Convenient About Self Storage?

Let’s take a look at some of the many reasons to consider the convenience and practicality of self-storage over the summer.

De-Cluttering

Strategies for decluttering are everywhere. Minimalism and the value of living with less is coming from gurus like Marie Kondo in her book”The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.” They encourage us to consider whether our belongings have taken over. Could your life be better with less stuff?

Everyone wants their yard and house to be inviting and fresh for the season. Summer is a great time to pack away all the bulky seasonal items that you won’t be using until winter. These things take up a lot of room and self-storage is the solution for tidying up your house, yard and garage.  Common seasonal items might include:

• Winter clothing
• Snow blowers
• Shovels
• Holiday decorations
• Snowmobile
• Winter tires

When the warm weather hits, you want to be able to access bikes, folding chairs, wading pools and other summer gear. An organized garage definitely makes this easier. So, first you need to clear out the winter stuff to make space and organize so you are summer ready. Whatever you need to keep for winter can be put in storage.

Ottawa winters offer plenty of opportunities for winter sports, like hockey, snowboarding and skiing. But that means you probably have some equipment taking up a lot of space, especially for families. A self-storage unit allows you to set this stuff aside.

Some sports items to put in summer storage include:   

• Snowboards
• Skates
• Helmets
• Ski equipment/boots/poles
• Sleds

Travelling for the summer

If you are at the cottage or on vacation, you don’t want to have to worry about valuables at home. Make sure your things are safe while you’re out of town. Maybe you’ll be renting out your space while you’re away? You might not want to leave your boat, second vehicle or RV in the driveway. Self-storage can handle these large items too!

Studying out of town

Maybe you are a student who will be elsewhere for the summer. Then, you’ll need to store a lot of furniture, books, and supplies. A self-storage unit can be a real help. Perhaps they’ll be studying abroad or leaving town for an internship and subletting an apartment. Putting these things in storage is less hassle and less costly than moving them all back home, or worse, giving them up, things such as:

• Furniture
• Bedding
• Decor
• Electronics
• Bulky winter clothing
• Winter sports equipment–skis, hockey gear, etc.
• Textbooks/school supplies

Renovating

A big problem with renovations is that they are stressful, time-consuming and often quite messy. You wouldn’t want your furniture, china, books and valuable decor getting damaged during the process. You also don’t want to tie up the rest of the space in your home with these things, so one solution is self-storage. Your possessions will be clean and fresh when you are ready to put them back.

Putting your home on the summer real estate market and thinking of downsizing

Summer is traditionally the best time to sell your house. Any real estate agent will tell you, for your home to look its best for viewing, you must purge and put away personal belongings, like family photos and heirlooms. Storing some of these valuables that you don’t want to part with permanently makes sense. It will help your home appear tidy and clean and hopefully will help it sell faster. If you plan to move, you can store your furniture until you can assess your needs in the new space. Self-storage offers a convenient solution both for selling and moving.

Entertaining

Maybe you’ll be having friends and family visiting over the summer.  Or perhaps, a student in the family is coming back for the school break. If so, you’ll need to clear out miscellaneous items that have been accumulating. A storage unit allows you to clear out a room quickly and create that needed extra space. Luckily, self-storage makes it easy.

Some Easy Tips for Getting Started

What’s the best way to get started with getting what you need out of the house and into storage?

1. Take inventory and collect items into categories; group like things together
2. Clean things up so they’ll be ready to use when you pull them out
3. Pack up smaller items in tubs, clear containers or sturdy reusable boxes
4. Cover larger items with tarps
5. Label everything so it will be easy to find

It’s always easier to break up a larger project into smaller tasks. Once you’ve accomplished these steps, you’ll be ready to bring your items into self-storage.

Count on Acceptable Storage in Ottawa

Let’s face it, Ottawa summers are short!  You don’t want to spend them hunting for the things you need. Summer is a time to enjoy and make fun memories with your family. Being organized means your yard, house and garage will be more useable and all your summer stuff will be more accessible.

Self-storage is a surprisingly simple way to make your summer stress-free and a whole lot easier. Contact us today to find out more and to arrange your storage space!