Do you feel the crispness in the air? Fall is here and winter is hot on its tail. That means that soon you’ll need all those winter clothes that you packed away only months ago. It also means that you need to prepare all your lightweight summer clothes for storage during the long winter months. You never want to store your clothes in a damp part of your home like an attic or basement. Moisture is enemy number one for natural fibers. Pests and bugs that thrive in such environments are the next worse enemies to your favorite clothes. If you’re not already using one, a climate controlled unit at The Lock Up Self Storage facility near you is the perfect place to store all your summer clothes and shoes. The units at The Lock Up are clean, safe and protected from wild fluctuations in temperature and humidity. Below you’ll find tips on how to switch your closet from a summer vibe to a winter vibe with ease.

• The first thing you’ll want to do is haul out your winter gear from storage. Go through each item and quickly determine if it’s a keeper or something that you won’t wear anymore and can be donated. Ideally, these items should have been assessed while packing them away last spring, but you’ll have fresh eyes so many months later, so your wardrobe is worth a once over. These items also should have been cleaned before storing them. But on the off chance they haven’t been, or the bug deterrent sachets have scented them too heavily, be sure to wash or dry clean the items before integrating them back into your closet. Once you’ve removed all your winter clothes from their storage containers, make sure the boxes are clean. This is where you’ll put all your summer goodies when they’re ready.
• Go through your closets and dressers, pulling all clothes that you won’t need until next spring. Shorts, dresses, skirts, bathing suits, and summery printed shirts are all prime candidates. Don’t forget about shoes too. You’d be amazed how much closet space you gain by storing sandals, thongs and wedges.
• Assess each item. If you haven’t worn it in a year, or it’s worse for the wear, place it in the donation pile that you started with your winter gear.
• Thoroughly wash &/or dry clean all your items. This will remove any dirt or body odor that attracts bugs. It will also kill any possible hitchhiking larvae, removing all possibility of you opening up your summer clothes next spring only to find they’ve been destroyed.
• Pack your shoes in one box. Pack all your clothes into the rest of your containers, placing heavier items on the bottom and lighter items on top. Try to lay items as flat as possible to protect the fabric. Or, try rolling your clothes so as to eliminate fold creases altogether.
• Place an all natural moth/bug sachet into the boxes. Lavender sachets and cedar oil are effective and not detrimental to your clothes. It’s also a good idea to throw a couple of those desiccant gel packs into the boxes to keep moisture at a minimum. *Tip: if you think you don’t have any desiccant packs on hand, check some of your vitamin bottles and you might be surprised how many you end up with.
• Label your boxes with the season. If you have children, it’s a good idea to also label the boxes with sizes and possibly keep boys and girls separate.

Bring your containers to your Lock Up Self Storage unit and put them in an accessible place. You definitely want to be able to easily get at your summer clothes just in case you book that fantastic trip to Hawaii in the dead of winter. Stay warm!

For more information on climate controlled storage units at The Lock Up Self Storage facility nearest you, call 1-866-327-LOCK.

We sometimes find ourselves needing to pack up and store electronic devices. It’s important to realize that there’s a correct way to store delicate electronics. Cold, damp conditions wreak havoc on solder joints inside of electronics, causing rust and cracking. This is not what you want for your circuit boards. Those delicate connections are what keep your electronics running smoothly. It’s best to protect them from any conditions that could compromise them. The Lock Up has climate controlled units that provide the perfect environment for your valuable electronic items. Not only that, they are clean, safe and secure as well. If you’re looking to store your printer, computer or home entertainment system for any length of time, be sure to rent a climate controlled Lock Up storage unit near you.

Before placing any of your electronics into your Lock Up storage unit, you will need to do some prep work to ensure that your items remain in tip top condition. Here are some packing tips that will save you from ruining your electronics while in storage:

• Purchase silica gel packets to pack in the boxes with your electronics. These act as desiccants and will absorb any moisture that may occur. You can also save up the silica gel packs that come in vitamins or packaged electronics for this purpose.
• Remove all detachable wires and cords to protect the connections from damage. Use twist ties to keep cords tidy. Wrap some painter’s tape around each wire or cord and write what piece of equipment they belong to so that you don’t have to play a game of mix and match when you retrieve your items from storage. Keep all wires and cords in one clearly labeled box.
• Don’t wrap your electronics in plastic! This traps moisture and encourages it to collect inside of your electronics. Instead, wrap them in old sheets or towels. This will also protect them from scratches.
• Be sure to take out any batteries. You don’t want leaking battery acid to ruin your items.
• Remove all media storage items such as CDs, DVDs, tapes, and SD or compact flash cards. Keep these all together in one clearly labeled box. And, be sure to back up any internal hard drives before storage.
• If you’re placing multiple items in one box, be sure to provide extra padding between them to keep items from damaging each other. Packing popcorn or crumpled newspaper works well.
• Inside your storage unit, stack your boxes according to weight. This will protect lighter, more fragile items from being crushed.

While climate controlled storage units provide the best protection to your electronics, be aware that any rapid heating or cooling can create the dreaded condensation that is just as destructive as storing your items in a cold, damp environment. Try to maintain an even temperature while transporting your electronics to or from your Lock Up storage unit. If that’s simply not possible, allow hot items to cool and cold items to warm up before powering them up.

Call 1-866-327-LOCK to find a Lock Up Self Storage facility near you.

Some of us are lucky enough to have inherited antique textiles that were made by ancestors long, long ago. To receive a quilt or sampler that was made by the hands of one’s great-great grandmother is not only receiving a piece of world history, it’s also the opportunity to get a glimpse into one’s own personal history. Gifts like this should be both treasured and preserved for future generations. If you have a family heirloom that is an antique textile in your possession, first, consider yourself fortunate, and second, be sure to take the proper measures to safely store your ancestor’s work. Storing your precious textile in a climate controlled Lock Up Self Storage facility near you will ensure that it will last many more lifetimes by providing the optimal conditions necessary for textile storage.

The climate controlled Lock Up Self Storage facilities provide you with the perfect cool, dark, dry, and clean environment to store valuable textiles. However, environment is only part of the recipe for successfully storing heirloom textiles. Here are some procedures that should be followed before placing your items into your Lock Up Self Storage unit:

1. Clean your textile. Dust particles can actually act like abrasives to the delicate fibers in textiles, cutting through them. Washable items should be gently washed, leaving them unironed, unstarched and unblued. If washing is not an option, try to remove as much dust from the item with a weak hand vacuum using a screen to protect the item, or by gently shaking it out.
2. Wrap in clean white cotton. Your textiles should have no direct contact with wood, plastics, tissue or other wrapping paper. These items contain acids that are destructive to textiles. It’s best to use clean white cotton cloths such as bed sheets or pillow cases to gently wrap textiles. Don’t pack them too tightly or place in airtight containers as fibers need air movement to prevent moisture issues.
3. Store your items flat. Folds will compromise fibers over time, causing breakage. If you must fold, be sure to pad any sharp creases with clean cotton strips. When a piece is taken out of storage, care should be taken to re-fold the item differently when returning it to storage so that the fold creases do not deepen over time. For particularly fragile items, cover a cardboard tube with clean muslin and roll your fabric around it. This will effectively prevent destructive creases.
4. Store away from light. Both sunlight and indoor fixture lighting are damaging to natural cellulous fibers (think: linen and cotton) as well as animal fibers (think: wool and silk).

Following these simple steps and storing your heirloom textiles in a climate controlled Lock Up Self Storage facility will keep them safe and sound for future generations.

Have you used a Lock Up Self Storage unit to store any family heirlooms? Please tell us about it! If you would like to use The Lock Up to store family heirloom textiles, call 1-866-327-LOCK.