This is all personal experience, mixed with some reading and research. If you have any more questions or think there are something wrong with any of it, please shoot me an email [email protected]. Thanks!

Why get a storage unit

I personally ran out of room and my parents are tired of seeing my shoe boxes and they keep falling down in the room in the middle of the night. If your wife hates or don’t have the room it’s cool to have one too haha,  but it’s normally dark and cool in there so really ideal storage for shoes.

On climate control and temperature

I would personally only get a unit with climate control, meaning the temperature is kept at constant all season; mine is around 70 in the summer and 55 in the winter. The temperature is very important to keep your shoes intact, especially older shoes, and prevent mold. Constant temperature is also very important to keep a constant humidity level. AC keeps the air moving, no stale air in the facility is good for shoes.

On a side note, the really only good way to keep older shoes wearable is to wear them, but that’s not what we are talking about today.

On humidity

One thing I hate the most and had prior bad experiences with is mold; it’s just nasty and only can be controlled by having the right temperature and humidity level. General rule of thumb is to keep it under 45%-50% and you should be good.

I also use Damprid, which sucks the humidity out of the air, a little bucket is $2.97 at Home Depot, do some Google searches and see for youself.

I like to get the unit on a higher level like 2^nd or 3^rd, less water contact from rain or whatnot when people walk in; but higher floor also means a little higher temperature. That’s just me though.

You can buy a thermostat and humidity level monitor COMBINED for around $10 at Home Depot, go get one even if you store shoes in your basement or closet, thank me later.

On shelves

I use plastic ones from Home Depot, $40-50, 5 layers, lightweight, easy to take apart. Metal ones are good too, just depending on how long you want to use it and if you are going to be moving in and out. Make sure the shelves you use are ELAVATED off the ground.

On security

I would get the max amount you get at the storage place, but you are putting extra stuff ($$$$) in there make sure you get extra insurance from a third party, State Farm and whatnot.. You have to log everything and price everything. Good to ask about insurance policy before you move in.

I always like to go in when there’s no one there, circle the building or unit a couple times.  If you move a lot of stuff in and out just use a box to carry them in.

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I will add more when I think of it, for any questions or comments you can always reach me at [email protected]. Thanks for reading this.