Self Storage Supplies
Everything you needed to know about Self Storage Supplies
Find out about self storage supplies. Moving can be a very tiring and stressful process and there are many things that need to be considered and organised. Even if you are just relocating across the road or moving to another state, planning is essential to ensure the move goes smoothly and all of your valuables arrive at your new destination in one piece.
If you are planning to move into self storage or straight into a new house, the self storage supplies are essential to make packing and unpacking secure and easy.
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Before you even start packing, you need to make sure that you have all of the packing material ready to go and that you have enough of them so you don’t run out half way through packing. These include –
1. Packaging tape
You can never have enough of packaging tape and strangely it seems to disappear a lot quicker than you would have hoped when moving and packing. If possible, search around in your area for a packaging company that can sell it to you in bulk. Always check the length of the tape as some may seems like a great bargain but they are small rolls so you will go through them the quickest.
All packaging tape is not created equal. Some cheaper rolls can break easy when trying to tape boxes up so ensure you buy from a quality establishment or reputable brand. There is nothing more frustrating than having the tape break on you every 5 minutes.
It’s up to you if you buy clear or brown packaging tape. Please bear in mind though if you are using the tape to wrap other things besides boxes, clear tape will allow you to see more clearly what is inside.
2. Tape Gun
A packaging tape gun is worth its weight in gold when moving and definitely worth the investment. Whilst the noise may be annoying to some, a tape gun will speed up the packing process greatly and will reduce frustrations from having to find the end of the tape continually. If you are budget conscious, this is not one area you should be scrimping on.
3. Scissors and Box Cutters
Scissors will come in handy when having to cut bubble wrap and other materials up. Box cutters are more handy when unpacking boxes when you arrive but they can also be used to cut boxes down to size if needed. Most knives allow you to break the blades off a section at a time to ensure your blade is always sharp. Always keep the exposed blade small when opening boxes to avoid cutting any internal items by accident and as always, keep them out of reach of children.
4. Bubble Wrap
Bubble wrap can be purchased from your local packaging supply outlet or stationery supplier. It’s great to wrap up frames or any awkward sized item. This can also be re used again after you move so if possible try and recycle it.
5. Other Packaging Materials
It may be worth approaching your local department or computer store or something similar as they receive in large quantities foam peanuts, styrofoam, air packaging and other material that would be perfect for packing. Usually, they are just throwing these away so it can be helpful for them to get rid of these. Junk mail colour print material is great for wrapping delicate items so try and stock up on these before your start packing. Try to avoid newspaper if possible as it will get your hands dirty and leave marks on the items that you wrap creating more work for yourself.
6. Existing Items
There are many things in and around your home that needs to be packed that can also double as packaging material during the move. These include blankets, sheets, tea towels, bath towels, pillows, cushions, winter jackets, doonas and soft toys just to name a few. These can make great padding and insulation for fragile items. Please be wary using packaging tape on some of these items as they may leave a sticky residue on the fabric.
Large Tupperware containers, garbage bins and washing baskets can double and great boxes and can be used to secure smaller, more fragile items.
7. Boxes, Boxes and More Boxes
You will need a lot of boxes in varying sizes. Before you start packing make sure you have sizes big enough to fits your largest items and small enough for your more delicate treasures.
You have three options on how you can get boxes. The first one is to buy brand new boxes from a packing supply company. They are usually thicker cardboard and can offer a great range of sizes. If space allows, they can be stored for future moves saving you time and money. We recommend using A1 Bargain Boxes for all of your packaging needs.
Check out websites like Gumtree and other similar sites as they sometimes have people selling or giving away their moving boxes as it can sometimes be hard to dispose of them.
Like the packaging materials, you can also consider approaching your local fruit and vegie shop or supermarket for any old boxes they are planning to throw away. Unfortunately, you are limited by their availability and you need to take whatever size boxes are there at the time. If you know well in advance when you are moving, you may want to make this an extra task during your weekly shopping outing and build up the boxes over a couple of weeks. When packing, make sure the boxes are clean and dry and have no tears in them that might cause the box to break when moving it. This process may be a little more time consuming but will save you a lot of money on buying boxes and if needed can be recycled again or given back to the shop for recycling after your move.
8. Permanent Marker Pen
It’s essential that you mark what is in the box when packing to ensure ease of finding things when unpacking and this will allow you to organise your boxes into different rooms when packing a truck or using a self-storage facility. Always purchase at least 2 pens. Make sure are easy to write with, have a thick tip and are permanent markers as you may be writing over tape which has a plastic finish to it. Ensure that you write on the sides and the top of the boxes so make sure you put the lid on the pen after every box as if they are left exposed for longer periods, they can dry out. Try and rotate pens in between boxes to allow moisture to be replenished in the tip. Always stand the marker up with tip size down and also get in the habit of putting it in the same spot when finished so you are not going crazy trying to find the pens each day.
9. Rope and Bungee cords
These items always come in handy for securing larger items. Whether you have a moving company doing the move for you or you have decided to do it yourself, make sure you have these on hand. They can be used to secure and or tie together bed slats, gardening hoses, gardening tools or larger household items. You may not think that you will need these but you will be surprised when you are actually packing, how handy they can become. Thin rope can also be tied around the odd shaped boxes or items to create a handle to carry them easily.
10. Refrigerator / Stair Trolley
For as low as $11 per 4 hours you can rent a refrigerator or stair trolley from establishments like Bunnings. These trolleys have 3 wheels on the bottom and make light work of getting large items like washing machines, refrigerators and dishwashers down stairs. It could be argued that the hassle of having to go and hire one of these and pick it up is not worth the time but this will greatly minimise any chance of injuries to yourself or family and friends trying to lift very heavy and awkward items down the stairs, not to mention you will decrease the risk of your expensive items getting dropped or damaged.
Having all of these Self Storage Supplies will take the stress out of packing and make your move a little easier!
Don't forget that you need to buy a padlock to secure your container on moving day - click here to find out the best locks to secure your container.
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Member number 51399 of the Self Storage Association
Sunshine Self Storage is a full member of the Self Storage Association of Australasia (SSAA) and have been since 2004! Our Membership Number is 51399 and our current membership certificate is show below.
You can see all our membership certificates since 2004 here.
The SSAA is the Industry Association for Self Storage in Australia and New Zealand. You should never book self storage with any company that is not a member of this group. The SSAA provides legal protection for storers and self storage owners and ensures that every transaction is fair and equitable.