There’s plenty to get excited over when you’re planning a home renovation. Visions of new kitchens, updated bathrooms, or a finished basement, the sky’s the limit when you’re imagining how your home’s going to look once you’ve gotten all the improvements you want. However, the practical reality of living through a major home improvement project quickly sets in. But it isn’t just the noise or the schedule you have to live with while the work’s going on. There’s also the dust, debris, and the constant shuffle of trying to protect your possessions to deal with on top of everything else. Fortunately, there is a solution to that last issue, and one that many savvy homeowners now consider essential. The ultimate renovation hack isn’t the right power tool or a design trend that’ll add a finishing touch to your home; it’s securing your belongings with self-storage.
You have to remember that a renovation zone is an unpredictable environment. Dust has an annoying habit of travelling well away from the work area, and then settling deep into upholstery, electronics, and bookshelves. Paint splatters, stray hammer swings, and the movement of heavy materials pose a constant threat to your furniture, objets d’art, and personal keepsakes. And the common “solution” of piling everything into a spare room or covering it with plastic sheets isn’t always sufficient. This method, often referred to as the room-to-room shuffle, clogs up your living space, creates obstacles for your family, and turns your home into a stressful obstacle course while you’re juggling those ongoing renovations. As a method of protecting your items, it often fails to do just against the pervasive grit and potential for accidental damage.
But by moving your belongings off-site to a secure Oshawa storage unit instead, you’re taking your items away from your home turned construction site, and away from potential damage. More than that, you’re providing your renovation team with the single most valuable asset they need on the job: a clear, unobstructed workspace. Imagine your contractors being able to work freely without navigating stacks of boxes or carefully manoeuvring around a heavy sofa. This clear blank slate allows for greater efficiency, precision, and (most important of all) safety. Work can often proceed faster, now that time isn’t lost moving and re-covering your possessions. It simplifies every task, from laying new flooring that needs to span several metres to painting walls from top to bottom.
And best of all, implementing this strategy involves just a few straightforward steps:
Analyse and Plan
Begin by walking through the rooms designated for renovation. Take this time to identify what’s most at risk, and needs be moved into storage for protection. While you’re at it, this step also provides a golden opportunity to declutter some items you no longer need to free up space once the renovations are finished.
Choose Your Space
Selecting the right self-storage unit is key to choosing one that’s a good fit for your needs. Units come in various sizes, from a small closet better suited for boxes to a larger space of several square metres capable of holding the contents of an entire living room. It’s also good to note that there are different storage units for different purposes. For example, electronics, wood furniture, or artwork do well in a climate-controlled unit that can protect them against fluctuations in temperature and humidity.
Pack with Care
Sturdy boxes, packing tape, and protective materials are a wise investment for giving your things adequate protection. Wrap furniture in blankets or specialized covers to prevent scratches. Disassemble larger pieces (such as bed frames) and keep all the small hardware (screws, bolts) in clearly labelled bags.
Move and Organize
As with loading heavy objects, larger, heavier items belong on the bottom. Ideally, you should leave a small aisle down the centre of the unit to allow yourself access to items at the back when you need it. For ease of identification, label your boxes beforehand so you can identify their contents at a glance.
While your Toronto building maintenance project focuses on transforming your home’s physical structure, using self-storage gives you peace of mind as that happens. So rather than stress and worry over the possibility of damage to your belongings, you have instead stored them in a remote location where that can’t happen. Knowing your belongings are clean, safe, and secure allows you to focus on the exciting project at hand and give the renovation your full attention. When the final coat of paint is dry and the tools are packed away, you can bring your items back into a pristine, new space, making the moment of the move-in all the more satisfying.
