Mar
01

Discover the Best Ways to Store Your Seasonal Items During Winter

Did you know that 10% of households in the United States use climate-controlled self-storage units to keep their things safe? If you live in a place where winter temperatures drop below freezing, it is important to keep your seasonal items from getting damaged by the cold.

Even if your items are not vulnerable to the cold, you may want to store them and get them organized until the warmer months return. Take a look at some of the summer items we think you should consider putting in storage during the colder months. 

We will also talk about how cold temperatures might damage some materials and how storing them in a climate-controlled storage unit will ensure they're protected against changes in temperature and humidity. 

If you don’t want to spring for a climate-controlled storage unit, keep reading to learn more about our favorite ways to store seasonal items during the winter.

Summer Items You Should Store During the Winter

As was previously noted, it's common practice to store seasonal decorations, clothing, and other items that aren't practical during the winter. Putting away seasonal items is a terrific way to free up space in your house. 

Here's a list of seasonal items that can and should be stored for the season.

1. Lawn Equipment

The lawnmower can stay outside in the warm months, but it needs to be put away for the cold season. Make sure you remember to winterize your lawn mower before storing it. Otherwise, a deep freeze could cause significant damage to your lawn mower.

2. Outdoor Recreational Items

A motorcycle or all-terrain vehicle (ATV) is probably not something you'll be riding this winter if you live in an area that regularly sees large amounts of snow and ice. So tuck them away till spring.

You can also put away your skateboards, bicycles, and other recreational items until the summer. Use a tarp, a bike rack, a wall mount, or a hook to keep your bike out of the snow this winter. 

Be sure to keep the bike's tires inflated, but don't put any weight on them, and you'll be good to go for as long as you need to store it. Make sure the cables are well lubricated before putting them away.

3. Summer Clothing

Put away your summer clothes to make room in your home. Label the bins you pack clothes into based on the season and the type of use they will get. If you do this, you'll be prepared for cooler weather or a trip to the mountains—or even a midwinter vacation to a warmer climate. 

While sorting up the family's off-season attire, it can be helpful to store similar items together in the same containers, as they will likely all be needed at the same time. Clothing should be stored in the same container, but in separate, smaller bags for each individual.

4. Patio Furniture

Before putting your patio set away for the winter, clean it well so that mildew and mold don't grow on it. To clean vinyl or plastic furniture, simply use a sponge, dish soap, and hot water. It is recommended to clean wicker and wood furniture with oil soap and then apply a paste wax made specifically for furniture.

Use a wire brush to remove rust from metal furniture and then polish it with paste wax to preserve it. Cleaning canvas furniture requires the use of an upholstery cleaner. Put your outdoor furniture in a storage container, garage, or shed for the winter. To keep the cushions dry and clean, use fitted covers and secure the covers with ties.

Tips for Storing Seasonal Items
 

1. Labeled Clear Bins

Organize before storing seasonal items. Store seasonal things in transparent bins. Seasonally, sort everything.

Clear storage containers allow you to see what's inside before you open them. Label each bin with its season. Colored bins are an alternative to clear containers.

Color-code bins by season for organization. Winter goods go in blue bins. Green bins can hold spring goods.

It doesn't matter how you organize if it works for you.

2. Use the Same Bins for Everything

Before buying storage bins, estimate how much seasonal stuff you have and how many bins you'll need. Use the same bins for everything. To stack, containers should be the same size.

Different bins might not stack well. This can make packing and retrieving objects harder and cause organizational challenges. Use the brick approach to stack bins. Instead of stacking bins, imagine a brick wall.

The brick approach works well for uniform containers. This lets you pull one bin out of the wall without knocking over the others. It also eliminates the need to remove multiple bins.

3. Go Through Everything, Every Season

Everyone knows spring cleaning is crucial. Go through your house and get rid of whatever you don't use. Spring cleaning is important for purging, but seasonal items should be done every season.

Before putting things away, do an inventory. What did you use and leave unused that season? Will you reuse those?

Have you bought new seasonal things and stored the old ones in boxes? Wipe out your bins and inventory everything you used each season. To free up storage space, get rid of unused items.

4. Keep Storage Space Neat and Tidy

The last tip we have for you about putting things away is to always put things back the way you found them. It's tempting to throw your seasonal items quickly into the right bins and slam the lids shut. 

When the next season comes and you need to get into those bins, you'll have a mess on your hands. If you don't put things back the right way, you might not even be able to put everything in its place. Take the extra time to fold lights and other things neatly.

When it's time to open those bins again, you'll be glad you did.

By: Ira Ramos