6 Items You Should Store in Climate Controlled Storage

If you live in an area that experiences extreme fluctuations in temperature or humidity, you’ll definitely want to protect these items in climate controlled storage.

1. Photos

While you might keep a lot of your photos in digital form these days, most of us still have piles of printed school photos, family and ancestral photos. These along with scrapbooks and home videos should be stored in a climate controlled room or storage unit to protect them from deterioration.

2. Clothing

Whether you’re storing your winter sweaters, summer dresses or more sentimental items like your school varsity jacket, wedding dress, baby’s christening outfit or vintage clothes, you’ll want climate controlled storage. Warm, moist environments encourage mildew growth and attract bugs that eat through fabrics. Make sure the items are cleaned before storing and kept in a garment bag or plastic bin while in storage.

3. Artwork

Maybe you don’t own a Van Gogh or Picasso, but sometimes even our kids’ artwork is worth saving. When storing your artwork, choose a watertight plastic bin. Don’t keep anything that has food on it like beans, candy or noodles that would mold or attract bugs. For professional artwork, make sure the item is dusted and protected from damage before storing.

4. Trophies, Medals, Awards

If your trophies and medals contain metal, climate controlled storage is important to prevent deterioration of the finish, rusting and corrosion. Gently wrap in bubble wrap and tape securely before packing in a plastic bin.

5. Paper Items

Climate controlled storage is a must for important and personal paper documents like tax returns, insurance and financial records, titles, deeds and wills. Paper documents with sentimental value like sports tickets, baseball cards, autographs, playbills and programs should also be protected from heat and humidity. Organize in a bin and sort chronologically or by type of item for easy document retrieval.

6. Collections

If you have a collection that is valuable or just sentimental that you want to sell or pass along some day, take proper steps to protect it. Insure the collection if you think there is value (separate from a renter’s or homeowner’s policy) and document your collection with photos that are stored separately (see #1).

Boston is subject to temperature changes from season to season as well as high humidity. With this in mind, climate controlled storage is the best choice for most your belongings. You’ll find climate controlled storage at two of our convenient west Boston locations, Newton and Framingham.