Valuable Furniture Storage Tips and Tricks
Ensuring that furniture stays in peak condition does take some work. But with these common-sense steps, you can protect any furniture piece, not just the valuable ones. From family heirlooms, lamps and vintage pottery, here is what you need to consider when thinking of ways to store your valuables.
What do I need to do first?
Clean Before you even think about moving your items, it is important to not store them away if they are already dirty. Over time, your pieces may gather dust and residual dirt may develop over time and damage the varnish or paintwork. Giving your furniture a good scrub down or polish before storing, will help to keep the overall item in good condition. Cover You should never store away your items uncovered. Use blankets, old sheets and other pieces that will cover the furniture completely from dust and moisture. Do not use plastic as this will just lock in the moisture. These protective barriers will also make sure your furniture is not damaged when moving in and out of the unit, or storing other items on-top or around it.
What can affect my furniture?
Environmental Factors It is imperative to think about the environment in which furniture is kept: Factors such as sunlight, humidity and central heating can affect all types of materials such as wood, fabric and leather, which are often the materials used in your most valuable furniture. Keeping your furniture in strong sunlight will certainly contribute to a fading in its colour as well as warping of the wood. In addition to this, fluctuations in temperatures and humidity such as turning on your central heating will dry out wood, as the moisture is taken from the room. Portable humidifiers can be bought if your room temperature is particularly hot, however most storage solutions will come with climate control, so you don’t need to worry.
How do I move and handle my furniture?
Making sure your furniture is well protected when in transit can prevent any unforeseen damage. It is all too common to finally get your furniture into place and notice a small chip or scratch. Any tiny mark can have a huge affect on the overall value of your item, so keep it wrapped up and padded when moving it in and out of the storage box.
The Perfect Solution for your valuables
Think of a self-storage box as a cheaper alternative to a safety deposit box, but on a much grander scale. If your valuable furniture is just wasting away at home, but is too sentimental to sell, then this is the best option, as you can access it 24 hours a day. However, when it comes to your valuable furniture, it is important you don’t try and squeeze it all inside your self-storage solution, as you run the risk of damage. So just like your living space at home, try and keep your storage box clean and de-cluttered in order to protect everything inside.