Moving? Renovating? Decluttering? All are life events that potentially create a need for storage.
There are many options for Storage in Toronto. Should you chose a storage facility near your existing home or closer to your new residence? Should you go with portable or mobile storage or with a full service moving company? Do you want containerized or do you need easy and quick access to your belongings? This long list of questions have answers and this blog posting will help narrow down and further define these choices.
Self Storage Facilities
There are lots of self storage facilities in Toronto ranging from high end to low end. The perks of going to a self storage facility is the price. It is most often a less expensive route but with that comes a self service exercise, potential vulnerability of your goods and a long walk to your unit. Self storage facilities are great if you are looking to store some low value household possessions that need long term storage. If you are moving or renovating, self storage facilities aren’t the best option (reasons for this will be further described below).
Portable or Mobile Storage
Portable storage has grown in popularity over the last 10 years when this reinvention of the wheel was born in Toronto. Portable storage can be really helpful when you are renovating or potentially even relocating from city to city. Portable storage can also be helpful when managing a small move that requires some down time in between moves. Portable storage also comes with similar caveats to Self Storage. While you can hire companies like rent-a-son to load or unload your PODS container, most people chose to do the moving themselves and that brings the same risks as moving your goods yourself into a self storage facility. There are plenty of options for mobile storage in Toronto – some of them who store your belongings outside in a yard and some in a warehouse. Temperature control can be an issue and again, you should be concerned about the well being of your goods when going this route. In order for your household goods to not get damaged in an off-site storage service, you need to make sure your items are professionally loaded and wrapped.
Full Service Moving Company
If you opt to store your items in the warehouse of a Toronto moving company you most often get a more careful, detailed and temperature controlled experience. When moving with a moving and storage company, you will have all of your items properly pad wrapped at the pick up location. These items do not get unwrapped until they are delivered. Upon arriving to the moving companies location, they are loaded into a moving vaults or containers for dry and safe storage. Any reputable moving company in Toronto will also provide you with a detailed inventory of your goods which is an excellent thing to have when any considerable length of time will pass until you get your goods back. With the full service moving option, you really pay for peace of mind. Your local moving company will take full responsibility and accountability of your possessions and keep them safe until they are returned. In most modern moving and storage companies, you should also get video and alarm monitored environments that are temperature controlled for the safe keeping of your belongings. The con of using a moving and storage company for your storage needs may be price. But as with everything else in life you get what you pay for.
As someone that sees thousands of moves go in and out of our office, it is easy to have perspective about moving and the care that is required to do it right. You will not regret looking at your move as an investment rather than an expense. Some people are often willing to spend up to $500 on a dining chair! The small investment needed to make sure that chair is wrapped and loaded properly is well worth the cost!
Happy Moving!