Climate-controlled Storage
What is Climate-Controlled Storage?
Climate-controlled storage utilizes heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC), dehumidifiers, customizable thermostats and/or heavy-duty insulation to help create an ideal environment for storing valuable or sensitive property. The term often varies depending on the facility and location, as some areas demand heating and cooling in their units, while others may only need one or the other.
Generally, a climate-controlled unit should keep temperature levels between 55°F and 80°F and humidity levels no higher than 55%. Climate controlled units also are sometimes called temperature controlled units, but there is a difference between them.
What is the Difference between Climate-Controlled and Temperature-Controlled Storage?
A climate-controlled facility manages both temperature and humidity while temperature-controlled storage only manages temperature. Climate-controlled facilities typically are equipped with a dehumidifier and an HVAC system.
Do I Need Climate-Controlled Storage?
It depends on a variety of factors, like what items you are storing, the length of your storage, the weather conditions in your area, and the time of year you’re choosing to store your property. Having your belongings in a climate-controlled facility may not necessarily be worth the cost unless you are storing items that require it such as fine art, delicate fabrics, items made of paper, electronics, discs, records, and antique furniture. Moving and storage pods that are made of aluminum, steel and fiberglass instead of wood like those at Mobile Attic are designed to take very good care of most household goods.
What is Ventilation and How Important is it?
Ventilation helps moderate the interior temperature and allows fumes from items stored in the container to circulate and help alleviate moisture and condensation on the ceiling. For portable moving and storage pods, ventilation helps prevent condensation that can build up inside containers and could cause future mold and mildew damage to your property. At the Mobile Attic, all of our units allow air to circulate around them.
How do I Prevent Mold and Mildew Damage to My Property?
There are many ways customers can prevent mold and mildew from damaging their belongings. Below are recommendations we believe are beneficial to ensuring items do not sustain damage.
Inspect Your Property Before You Store Them
Before loading your portable storage container, make sure to carefully inspect all items for moisture or mold and mildew. Check for dirt or water on your belongings. Dirt can scratch your property while one single damp item could spread mold throughout your storage unit.
Choose Your Boxes Wisely
People tend to choose used moving boxes rather than purchasing new ones when packing their property for storage. Although it is cost-effective, used boxes sometimes can have openings that allow moisture to get inside the items in the box.
For some items like clothes, consider using vacuum-sealed bags instead. This may help prevent moisture from getting in and potentially ruining your clothes.
Avoid Loading Your Items During Rainy Weather
Nothing is worse than moving in the rain, except having mold spread through all of your belongings. Moisture can easily migrate to other items so be sure to inspect your property while packing. Check your local weather forecasts to make sure rain is not expected on moving day. Planning ahead will help you take precautionary measures to perform a safe and successful move, despite weather conditions.
Consider using Desiccants
We recommend purchasing moisture absorbing packets, also called desiccant packets, from your local hardware store. These packets can absorb moisture, gas, or odor and help prevent humidity from remaining inside your containers. We do caution you to carefully read the label because moisture absorbing packets typically last for a certain amount of time. Desiccants typically need to be replaced with new ones frequently.
Use Blankets and Plastic to Protect Individual Items
Consider individually wrapping your belongings with moving blankets or plastic wrap, or placing them in plastic storage bins. This will help protect your property from being exposed and can prevent the spread of mold in case one of your items is damp or carries mold spores. Utilizing plastic storage bins also will keep your belongings safe and dry regardless of weather conditions.
The Mobile Attic does offer blankets and straps for rental to protect and secure your items during transit and storage. If you need packing supplies, you can purchase items like plastic wrap and moving boxes here.
Check on Your Property
As a Mobile Attic customer, you have daily access from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to our secure storage facility. If you are preparing to store your property long term at our facility, it may be beneficial to inspect your belongings periodically. If you live further away from our locations in Columbia, Greenville and Charleston, you could possibly have a friend or relative come and check on your property.
As a reminder, we ask customers to call our office at 877-423-2055 or email us at support@mobileattic.net and give us one business day’s notice before coming to our facility. Providing us with advance notice before your arrival gives us time to ensure your portable storage container is easily accessible for you to add, remove and/or inspect your property when you enter our secure facility.
What to Watch out for when Considering Climate-Controlled portable storage?
Although many portable storage companies claim to offer climate-controlled storage, there is no official industry standard or regulations to monitor a facility’s temperature and humidity. Because of this, companies may falsely advertise indoor “climate-controlled” storage for their portable units. Be aware of believing a company storing your portable container in a warehouse translates to your property being in a climate-controlled facility. Many competitors utilize running a fan and deem their facility is “climate-controlled” or “temperature-controlled”.
If one of our storage competitors advertise as climate controlled, make sure to ask questions. Inquire about their storage facilities’ temperature and climate standards and what they do to ensure their units stay within those guidelines. Aside from asking questions, the most important thing you can do to ensure your items are protected from mold and mildew would be to carefully inspect your belongings. Make sure there’s no moisture or mildew on your items before you load your property inside the storage container.
Does Mobile Attic Offer Climate-Controlled Storage?
While Mobile Attic Units are not technically climate controlled, they are designed with cool temperature technology to help decrease humidity and lower the temperature inside the storage unit. Our moving and storage containers are built with a reflective aluminum top that helps deflect and disperse heat. This allows our units to not be as warm as the temperature outside. Our secure, sturdy, steel-frame containers are designed to keep your items protected from the elements whether they are stored at your location or come back to our secure facility.
Some portable storage companies’ units are built with translucent roofs that allow harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays to pass through. This also makes the storage containers very hot inside, which could lead to property damage. Other companies use wood in their containers, which draws in heat and humidity. We take pride knowing our Mobile Attics are built out of aluminum, steel, and fiberglass which hinder mold and mildew growth. They also allow air to circulate and have reflective roofs that deflect the heat. If you need a moving or storage pod that will take good care of your household goods, give our customer service team a call.