I Know I Need Self-Storage, Now What?

How to find the right size storage unit for your stuff.

For whatever reason you may need self-storage (you’re moving across town or you’re feeling a bit cramped in your New York City apartment), the first step is to determine what size storage unit and moving truck you’ll need.

Begin by asking yourself a simple question: will you need frequent access to your unit?  If you will just be leaving your dorm belongings for the summer (not to touch them until you return for the fall semester), you can pack your unit up until it’s completely full. However, if you are using your storage unit as additional home storage, you may want to leave some room for a walkway to easily access anything you may need on occasion.

Regardless of long- or short-term storage, figuring out exactly how much space you need will take careful and tedious calculation as you determine the size and shape of everything you own versus the size of the unit you’ll need. Unless you majored in engineering, this will probably not be a whole lot of fun.

Luckily for the math-despising population of the world, we have a storage calculator available to save you from figuring out all those pesky estimations.



Using the storage calculator, you can see a 10x10 storage unit filled with the following items: a refrigerator, washer and dryer, queen sized bed, three 24x24x36 boxes, couch, China cabinet, 2 gaming consoles with their respective games,  PC with its monitor, floor speakers and an armoir. A little storage space goes a long way!

Figuring out what size truck you need is a bit easier – you definitely won’t need a walkway for this, so you’ll just need to determine the actual dimensions of you possessions. Pretty easy, huh? Now you get to move on to the next part – picking a storage facility – but more tips on that later.