5 Tips for Storing Furniture Without Climate Control

Posted on: 13 July 2017

You have probably heard that household furniture needs to be kept in climate-controlled storage facilities, which is the ideal situation. However, you don't have to resign yourself to damaged furniture if you are using a facility without climate control. If you want to protect your furniture under such conditions, learn more here.

Disassemble the Furniture

Wood expands and contracts when subjected to temperature fluctuations. Repeated expansion and fluctuations cause pieces of wood to bend, crack or curl; it also causes joints to loosen. Disassembling your furniture will prevent this from happening. For example, it will allow the pieces of wood to expand and contract freely without being constrained by fixed joints. An added advantage of storing disassembled furniture is that they will take up less space than if you stored them in their assembled statuses.

Clean and Dry the Furniture

Moisture may be introduced to your furniture in storage or it may be stored together with the furniture. That means you can win half the battle of moisture control by ensuring that your pieces of furniture are clean and dry before taking them to the storage unit. This will discourage the growth of mold and mildew.

Polish and Wax the Pieces Appropriately

Since moisture will encourage your metallic furniture to rust, you need to polish all the metal pieces before storage. The polishing ensures that they are all free of dirt and moisture. In addition to cleaning and drying the wood pieces, waxing will also add an extra layer of protection against moisture.

Cover Up the Furniture

Once your items are clean and dry, cover them up with plastic materials to prevent further contamination by moisture, dust, and rodents. Furniture coverings specifically meant for this purpose, but you can also improvise by using old pieces of plastic sheets, if you have some. This is especially necessary with pieces of furniture that absorb moisture, such as upholstery or mattresses.

Encourage Free Flow of Air Within the Storage Unit

It's common practice to maximize the use of storage facilities by cramming things in every little available space. That may be the cost-effective thing to do, but it isn't good for your stored furniture. You need to place the dissembled pieces in a way that encourages the free flow of air. This aeration will help to keep away any moisture that would otherwise damage your stored items.

Ideally, furniture should be stored in climate-controlled units. However, the above measures will protect your furniture if you are storing them in less-than-ideal conditions.

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