Whether for long or short term requirements it’s good to be reassured that you have reliable storage space for your prized belongings. At Bellinger Valley Self Storage we offer a number of solutions to suit your budget and requirements. From small, self-storage units for personal use, to larger spaces suitable for businesses, we can cater to you throughout Coffs Coast. Our consultants will help assess your storage needs and we are proud to offer our expert packing and storage tips for your information.

Helpful hints

Before bringing your belongings to our storage space in , we want to offer you some helpful hints that will help the process.For efficient storage and minimised removalist costs, we suggest packing your items in standard cartons. Remember to only fill each carton to capacity. Partially full or bulging cartons may result in ripping or collapse. Heavy items like books or tools should be packed in small cartons so they are easy to handle. To ensure no damage books should be packed flat and not on their spine.Be sure to pack and label each carton, room by room, and clearly mark any cartons/items you may want to access while in storage. For easy pick-up the cartons need to be placed adjacent to the door of your storage unit.For your convenience, Bellinger Valley Self Storage sells cartons, porta robes, paper, tape, bubble wrap and plastic covers. These durable products can effectively protect your goods while in storage.

Planning and moving check-list

Planning the layout of your storage space before moving in to our facility i is highly important. As a general rule large heavy items can be stored first. These can be stacked upon each other at the rear of the unit. You can then progress forwards and upwards with lighter, more fragile items. Items that you will need to access often should be placed at the front of the unit.Depending on the types of goods you have stored you may need to allow space for walkways. Using quality storage cartons will make the storing and unpacking process much easier and safer. Not only saving you time and headaches, these professional storage products will ensure the condition of your items is maintained throughout the term of storage.It also helps to form a moving checklist before moving out of your property. Be sure to disconnect and reconnect services such as power, gas and phone line. Also remember to cancel any deliveries of items like newspapers or water bottles and speak to your local post office for mail redirection. This can be done for three months for a small fee. Also consider notifying organisations to advise your change of address.

Appliances and furniture

Appliances such as fridges, freezers and other white goods should be thoroughly dry and clean before storing. The door of your fridge or freezer should be slightly open while in storage. A deodoriser should be placed inside fridges or freezers to maintain freshness. Remember not to leave any items inside fridges or freezers as the shelves and linings can be easily marked and damaged.When storing mowers and other machinery, be sure to drain the fuel and oil. This will prevent a fire hazard and reduce the risk of leakage, spillage and damage to the other goods in your storage space.For storing furniture, you need to empty the contents first to protect the shelving and structure. To protect and maintain the condition of clothing and personal goods they should be packed in strong secure cartons with some naphthalene, mothballs or a similar product.As caution we suggest that you don’t use packing tape directly on furniture or white goods. This can leave permanent marks. You are better using wrapping strips of cardboard to tape over.

Computers, televisions and stereos

Electrical equipment is very delicate and sensitive, which is why items like stereos and televisions should be handled with complete care.Ideally you can repack the items in their original boxes. Wrapping items individually in bubble wrap, packing them in cartons, and sealing the top will offer extra protection for your electrical items. Records should be packed on their edge in cartons to prevent warping. Also remember to pack out any gaps in the cartons.  For battery operated appliances and toys, we recommend that you remove and discard batteries to avoid leak damage.Like your other electrical items, computers require special care. You can either use the original boxes to repack or use bubble wrap and cartons. Most modern computer hard drives have ‘self-parking heads’ which prevent the surface of the disk from being damaged by the parts of your computer that write information to the hard drive. We cannot stress enough to back-up the contents of your hard drive before storing. Keep the back-up hard drive off site. You can use masking tape to label ports and cables. Also consider making a note of your system’s CMOS data. You can do this by pushing “delete” on start up. Then print screen the settings. This way, if the battery on your motherboard fails, you will have the CMOS settings on paper.

Glassware

We suggest that you place a layer of packing inside the bottom and top of cartons containing breakables such as dishes and glassware. Wrapping them individually in packing paper, not newsprint, can also help.Be sure to nest items like cups and bowls, saucers, platters and casserole dishes on their edge. To keep fragile items well protected and prevent them from moving around while in transit, fill any gaps in the cartons with packing material, such as scrunched-up paper or linen. Label all cartons containing fragile items and avoid storing heavy items on the top of these cartons. Book and wine cartons are sized to suit these heavy items.Items such as mirrors, windows, screens and paintings should be protected by packing materials like bubble wrap or in a flat-pack carton. Store them standing on their edge in an upright position, not laying flat. For silverware you can reduce tarnishing by wrapping them in tissue paper or plastic bags. Wipe chrome or cast iron with a little machine oil to help prevent rust.Feel free to call us to discuss your storage space options.