What's going to happen to my stuff in non climate controlled Arizona storage?

April 3, 2008 4:47 PM

I live in Arizona and considering storing some things for a year in a shed that is not climate controlled. What are the things I shouldn't store because they'll be wrecked beyond repair?

I'm considering putting a bunch of my stuff in a storage shed in Tucson, AZ for a year. I want to make a list of things which would be BAD to store in such a location and what things should be fine when there is a fairly wide temperature range.

For those of you who don't know what Tucson weather is like - it will likely range between 30 degrees F and 110 degrees F within the span of a year. It may possibly even get hotter during the summer because it's an enclosed unventilated space.

So what would probably not be good to store in the shed? For instance, I'm pretty clear that storing wax candles will not go well. Electronics are probably a bad idea too - but all electronics??? How would furniture do? I read a previous filter where they suggest no padded furniture (check), but what about wood furniture?

What would likely be ok? I'm thinking clothes? wire racks? metal filing cabinets? outdoor furniture? books (would the bindings be ok?) Plastic crates?

Some of this may be a guessing game - and I'll have to decide what's worth it gambling on and what's not but I'm hoping some people have advice/thoughts.

So how about it mefites? What are your recommendations? What do I need to avoid? Also, does anyone have any tips/tricks for storage over a long period of time?

posted by mulkey to home & garden (8 comments total)

Yes, it will get hotter than that in the storage unit, particularly in one that is in a single story building that opens up directly to the outdoors. Think about how hot it gets in your car when it's parked for just a few hours. If you have something you can't keep in your car because it would be destroyed, you can't store it.

Clothing that has elastic (underwear, socks) or lycra/spandex will not do well. If you are storing these place them closer to the ground where it will be cooler. Wood furniture will probably do OK but I wouldn't leave any heirlooms in there. I've had no trouble storing books in plastic crates here in NM. Most electronics will be fine, but take out the batteries.

I'm not sure what the problem would be with padded furniture, but you are very unlikely to have any problems with mold in Tuscon as long as the shed doesn't leak or get flooded.

Don't store batteries, toiletries, liquids, things that mice and bugs eat, crayons, wax coated paper, dried flowers, floppy disks, videotapes, or photographs.

Put a pallet in the storage area and place your things on that, in case some water gets in. Put out something for bugs. If the shed has a dirt floor, you will want to seal it up against mice. Toss a sheet or some plastic over the whole pile to help keep dirt and dust off, the wind will blow through the cracks and everything will be filthy in a matter of months.
posted by yohko at 5:13 PM on April 3, 2008

I have an uninsulated, poorly ventilated attic in northern California, relatively mild weather year round. In the summer, the attic routinely gets 30F hotter than the outside temps, so it's well into the 100s in the attic several months out of the year. After storing stuff up there for a number of years, here's my observations:

Papers get very very crispy. Glued book bindings dry up and crack, papers with wood pulp content discolor and get very brittle. Thermal print paper (such as receipts) turns completely black and obscures the text printed on it. Cardboard boxes seem to be OK but the glue on the tape holding them together disintegrates. Overall longevity is ~4 years, except for the thermal paper, which goes black in one hot weekend.

Fabrics get very brittle or fragile. We stored a chair upholstered in a synthetic fabric up there and after two summers the fabric tore at the lightest touch. Cotton lasts a little longer. Foam mattresses/cushions turn to dust pretty quickly, too.

Plastic tubs get brittle and break. The more rigid and clear the tub starts out, the faster it gets brittle. We've had the best longevity with soft plastic bins, but some of them sag and permanently deform from the heat.

Duck decoys swell up and explode. That only took one summer to happen.

The soft parts of bikes/exercise equipment or tools: the handles, seats, gaskets, grips etc., dry up and crack or turn to dust within two years or less.

I've stored laminate furniture up there for years (revolving collection of inexpensive flat-pack tables and bookcases) without any issue. We use wooden racks made of unvarnished pine to store things on, they've also held up fine. A varnished breadbox a relative made for us which we store up there gets very sticky every summer.

I've stored CRT monitors and stereo receivers up there without any issue either, but I don't think I'd put anything up there I really cared about.

Ceramics, metal and glass hold up fine, as you might have guessed. The thing to watch out for is the tape on the bottom of the box giving way when you try to pick up grandma's wedding china.
posted by jamaro at 5:19 PM on April 3, 2008

Metal and glass will store well, just about everything else will suffer.
posted by caddis at 6:31 PM on April 3, 2008

Monitors, televisions, and electronics might make it through okay, but I wouldn't risk it. We have a television that partially melted in the back seat of a car. It still functions, but the color is slightly off and it looks like it spent some time in a Dalí painting.
posted by ErWenn at 7:40 PM on April 3, 2008

Careful with anything wood. We have very hard-working termites out here, after all. A pallet is good for keeping things off of the ground, but it may attract termites. Termites will show no mercy at all to cardboard boxes or any sort of wooden furniture or enclosure.

Do figure out a way to keep things off of the ground, though; you know how hard monsoon storms can hit, and if a few inches of water gets in during a particularly hard storm, it could be catastrophic to your stuff.
posted by azpenguin at 8:19 PM on April 3, 2008

This may seem obvious, but no computers or advanced electronics devices (ie anything with memory and processor in a socket) -- the expand/contract breaks fragile traces and works things loose, and you'll end up with a device that sort of works, except when it doesn't.
posted by davejay at 10:27 PM on April 3, 2008

Vinyl records, and cassettes. Unfortunately, speaking from experience.

A suggestion - ask at one of those U-Stor-It places if they have a standard list they give out to patrons. Might give you some ideas.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 6:39 AM on April 4, 2008

Very helpful everyone - thanks so much!
posted by mulkey at 8:27 AM on April 4, 2008