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 (7 answers total)

Best answer: 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

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

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