How to Choose a Storage Facility and Cut Storage Costs Smartly

Updated: January 19th, 2024

Ever wondered about what to do with the extra household stuff lying here and there in your home? If you take a good look and inspect your home properly, you may easily come across extra household items like furniture, appliances etc that are not being used so frequently these days, and you can easily manage without these items. But selling or donating these precious household goods may not be the viable option, because you may have some emotional connect with these household goods.

How to choose a storage facility - key factors worth knowing — How to choose a storage facility – key factors worth knowing

May be that classic and antique chair lying in the sitting area of your flat is where your dad used to sit and you want to preserve it. At the same time, storing these items in your house may require additional storage space, which is obviously not available. And if that’s the case, you can take advantage of storage facility and warehousing service, and move such extra items to a warehousing facility to store it safely.

Similarly, whether you are renovating your home and want to vacate it for a few weeks till the renovation work get completed, or whether you are going on offshore assignments, you can use storage facility to safely store your goods for as many days or months you want to store.

There are various types of storage and warehousing services available in India that can be used to store all types of household goods and other materials, baring a few restricted items like inflammable goods, diesel, petrol etc.

It’s true that you can reorganize your home and even create some extra storage space in your home. But you may still feel the shortage of storage space in your home and that’s when using storage facilities can be highly beneficial for you.

Whatever is your reason, if you are planning to shift some of your additional and extra household goods to a storage facility near you, then here’s the post worth checking.

As I said, there are various types of storage facility and warehousing options available these days, especially in major cities like Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai etc. That’s an advantage, because you have so many options, and there is a fair amount of competition between all these storage facilities and warehousing companies.

But not knowing what to look for when choosing a storage facility can have negative consequences like

You may end up choosing wrong size unit
Yu may go for wrong storage facility
Your may end up paying more for storage
Even the safety of your goods may be compromised.

And I am sure you don’t want it to happen when choosing a storage facility.

Factors worth considering when choosing a storage facility

It’s natural to get overwhelmed by the types of storage facilities and number of warehousing options that is available near you. Even if the overall objective of these storage facilities are to offer safe and hassle-free storage services to their customers, there are many thing that have to be considered when choosing a storage facility.

Ideally, you should go for the storage facility that is safe, secured, offers end to end storage service, is cost-effective and so on. Not knowing what to look for when choosing a storage facility can turn out to be a costly mistake.

But I have got you covered.

Based on my years of experience in working with moving and storage companies in India, I can help you choose a storage facility that’ll suit your requirements and budget perfectly.

So bear with me, as today I am sharing everything worth knowing about how to choose a storage facility, types of storage facilities available in India, and how to save money on storing your household goods in storage and warehousing facility.

So let’s start with the key factors worth considering when choosing a storage facility to store your goods and articles.

Size of the storage unit

The reason you want to move your goods to a storage facility is to ensure that your household goods can be safely stored. Obviously, based on what you want to store, you should know the size of the storage space you would require. And you may go wrong here, if you don’t know how much of storage space you require for proper storage of your goods.

If you rent out the bigger storage unit than you require, then you will end up wasting your money. And if you opt for a storage unit that is too small, then all your items may not fit properly in that small unit. In either case, you are the one who is going to suffer.

To get rid of this confusion, you should carefully evaluate the inventory of goods that you want to move to the storage facility. You can easily measure the size of the items and add 10% more because once these items are packed; the dimensions of those packed boxes will be a little bigger than the actual size.

This way, you will get clear idea of how much of storage space do you need to safely your store you goods in the storage facility.

Location of the storage facility

Knowing the exact location of the storage facility is seriously important when using storage facility. Usually, the storage facilities are located in the outskirts of the city, on the highways or in transport hub of that city. For example, in Kolkata, most of the warehouses and storage facilities are located outside of the city on Kona express way, Bombay road and Dankuni area.

Prices of properties (storage space) are unusually cheaper in the outskirts in comparison to the prime locations in the main city. Naturally, if you want to store your goods in the prime locations, closer to your home, you may find such facilities, but then the daily storage fees for such facilities are going to be way more than the storage facility located in the outskirts.

And this is true for any city in India or anywhere for that matter. It’s pure math.

To make the best judgment about the best location of the storage facility you should opt for, just consider a few things like the accessibility and duration.

If I would be in your place and I have to choose between the storage facility near me and the one located in the outskirts, then I will decide based on frequency of access and duration of storage.

If I need frequent access to my goods, and the storage duration is not more than a couple of month then I will opt for prime location, even if it costs a little more than outskirt ones. This way, I will be able to save my time and money on commute to the warehouse.

However, if i am going abroad or on long term assignment and I don’t necessarily need frequent access and storage period is also going to be in months, and then I will opt for the warehouse located at the outskirts. By doing so, I will be able to save on my monthly storage cost.

Now, you got to think practically and I am sure you’ll be able to take the best call as per your needs and preference.

Security of the facility

Obviously the overall security of the storage facility is of highest importance to you. You don’t want to compromise with the safety and security of your household goods you will be storing in the storage facility and hence the overall security arrangement has to be f highest standards.

The storage companies know this that in case of any sort of security lapses, they will have bad name in the market and they won’t be able to sustain the storage business. So they are going to ensure that the storage unit itself and the overall storage facility are fully secured.

But then, you should just check, review and ensure that the storage facility in fully secured.

Some of the most common security features includes security guards, installation of security cameras, and fire safety measures.

Storage facility must have CC TV cameras installed across the facility to secure it from external theft or any kind of emergency and it should guard the inside of the premises.

Similarly, emergency fire fighting system should be installed at the storage facility to fight any emergency situation that may arise due to sudden fire.

Insurance of the facility

Even after taking all the precautions and making all possible arrangements to ensure safety of stored goods in a storage facility, if anything goes wrong like a theft or damage, then the insurance is going to be vital.

So just ensure that the storage facility you are planning to use is sufficiently insured, and you should confirm the same. In fact, if you want, you can ask them about the insurer and more details like when the insurance is due for renewal.

Pickup and delivery service

There are many storage facilities in India that offer both pickup and delivery service for your goods. They may also provide packing materials for you to pack your goods, and once you are ready with packed boxes, they will pick the materials from your house and take it to the storage facility.

After some weeks or months, when you want your goods back, they will again deliver your goods from the warehouse to your home.

This pickup and door delivery features can be very handy at times, but then these features are not free of cost and the storage companies may charge you for this value-added service.

Based on whether you need the pick-up and delivery service, and associated cost for the same, you can take a call and choose a storage facility that suits your needs and budget.

Storage policy

There is no one fit all policy and terms of use for storage services. Different storage companies may have different storage policy and terms of use. So, you must know about any specific terms and condition prior to choosing a storage facility.

Each storage facilities may have different types of storage policy. They may have certain restriction on what types of items can be stored in their facility. Like most of the household storage facilities in India won’t allow storage of foods grains, inflammable items, liquid inflammable stock, medicines etc.

It’s better to check their policy when choosing a storage facility.

Maintenance of the facility

This is equally important. Since you’re going to use the storage facility to store your goods for long term, you should ensure that the facility is properly maintained.

Take a good look at the facility and see of the building is properly maintained and it is up to date. If the building does not look like properly maintained then there may be several risks.

A dirty, cluttered and unorganized space clearly indicates the lack of maintenance and that’ll be a turn off for me. A properly maintained storage facility will do timely maintenance of the building that includes repairing and paint etc.

The facility should be properly cleaned, tidy and organized.

Periodic pest control is equally important and a good facility should have monthly pest control contract with a reliable pest control company.

Features of the storage unit

Apart from all these safety features, maintenance, insurance etc, there are certain key features that are really important and hence it’s worth considering when choosing a storage facility.

The storage facility should have proper ventilation for proper air flow. If the unit is totally closed, then due to lack of proper air circulation, it may attract mildew.

There should be no open window in the unit and floor of the storage facility should be at least feet or more up to restrict water flow from outside. The door of the storage unit should be secured with strong latch so that you can lock it securely.

Some of the storage facilities are climate controlled and that’s a good sign. When you store your goods in a climate controlled storage facilities, there will be no risk of humidity and moisture and your goods will remain safe inside.

But rent of such climate controlled storage units may be a little more than that facility that does not have climate control features.

Types of storage facilities available in India

Even though the main objective of a storage facility is to store goods and articles safely, different types of storage facilities are available with different features and usability.

And there are pros and cons of using these facilities.

So let’s check the types of storage facilities that are available for you in India.

Warehousing facility by moving companies

As the name suggests, this type of storage facility is provided by the movers and packers companies in India. Most of the movers and packers have big size godown or warehouse as they call it, in the suburbs of the city.

They use this facility to offer end to end, safe and secured storage services to their customers. Such storage facilities are most suited to store household goods, furniture, appliances, electronic goods, crockery items etc.

Since they use part of their storage facility as a collection point for goods to be transported, they use remaining part of the facility as exclusive storage using for their customers.

The best part of using these types of storage facility is that it’s cost effective and comparatively cheaper than other available self storage facilities.

Another advantage of using such storage facility is that, you don’t have to worry about anything including safe and secured packing of you goods and hassles of transporting your goods to and from the storage facility.

Once you decide to use such storage service, the movers and packers will come over to your home; they’ll pack everything safely and bring all the goods to their storage facility.

They will safely store your goods for as long as you want, and when you want those goods back, you can simply call them and they will deliver the goods to your home.

So, its hassle-free way of storing your goods at cost effective rates.

These types of storage services are going to be on door-to-door basis and that’s big advantage otherwise you have to spend time in packing and also have to manage local transportation to and from the warehouse.

Lock and key self storage facility

Lock and key self storage facility is a new concept in India. There are a number of self storage companies offering lock and key storage facility to their customer.

They usually have a big storage facility, divided into several rooms of various sizes from 100 square feet to 150 square feet.

One of the biggest advantage of using such lock and key self storage is that you will have easy access to your goods and if ease of access is important to you, then you should choose a lock and key self storage facility.

Packing, pickup and drop facility may be and may not be available in case of lock and key self storage facility. If you want to store smaller items, and want frequent and easy access to your stored goods, then you may chose lock and key self storage facility.

Container storage facility

As the name suggests, container storage facility uses shipping containers as a storage space. Shipping container facility is mostly used for commercial goods storage. You may rent out the full container in case you need more space or can rent a divided compartment.

The storage company may offer to ship the container storage to your place or a nearby place and once you have stored your goods, they will pick and move the container to their space.

As I said, these types of storage facility will suit those who want to store commercial goods and it may not be the best fit for individuals to store household articles.

How to cut storage costs when using storage facility?

If you read this post so far, then I am sure you are planning to move some of your household goods to a storage facility near you. And as I promised, I am going to help you cut storage costs.

Whether you have decided to use a self storage facility or the storage facilities offered by the movers and packers companies, there are some easy ways to reduce costs.

Wondering? Here you go.

Reduce inventory – It may not be always easy to reduce the inventory, but still, you should review the list of items twice and see if there is anything that you can get rid of before renting out the storage space. Less inventory means, less packing and transportation cost and obviously smaller space will work for you. This hack is going to help you save some money on overall storage, irrespective of the type of storage you decide to choose.

Opt for self-service – if you opt to pack your goods on your own and then transport it to the storage facility, you will be able to save the packing local transportation cost. Nearly every storage facility today provide value added packing, pickup and delivery services and these services are not free. So if you opt to avail these services, you may have to bear the additional cost. But when you do it on your own, you will be able to save on your overall storage costs.

Compare quote and bargain for best rate offers – As you know, there are so many storage facilities near you, and all of them have different rates and changes, comparing quotes and offers from a couple of local storage companies can help you to save as much as up to 30% of the overall storage costs.

If you are planning to use storage services and you want best rate offers, then we can help you.

Just call us on 07044123404 or submit the no obligation quote request form to get free storage quotes from three of the highest standard storage facilities near you. You can compare their quotes and then choose the storage facility that best suits your needs and budget.

What do you look for when choosing a storage company?

Depending on your needs, you may like to move some or all of you goods to a storage facility near you. The demands for specialized household storage facilities have increased many folds and that’s there reason there are so many storage companies operating in cities today.

Using storage facility can be very effective to store extra and not so frequently used goods, or it may be even beneficial when you are moving out on some project assignment or in case you want to renovate your home or if you have just purchased some additional furniture for the weddings, but you lack storage space. Whatever be the use case, there are certain factors that’s worth considering when choosing a storage facility.

We have already discussed about a few of the major factors like: