Category: blog

Storage facilities can provide temporary or long-term solutions to fit a variety of different spatial needs. Whether you’re moving, remodeling, or downsizing—storage units can be lifesavers for those with limited space.

Various lifestyle changes can often require people to free up space within the home or necessitate storing material possessions elsewhere. Self storage facilities can provide the flexibility and convenience to store items while allowing people access to them as needed.

Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why it might be the right time to get a storage unit.

Moving to a New Home

People choose to move for a variety of different reasons. Whether they’re moving to a new area or they simply need to store items in between living arrangements—self storage can solve many of the issues commonly encountered.

The most common reasons for using storage rentals during a move include:

• Downsizing: Many people choose to downsize their living situations to accommodate changes. Whether their kids are moving away to college or they simply want to move to a smaller home—storage units often act as an intermediary between moves. Storage units can be rented to temporarily store goods instead of selling or throwing them away.
• Selling a home: When a home is sold many times a move out date is sooner than expected due to buyer requirements. Storage units allow possessions to be stored if the next home is not ready for move-in. 
• Getting married: If a couple moves in together or gets married there may be multiples of every item. Instead of getting rid of each one, items can be kept in storage facilities.

Although moving can often be a stressful endeavor, storage units can provide peace of mind knowing items are stored safely and securely. Appliances, furniture, and other common items take up lots of space so storage units are a convenient way to store items outside of the home.

Home Renovations

People renovate homes as a way of modernizing and improving current living spaces. The problem is household items generally have to be removed and stored off site while renovations occur. The last thing people want is their furniture and valuables getting covered in paint and other building materials.

The size of the storage facility needed will depend upon the particular household renovation. If an entire home is being redone a larger storage unit may be required. On the other hand a smaller storage space may be sufficient for simple room renovations.

Some of the most commonly stored items include:

• Bedroom sets
• Appliances 
• Living room sets
• Kitchenware
• Electronics
• Photographs and archival items

If you’re looking to renovate your home self storage solutions can secure your home goods against damage or corrosion caused by construction.

Buying New Furniture

Many choose to buy or replace existing furniture and other household items. The problem is some may find it difficult to sell or discard existing furniture. Whether it holds sentimental value or it’s simply difficult to part with—many people choose to hold onto their old furniture instead of getting rid of it.

Sofas, bedroom furniture, appliances, and television sets are just a few of the examples of items people may choose to keep in storage facilities. Others may store items at storage sites temporarily while they’re for sale.

Why Choose Lock and Leave Storage

If you’ve been searching for the right storage facility to secure your precious possessions—look no further than Lock and Leave Storage. As a safe and quality residential and business self-storage facility all units come with a number of features including:

• Friendly, knowledgeable staff on hand
• Easily accessible hours of operation between 7:00am and 7:00pm
• Clean storage spaces
• 24 hour security video surveillance
• Boxes and packing supplies
• Truck rentals 

Our quality residential and business self-storage solutions are designed to fit a multitude of different needs. If you’ve been searching for a safe, quality self-storage solution feel free to contact one of our storage specialists to help you find the right size storage unit today.

Whether it is for your business or your home, short-term or long-term, sometimes you simply need more space to store your items. In order to keep your belongings secure and easily accessible, here are some tips on how to protect your belongings and create an organized storage unit.

Make an Inventory of the Storage Items and Label Them

To keep all of your belongings in order, the best place to start is to make a list of all the items you are going to put in storage. Some items are easy to remember — larger items, like beds, sofas, and desks. But smaller items are a little harder to remember. So, as you begin to pack your belongings up, create a spreadsheet of what is going in your unit. As you are packing everything up, go ahead and label your boxes or bins. 

This will help you find your items when you are looking for them down the road. As you move your things in, remember to put your labels forward-facing so that you can see them easily. If you know that you will be using the space long-term, creating a map of where you store each item can help you get to items quickly whenever you need them.

Make the Most of Your Space by Bringing in Shelving

Once you are ready to move your belongings, you want to make sure that you can use every square inch of your storage unit. One of the easiest ways to do this is by bringing in freestanding shelving units. Shelves will help you use the full height of your space, and it can also make accessing boxes or plastic bins much easier since they won’t be stacked on top of each other. You can simply pull a bin off a shelf! 

Also, if you plan on storing decorative shelving, give it a double-use. You can store small boxes or plastic bins that are light on your decorative shelves.

Decide Between Cardboard Boxes or Clear Bins

Cardboard boxes are a cost-efficient way to store your belongings — especially if you know your timeline. If you plan on using your storage unit in between moves, then you might not ever need to unbox any of your items, making cardboard boxes your best choice. But, if you are planning on using the space as an extra garage or basement storage, you might want to invest in clear bins. 

With clear bins, it is easier to see inside of them and figure out which belongings are in which container. Also, bins will last longer and have a sealed lid making it more difficult for any bugs or dirt to get inside. With either option, check the dimensions to make sure they fit into your shelving and then purchase boxes of similar size for those going on the shelves. 

Plan the Layout for Your Stored Items

As you begin to put your belongings into the storage unit, consider which items you will need to be able to get to at a later date. Those items probably need to be put in last and stored toward the front of your unit. When you pack, start with large, heavy items, like furniture or heavy boxes, and place them towards the back of the unit on the bottom.

If there is anything that you know you will need to get to, make sure to pack it in a place you can both remember and get to. For instance, you might not need to take out your extra bed frame for a while, but you might need that extra pack-n-play for when you go on vacation. Labeling items you might need, like seasonal clothing or holiday decorations, helps you find them quickly.

Use Your Vertical Space

You are getting a storage space in order to have space — so let’s use it all! While you can make sure that your shelves go as high as your storage unit, you can also turn furniture vertical to maximize space. You’ll also want to disassemble large furniture items to make them easier to store vertically — take apart bed frames, table legs, headboards, and decorative shelves. For safety purposes, make sure that items are stable and will not fall. 

Since these are the larger items, even when they are vertical, it is usually best to put them towards the back of the storage unit. However, mattresses need to lie flat when they are stored. If your unit is particularly tall, you might want to keep a step stool or small ladder in the space to have safe access to items higher up.

Secure and Convenient Storage

If you’ve been searching for a safe and convenient storage environment to organize your valuables, keepsakes, and all of your “extras” — look no further than Lock & Leave Storage. With multiple locations — we provide quality residential and business self-storage solutions to organize and secure your belongings. Our storage specialists are here to help you each step of the way. Contact us today to get started!

At Lock & Leave, we value our employees as much as we do our customers. In addition to providing safe and convenient storage options—we pride ourselves in hiring knowledgeable, friendly staff to assist our customers. Our enjoyable work environment supports employee development, recognition, and a consistent dedication to customer service. 

We strive to create a professional yet fun work environment by establishing close working relationships with each of our employees. At Lock & Leave, our staff is more than just a number. Each and every one of our team members are considered a member of our extended family. 

Today’s employee spotlight features Lou Tobias. We decided to ask her a few questions about her experience with Lock & Leave thus far.

1. What is your role/job title at Lock & Leave? Briefly describe how your role helps customers?

As the Property Manager of Lock & Leave, I am responsible for ensuring facility operations are carried out in a timely and efficient manner. I aim to assist as many customers as possible with a multitude of different needs.

2. How long have you been with the company?

I’ve been a proud member of Lock & Leave for 8 months now and I’m excited about the potential future opportunities that await me throughout my career.

3. What do you enjoy most about working at Lock & Leave? 

At Lock & Leave we proudly work as a team committed towards achieving our goals and milestones. With the support of my management team, I feel confident that we will always go above and beyond expectations to help serve the needs of our customers. I strive to continually make sure everyone is treated with the utmost respect to the best of my ability.

4. Please share a positive experience you’ve had with a customer.

Recently, a customer was searching for a storage company to meet their specific needs. Although they had asked about an alternative company—I politely provided reasons as to why Lock & Leave may provide better solutions. They asked why and I indicated that our staff provides the highest level of service to meet and exceed their expectations. I quickly handed them my personal business card and gave them some additional information about our facility. A few short minutes later they decided to rent a storage as they appreciated my respect, honesty, and trustworthiness.

5. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working? Any hobbies or pastimes?

I enjoy spending quality time with my family and friends. Prior to Covid, I regularly enjoyed going to movies, sporting events, amusement parks, concerts, and fine dining. During Covid, I’ve spent more time dedicated to reading new books and watching crime series and documentaries.

6. If you could describe yourself in 3 words, what would they be?

I consider myself to be a respectful, loyal, and kind person that treats each and every customer with the highest level of respect and care. I would never recommend a service or product to anyone unless I’d use it myself.

7. What have you learned about working at Lock & Leave?

The company cares about their employees and customers equally. Using a well-balanced approach to service and quality—they believe that treating employees right will in turn help to improve customer satisfaction.

8. Please provide any additional information you would like to share.

I would just like to say that I’m very happy to be a part of the Lock & Leave family. I represent the company in a friendly and professional manner 100% of the time. My favorite saying is “a smile doesn’t cost a thing, but it can make a big difference in someone’s day.”

 

At Lock & Leave, we believe that each and every employee should be treated as a member of our extended family. We respect and care for one another as much as we do our customers.

People choose to use self-storage facilities for a multitude of reasons. Whether it be related to lifestyle changes, temporary needs, or business considerations—anyone can benefit from renting storage units in several ways.

Utilizing storage facilities can help improve the quality of your homelife. Many individuals own possessions with financial or sentimental value they wish to retain, but lack the necessary space required to store these items in their home. 

Renting a self-storage unit can provide several advantages to help improve your overall quality of life. Let’s take a look at some of the ways storage units can positively impact your homelife.

Improves Household Organization

Many people have homes filled with extra furniture, kitchenware, or other items that take up unnecessary amounts of space. As a result, bedrooms, garages, attics, and basements become overcrowded with items.

Keeping items in storage units allow people to readily access belongings as needed without taking up valuable household square footage. Furthermore, spare bedrooms can be used for guests or entertainment purposes instead of being cluttered with boxes or bulky items that are sparingly used.

Whether you’re storing kitchenware, clothes, or seasonal items—a storage facility will help organize homes in a simplistic manner. Focus on minimalist living at home and move other items to a storage facility as a means of saving space.

Eliminate the Need to Move

Over time, people move to larger homes due to square footage limitations. As families grow, more items are purchased increasing the need for larger houses. Renting a storage unit can be a viable cost-effective alternative to purchasing a new home.

Think of storage units like an offsite extension of the home. Belongings and household goods can be safely and securely stored in a nearby, convenient location without taking up excess space. 

Instead of exhausting the time and resources needed to move to a new home—simply free up space in your existing household as a simplistic way to improve your homelife.

Create More Garage Space

Garages were originally created as spaces designed to store vehicles. Nowadays, many people end up using garages as extra space to store random boxes and unused consumer goods. Freeing up garage space will allow you to use garages for their intended purpose. 

Garage space can be used for a number of different reasons including:

• Storing automobiles and other recreational vehicles
• Creating game rooms 
• Building home gyms
• Children’s play areas and more

Think of all the ways your garage can be used by freeing up space. Simply store items in a storage facility and enjoy the additional area provided by the garage. 

Manage Business Inventory

Many people use their homes for business operations. If you happen to own a company that requires vast amounts of inventory—using a storage facility can be an alternative to opening a typical business site.

If you’ve been running a small business for any length of time, you know that keeping items sitting around can have a negative impact on your homelife. Try using a self-storage facility to help you better manage your inventory. 

Small business owners can store important items in self-storage units and access documents or important files as needed. Don’t try to blend professional and home life together. Use a storage facility to help manage all of your business needs instead.

Let Lock & Leave Storage Improve Your Homelife 

If you’ve been searching for a safe and convenient storage environment that will ease stress and improve the quality of your homelife—look no further than Lock & Leave Storage. Our residential and business self-storage solutions provide a number of key features to make your life easier including:

• Friendly, knowledgeable staff available to assist you
• Convenient accessible hours 
• Security monitoring 24 hours a day
• Clean, well-lit storage spaces
• Readily available boxes and packing supplies

With multiple locations—Lock & Leave Storage provides quality residential and business self-storage solutions to help manage your life and eliminate stress. Our storage specialists are here to help you each step of the way.

Contact us today to get started so you can enjoy more space in your home.

There are many stages in life and in business that may necessitate the use of a self-storage facility. Whether it be short-term rental, a permanent move, or relocation, business growing and needing space—storage units can provide the extra space needed to store items or possessions outside of your home. 

Are you struggling to park your vehicle in the garage due to tremendous clutter? Is your home going through a temporary remodel? Are you downsizing since the kids moved out? Are your kids moving back home for a temporary stay after college? Maybe you simply want to give your home more space and openness. Whatever the case may be—a self-storage space may be the right option for you.

If you’ve been considering using a self-storage facility—it’s important to take note of a few key characteristics in order to ensure you choose the proper unit. The right storage unit should provide more than simply a space to hold household items, it should give peace of mind and security. 

Consider a number of factors prior to trusting your personal possessions to a self-storage facility including:

• What size unit is needed to sufficiently store household items?
• What is the reason for storing items?
• How long will the storage unit be needed?
• What types of items will be stored?

These are some of the basic elements that should be considered when choosing self-storage facility options. Beyond these factors—there’s a number of other key items that should be reviewed.

Easy-to-Use

Some storage facilities may often be located in secluded or difficult to access areas. If you’re going to be accessing your unit on a regular basis—make sure that you choose a facility that is conveniently located with easy-access. 

Storage sites should be easy-to-use in close proximity to your home, business, or daily commute. Choose a self-storage facility with appropriate loading docks, friendly knowledgeable staff, and a convenient location. 

Safe and Secure

Self-storage sites should provide safety and security to both yourself and your possessions. Be sure to look for sufficient security, proper staffing and video monitoring during regular business hours.

Units should have locks and security mechanisms that protect valuable items. Your personal security should also remain a top priority especially if accessing the site during off hours. Self-storage sites should be well lit with alarm systems to help ensure the highest of safety standards 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Convenient

Self-storage sites should be easily accessible throughout the day and located in convenient, easy-to-access locations. Be sure to pick the right storage option with knowledgeable staff, fair pricing, and a variety of sizes.

Choosing a self-storage facility that is located near your home in a safe location will provide you with the ability to easily access self-storage sites as necessary. 

Affordable

There is a wide range of variability when it comes to choosing self-storage facility options. You should carefully weigh your options while considering both cost and value. Certain storage facilities may be more inexpensive than others, but can lack security and other key features.

Cost should never be the sole deciding driver when it comes to choosing a self-storage facility. Be sure to review all appropriate factors related to self-storage options.

Knowledgeable Staff

Be sure to choose self-storage sites that have friendly, knowledgeable staff on hand to provide assistance as needed. The staff should monitor security and provide customer care as needed.

Storage professionals should be well versed on security policies and monitor 24 hour video surveillance systems as needed. If you are locked out of your unit or unable to enter—staff should also provide support as needed.

Friendly and reliable staff should also be available to help choose appropriate units based on individual storage needs and other applicable recommendations. No matter what questions you have, they should be able to answer honestly and reliably.

Why Choose Lock and Leave Storage 

If you’ve been searching for a safe, secure, clean environment to store all of your precious items—look no further than Lock & Leave Storage. We provide safe and quality residential and business self-storage options with a number of features including:

• Friendly, knowledgeable staff available to assist you
• Easily accessible hours from 7:00am to 7:00pm
• Clean, well-lit storage spaces
• Secure 24 hour video security
• Boxes and packing supplies 
• Referral program that pays you cash
• Truck rentals available

With locations in Placentia and San Bernardino—Lock & Leave Storage provides quality residential and business self-storage solutions for a variety of needs. If you’ve been searching for a safe, quality self-storage solution—please feel free to contact one of our storage professionals to help you choose the right size storage unit today.

If you live in Placentia, Yorba Linda or surrounding areas, then you’re probably looking for affordable self storage deals in OC. Regardless of whether we’re living in an apartment or in a house, the reality is that we all accumulate lots of stuff over the years. We don’t want to throw away our memories or things we’ve worked hard to accumulate, so what do we do?

The answer is simple. Put everything in an affordable self storage unit!

While that sounds simple enough, many self storage facilities in Orange County actually work very hard in coming across as affordable, but end up costing a fortune after you walk in the front office to sign the paperwork.

The trick to finding a good self storage company is finding an honest and service-oriented facility, one that does what they say, without any gimmicks, hidden charges or ridiculous fees.

After doing some research online, you may quickly realize that there aren’t that many honest self storage facilities left in Orange County. In fact, you’ll only find a few self storage places with exceptional reviews by hard working people just like you.

Unfortunately, this is the sad reality of today’s market, where out-of-touch corporations come in, set up shop, and have their lawyers write their contracts all aimed to benefit the shareholders. After doing business with these companies, you’ll quickly realize it’s not about what benefits you, but what benefits them. It’s about squeezing you for every penny you’ve got and tying you into uncomfortable long-term contracts loaded with cancellation policies and penalties.

Lock and Leave Storage in Placentia is different. That’s because our owners are regular hard working people just like you, who have been frustrated with the storage business, and decided long ago to serve their neighbors the same way they would like to be served — with honesty, integrity and service.

As one of only a handful of great self storage facilities in and around Placentia, Lock and Leave Storage puts customers first, offering great self storage deals that include free moving truck rental for their customers, free driver, and an unbelievable $19.95 move-in rate. Nothing extra. No strings attached.

So if you’re looking for self storage deals from a company that wants to keep you as a life-long customer, then give us a call. We want to earn your storage business and will jump through hoops to make you happy.

Looking for an awesome deal on self storage in Placentia? Storage deals seemingly keep popping up here and there, but when you look at the fine print, often those deals are riddled with conditions, limitations and special blackout dates.

Not at Lock and Leave Storage! Our storage deals are never going to expire or require you to jump through hoops, blindfolded!

The only thing you should worry about is vacancy, as our deals keep attracting hundreds of customers each month, meaning if you’re looking for self storage, you should contact us today before we run out of room.

We all have moved before and dealt with self storage companies that pull the old “bait and switch,” or offer a teaser rate then get you on the hook for a lot more money than you can afford. We’ve all had those nightmares with moving truck rental companies who charge you by the mile and by the minute, making you worry about returning the truck on time.

Well, Lock and Leave Storage hears you, understands you and wants to make moving as much fun and convenient as possible. While the fun part may be hard to achieve, the convenient part is our expertise!

Once you sign up for self storage, we’ll give you a free truck rental and truck driver to eliminate your need for renting a moving truck and having someone confident enough to drive it. Next, we’ll only charge you $19.95 to move in, without any hidden charges or fees. And finally, our super friendly and helpful customer service experts will help you with anything you need to make your move as pleasant as possible.

So if you’re looking for self storage deals in Placentia, give Lock and Leave Storage a call. You’ll be glad you did.

Do you live in San Bernardino? Are you looking for affordable self storage? Are you tired of gimmicky offers by the bigger storage facilities that draw you in with limited time offers then raise the price? Do you want a friendly and caring staff to help you through the process and make sure you’re well taken care of? Lock & Leave Storage can help.

Often people moving, downsizing, going through divorce, an unfortunate death in the family, or even going away to college will need cheap storage nearby. We get that, and we’re here to assist you.

We know how tough it can be to lose your job and having to move to a smaller place until you get back on your feet. As people, we’ve all been there. We’ve also lost close people, gone though marital issues and have had kids go off to college, leaving us with a need to store away all their stuff somewhere safe, secure and accessible.

For those reasons, we know how important cheap storage is, and that’s why we offer so much for so little to help people just like you.

With two really great storage locations in San Bernardino and Placentia, Lock & Leave Storage has a perfect size locker just for your needs. From small closet size spaces to hold mom’s memories, to a space suitable for a three bedroom house, we can customize your self storage unit to your needs, so that you only pay for what you need and nothing more.

If you live in San Bernardino or Placentia, and need a friendly company to help you through the good time and bad, give us a call. We’ll be happy to help, and even provide you a incentive to become our customer. Not only will your move-in cost you only $19.95, but we’ll even throw in a free moving truck and truck driver so that all you worry about is packing and moving.

Whatever musical instrument you play – whether you’re a professional musician, a sometime player, or you simply want to keep your precious trumpet until your youngster is old enough to play it – sometimes you have to place your instrument in self-storage.

Whatever your reasons for storing a musical instrument, you’ll want to prepare it properly beforehand to preserve it from damage. Your instruments are at greatest risk from heat, cold, humidity and dust. Drastic temperature changes and high levels of humidity can cause brass instruments to expand and shrink, strings and wood to warp, drum skins to dry and mildew to grow. Dust can get inside electric guitars and electric keyboards, as well as amplifiers and electric sound mixer boards.

Humidifiers can keep your instruments dry in the winter, and dehumidifiers can help with summer extremes. The best temperature is 70 degrees, with 42 percent humidity.

Protect your instrument

Store the instrument in a hard case designed for that instrument. The case should be in good condition, with no fraying or powdering. It’s a good idea to place a layer of acid-free tissue between the cushion and each instrument before storing it, as the soft lining inside many hard cases can damage musical instruments over time. Drape a clean cloth over strings inside the case, and place the case itself inside a polyethylene bag for additional protection against humidity. A hard case will also protect your instrument from damage if another item falls on top of it. It will keep your instruments safe from harsh UV lights or other environmental damage, and protect it from insects.

Drums: To store a drum set, loosen the drum skin to prevent it from stretching and cover it with a sheet or tarp to keep the dust off. Oil leather surfaces, and polish all hardware.

Piano: Before storing a piano, wrap the legs, piano bench, and pedals in heavy padding to protect them from damage. Like the drum set, cover the piano with sheet or tarp. No need to loosen piano strings; the cast-iron harp or plate is designed to withstand tons of pressure. However, it’s advisable to store a baby grand on its side. Consider having the piano moved professionally.

Woodwinds/strings: Separate woodwind or string instruments into sections so pressure won’t harm their joints. Don’t forget to remove reeds and mouthpieces. Thoroughly oil and clean each piece, and place tissue paper between the pads of woodwind instruments.

Clean the instrument first

Clean your instruments before storing them. If your stringed instrument is made of wood, cover it with a wax paste made for wooden instruments. Never use an oil or alcohol-based polish on wood instruments – it can dry them out. You can purchase the appropriate wax at your local music store. Use brass wax on brass instruments.

Store above ground in appropriate containters

Store your instruments above ground by using pallets, shelving or casters. Store backup CDs, DVDs or flash drives of music in waterproof containers. Unpack carefully

Removal from storage

When taking instruments out of long-term storage, take your time cleaning, reattaching and tuning the instruments.

Consider insurance

Insure your instruments. Many self-storage facilities offer insurance to protect your valuables from fire, burglary, vandalism and natural disasters.

If you’re soon to have a baby, you know you have to make some changes in your living areas to prepare for your infant’s arrival. Many people find that self storage can be a huge help when setting up a nursery.

Clear out a room

You’ll want to convert one of your rooms into a nursery. That means clearing out items that currently live there. You’ll also want to clear out some breakable knick-knacks and other items that aren’t baby-proof.

A storage unit might come in handy for the displaced items. Furniture, especially, may be useful when the child is older and will be safe in storage until you need it again. You’ll want to keep some memorabilia as the child grows. And later on, you might want to pass down items your youngster has outgrown. They’ll stay out of the way in storage.

You might also need to store the items you’ve purchased while getting the nursery ready for your baby. Maybe your baby isn’t due for seven months, but you’ve already bought or borrowed the perfect crib set and grandma has knitted piles of baby clothes for the tyke.

Be sure to label boxes and arrange the unit so you can find what you need at the right time. You don’t want to discover an outfit for a newborn at the bottom of a box months too late for the baby to wear it.

First steps

In the beginning all you really need is a crib, dresser and a rocking chair. No need to clutter up the room with excess furniture. You could also find furniture that can grow with the baby; options like cribs that convert into toddler or twin-size beds can save you both space and money.

Take a close look at the furniture in all of your rooms to see whether it poses a hazard for baby. Your coffee table might have sharp metal or glass edges, and your glass end tables could shatter when your crawler is learning to pull himself up. And what if a child crawls under the coffee table – then tries to stand up?

Clearing out the dangerous objects also allows for space to toss down a blanket and let your infant bat at a mobile-style play gym or learn to scoot. And don’t leave anything a child could be trapped inside. Ideally, you’ll want toy chests that have cutouts or space between the box and the lid.

Baby proof the house

Baby proof the house. Place safety caps over electric sockets, and baby locks on drawers, cupboards and toilets. Additionally, move cleaning supplies and medications up high.

Install gates

Before bringing baby home, put up baby gates to close off restricted areas and separate pets.

Secure furniture

Identify any furniture that could tip or fall – including televisions — and secure them to the walls. That way they can’t be pulled over as your child grows.

In addition, equip your home with fire extinguishers and carbon monoxide detectors.

Use all available space

Make good use of whatever space you have available to store all the baby gear you accumulate.

1. Consider drawers or boxes that can fit under the crib for clothing, supplies, or toys.
2. Install a second closet rack underneath your regular for baby clothes, or store items in baskets on the top shelf.
3. If you prefer vertical storage, put shelves or bookcases against the walls to hold books and toys.
4. Another option is furniture that doubles as storage. You could, for example, use a dresser as a changing table, while an ottoman in front of the rocking chair could hold extra blankets or supplies.

Keep things organized within the nursery itself. For example, designate an area specifically for nursing or feeding, one for changing and one for sleeping. Keep everything you need for a late night feeding or changing in a particular spot.

Organize other rooms

1. Create storage for bath toys, baby shampoo and soap. A mesh storage bag neatly holds wet toys in the bathtub.
2. Make room in the kitchen for bottles, bottle cleaners, nipples, pacifiers, formula and baby food. If space is limited, you may want to put some of your dishes into storage.
3. Put a basket in the living room or den to store toys and books.
4. An over-the-door shoe rack can organize singlets, socks and toys, freeing up space in your drawers. A strong hook on a door can also create a sneaky place to store a stroller.

A storage unit can be a big help when your baby arrives. Not only will it help you create more storage space in your home, you can use it to store items you’ll need in the future, such as hand-me-downs from friends or family members that won’t fit for several months. That also goes for toys or furniture you won’t need until the baby gets older.
Then again, you might want to hang onto the bassinet, the changing table and the crib for a time after the child outgrows it – until you decide when, or if, you will have another child.