Inside Storage Units

Common questions we’re asked about self-storage is what’s the difference between inside storage units and outdoor drive-up self-storage, and why would you choose indoor storage. We love getting questions about self-storage and helping people so we decided to dedicate a blog post to it.

What is Indoor Self Storage?

Indoor self-storage is rented storage that can be best compared to storing your stuff at home in a spare room (the size of a small to medium sized bedroom or office size) or a walk-in closet. The storage units are located inside a secured building that you are granted access into via a keycard or code. Some inside storage facilities offer 24/7 access, while others have set hours where you can come and go. Because these units are indoors, they are often considered more secure and they offer a temperature or climate controlled environment. This last point makes them more expensive than outdoor storage units, even though they are smaller in size.

Inside storage facilities are either multi-story facilities or single level facilities (like Storage Solutions Woodstock). Because multi-story indoor storage facilities have units on many different floors, you need to use fright elevators and stairs, as well as navigate through long hallways or corridors to get to your indoor storage rental. With all this maneuvering needed, this can make moving your stuff in or out awkward and also take up more time if you have lots of stuff or heavy or large items to store.

What are Outdoor Drive-Up Storage Units?

Drive up storage units or outdoor storage units are the most typical units in the self-storage industry. They are exactly as their name implies – storage units that are located outside that you drive up to and access. Being outdoors, these units are not temperature controlled or climate controlled which means they can sometimes fluctuate wildly in temperature, which may not be ideal for certain types of items that a person or business wants to store. Because they are subject to Mother Nature’s doing, they are almost always the less expensive self-storage option. We’ve previously written a blog post called Why Choose a Drive-Up Storage Unit, which we encourage you to check out to learn more about outdoor storage (and the benefits it offers).

What Can I Store in an Inside Storage Unit?

Being that these are smaller spaces and offer a more temperature controlled or climate-controlled storage environment, indoor self-storage units are ideal for people and businesses in need of additional space for:

• Seasonal items
• Sports equipment
• Bikes
• Furniture, especially wooden furniture
• Artwork, antiques and family heirlooms
• Vintage clothing
• Musical instruments
• Delicate paper items, like comics, collector cards, magazines, photos, and books
• Electronics
• Tool storage
• Business storage
• Document storage
• Inventory storage
• Handling an estate
• Downsizing
• Storage for seniors
• Storage for divorce
• Student storage

And depending on how much stuff you need to store, an indoor storage unit can be ideal for Moving storage or Garage storage.

How to Choose the Right Indoor Self-Storage Unit

Choosing the right indoor storage unit means taking into consideration the number of boxes, inventory, furniture, or "stuff" you plan to store, especially if it is a car. By the way, an 8x20 outdoor drive-up storage unit is perfect for vehicle storage…in case you were wondering.

Key questions to ask yourself when choosing the proper size include:

• Are you planning to store for a short or long period? Typically, the longer you have a self-storage unit, the more likely you will use it for more than what you originally rented it for, so you may want to rent a larger unit to ‘grow’ into.
• How often will you need to access your belongings?
• What time of day will you need or want access to your storage unit?
• What are you storing?
• Do you have any large or awkward items?
• How valuable are the items you will store?
• Do you need to organize your storage unit in any special way?

We offer a comparable size chart on our website, which is a quick and easy visual tool to help you select the right sized self-storage unit to rent for your own unique indoor storage needs.

Rent Indoor Storage at Storage Solutions!

Whether you’re using an indoor storage unit as an off-site locker room, man cave, she shed, seasonal storeroom, garage, tool shed or more, we hope you will consider Storage Solutions. We offer inside self-storage units at our Woodstock self-storage facility and Ayr self-storage facility. In addition to offering a friendly and clean facility, we’re serious about security, and have extra access requirements, 24/7 video surveillance and exceptional lighting.

Want to check out our indoor storage facility? No problem! Visit our YouTube channel to watch online tours or our different facilities and the different types of indoor storage units we have for rent. This is a fast, easy, and no-pressure way to see what our self-storage facility is really like.  And if you’re new to self-storage and want to learn more about how it works, check out our informative blog post, How Does Self-Storage Work?

If you’re ready to rent, give us a call or send us a text at 905-854-1008, email us at info@storagesolutionsontario.com or you can rent 24/7 online through our website. You can even pay online. We pride ourselves on making renting a storage unit simple, affordable, and fast.

We hope you’ll keep up with our blog and follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more helpful advice, information and a good laugh! 

Your friend in self-storage,

Storage Solutions