There are many times over the year where we take stock of our space at home. We know you do it to! These 'critical inspections' of our space and stuff are often when we are find ourselves at home more (and living in the space with family and friends). What's great about these is that they lead to some positive changes - less clutter, more organization, and most important, that that wonderful feeling of accomplishment and control that follows when you declutter and organize your home.
When it comes to getting organized at home, we tend to focus on certain rooms first. We make sure the home office is a functional happy place, the kid’s bedrooms are clean and organized, the linen closet is picture-worthy and that the boxes in the attic are well labelled.
The basement, however, is the last room we often turn to. The basement is all too often the dumping ground. It’s the place we store things we know we should sort through (but don’t), or the extra furniture our parents give us when they downsize. It’s also the place where we sometimes create a make-shift toy room or play area for the kiddos, or where the treadmill sits and collects dust. Basements often have the most untapped square footage that we could possibly benefit from if we undertook some basement organization.
This blog post is dedicated to helping you maximize your basement and reclaiming that space so it's something beneficial for you and your family.
The first step to reclaim one whole floor of your home, is to sort it. This means you need to ruthlessly go through every single item in your basement and decide if you’re going to keep it, store it, trash it, or donate it. If you need some help getting started, you can check out some of our other blogs like How to Declutter on a Dime or 3 Tips to Get & Stay Organized on how to get organized.
Now that you’ve whittled down your belongings, it’s time to figure out how you will use your basement. Perhaps you might want to use your basement as your second living room – a casual place you can hang out and watch a movie. Maybe you want to convert the basement totally into a playroom or recreational room for your kids to free up space in the rest of the house.
Many are converting their basements into multi-purpose space with a room for guests, a playroom, a small office area (ideally close to a window), and a gym. The best approach when laying out your basement is to determine and rank what you want your basement to be and compare notes with the people you live with to determine what needs you can fulfill with this space. This is very important because the layout of your basement will drive how you organize your things.
Now that you have a vision, it’s time to figure out three important things:
For your in-home storage, you don’t want to see all of your stuff. So, it’s important to think through built-in shelves, nice containers for extra things, as well as how you’ll store your jackets and off-season clothes. You might want to take a part of your basement and create a walk-in storage unit, complete with a door you can close off. This lets you create a storage space without having to spend a lot of money on making the storage space look nice. You will want to pay careful attention to things like heat and light. Basements can already be scary enough so don’t create a room you are scared to go into.
Basements are usually cold and damp. You might want to consider getting a good quality dehumidifier to address dampness concerns and investing in some venting to produce better airflow and heat, throughout your basement. Heated floors or a gas fireplace in your basement will help both dry and heat the space. Carpet in a basement usually helps insulate your feet from that cold concrete feel and creates a good, cozy atmosphere. If you have the budget, windows always go a long way in a basement, because light is such a premium. If you can get good quality, well-insulated windows, these will make a difference, particularly if you’re using your basement for an office area.
A self-storage unit can be the perfect way to free up much needed basement space. For example, outdoor furniture tends to be stored in your garage or basement. Well, it’s a little uncomfortable to trip over Muskoka chairs when you’re trying to find something. Or you might have things that you know you need season after season (such as your Christmas tree), but you don’t need them for 11 months of the year. Whatever the item is, a self storage unit can give you that extra space, at a very reasonable rate. This lets you use your whole house all the time – it’s win-win!
At Storage Solutions, we know how important it is to be happy in your home. We have self- storage units for our own personal items, and we love the flexibility and breathing room we gain at home.
If you’re looking for extra space at home so you can reclaim your basement, we hope you’ll consider Storage Solutions. We offer indoor heated and climate-controlled units, outdoor drive-up units, a well-lit yard, and the ability to rent a self-storage unit online, anytime, 24/7. Our gate access and our cameras over our entire facility give you peace of mind and security.
We are happy to answer any questions you have – call or text us at 905-854-1008, email us at info@storagesolutionsontario.com, or check out our FAQ page for more info. And you can also visit our YouTube channel and take an online tour of our Milton self storage, Woodstock self storage and Ary self-storage facilities, and the difference sizes of self-storage units we have for rent.
If you found this blog post helpful, we hope you'll keep up with our self-storage blog. And be sure to like or follow us on Instagram & Facebook for more helpful tips & tricks, advice, and a good laugh.
Your friend in self-storage,
Storage Solutions
