Storage Locker Chaos

What I love about working in this field is not only the variety of people I get to meet and help on a daily basis, but also the challenges of working and organizing in many different spaces.  I’ve recently began a project for a friend of mine organizing his condominium storage locker.  Two lockers, actually.  One was a very small unit, and the other was a much larger unit.  For those of you who don’t know, the majority of walls in a storage locker are made of a network of wire grids.  In some instances you’ll find these similar to that of a chain link fence, and in other instances, the wire is thick, heavy duty, with no flexibility, similar to that of a dog cage. In this case, it is the latter.

My friend generally uses the smaller storage unit for long-term storage items, such as antique furniture pieces and memorabilia, but other items were thrown into the mix. When sorting through this unit , we found snowboards, old hockey bags, old jackets and a bunch of other “stuff”.  When we pulled everything out of the unit were we amazed at how much was actually packed into it.  Problem was, you couldn’t see most of it so there were some surprises for my friend.   Two of the items in this unit are wood storage trunks.  Inside the trunks we found very old record albums in green garbage backs dating back to early 1900’s.  Unfortunately, there was an extensive amount of mold damage, much of which was apparently pre-existing before even being placed in the trunk many years ago. Storing these trunks in the underground storage locker may or may not have contributed to the problem.  Although the locker did not feel as if moisture existed, it’s generally always an issue because of the concrete floors which tend to pull moisture up from the ground.  We ultimately had to dipose of many of the albums but were also able to save several. Once the moldy albums and bags were removed from the trunks, we had some new-found storage space within the trunks themselves which we utilized to the max.  Keeping in mind the ultimate purpose for this particular unit, we removed any items for which access would be frequent and designated them to the larger locker.   We even freed up space so that infrequently used items currently in the larger unit were assigned to this long term space.

Moving on to the larger storage locker, we sorted all the items into categories, such as sports gear, household items, automotive items, etc., and were then able to see exactly what needed to be contained in the space. Everything was put back in the unit on a temporary basis and in a temporary fashion pending the purchase of the organizing products and accessories needed to properly set up the space.  With a fairly low budget I headed out to shop. This was more of a challenge than sorting through the two units combined. The unique challenge in this case was finding the appropriate hooks in the right size to hang sports items up on the grid wall system without alot of trouble.  “S” type hooks are the quick fix option but they tend to flip right off the grid wires and get lost.  Carabiners can be helpful but only if the opening is large enough to easily hook onto the item that needs to hang.  I needed at least a 5″ carabiner to do the job.  If my client has to struggle to get a heavy item on or off of a hook or fastener, then that’s not a very good option as it will not only be frustrating but potentially dangerous as well. During my shopping extravaganza I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t getting frustrated at the lack of appropriate fasteners for the job. Perhaps this is a sign that I need to invent something!

Being inventive and creative in this industry is a necessity as we are frequently called upon to “create space” where none appears to exist. One of my colleagues had a great idea for creating storage in a locker such as this. He once used the frame of an old Ikea bookcase (shelves removed), raised it off the concrete floor to protect it from moisture, and inserted hooks on the top and sides of the bookcase framing to hang up items in a storage unit.  He then drilled holes through the framing and securely fastened the framing to the wire grid wall with wires. It’s not “pretty” but it’s functional because it made it possible to securely hold fasteners on which sports gear could be hung, which is ultimately what his client wanted.

The idea of using the frame of an old bookcase is a good option for some people, although not one that would work for my friend.  So after over 2 hours of scouring the major, and some smaller, hardware and big box stores, I came back to my office with a large assortment of hooks and fasteners, satisfied that I had gathered every possible option.  Ultimately I know that I”ll be returning some products, but at least I will be prepared. I go back to perform the final organization and set up of the locker on Saturday so I’ll let you  know how it turns out and post some pictures as well. Wish me luck!