need.a.space | Need a Space

How can self-storage be the solution to a lack of domestic space in Kent?

Possibly the most valuable asset to businesses and domestic owners alike is in fact invisible. Space, or the lack of it, can cause hell in a residential home, it can send a business budget through the roof, it can confuse logistics and cause havoc to organisational structures. There is no doubt it is a factor we all take for granted until we don’t have enough of it.

Now with the advent of self-storage facilities in the UK, you can pre-empt those periods when you are likely to be stuck for space and plan for the future.

Does your home appear to be smaller?

We have all been there. The home that you moved into all those years ago, which was blessed with an extraordinary amount of cupboards, now seems breathtakingly small and inadequate to house the whole family.

Doors on storage rooms won’t close properly due to the fact that they have been over-filled and the thought of actually finding something within the frustrating chaos (you know it will mean emptying half the cupboard before you find that Phillips screwdriver you so desperately need) has become a nightmare in itself.

So what is the next step?

You start thinking your family has outgrown the size of the house and you need to start considering extensions or even worse – moving to a bigger and more expensive accommodation. I don’t have to go into any depth about the logistical nightmare that comes in tandem this these ideas let alone the financial trauma and emotional upheaval of leaving a much-loved location.

So just stop a second.

The easier, cheaper solution is out there. A solution where you hold on to your beloved home and avoid the stress of selling your house.

Self-storage facilities are not just for businesses.

Now because of their highly competitive prices, domestic residents are considering using them not just to help with the overall logistics of moving (i.e. finding valuable space for possessions until the move is finalised) but also streamlining lifestyles and preventing unnecessary re-location.

Simply by spending some time organising your stored possessions, filter out the stuff that you want to hold onto but are never actually used. This could be valuables which have a sentimental value or goods which are only used very infrequently but take up a ridiculous amount of space. When you store your possessions in the self-storage container make sure that those valuables you may need sometime are easily accessible.

Temporary space to enhance your lifestyle and pamper your budgets

By storing this type of possessions in a self-storage facility you will be freeing up your home to unheard of space at a small cost of the rental of a small container. With more space for the family as it continues to grow, your lifestyles will be de-stressed less frustrating. Everyone could be getting on a little better without the doom-laden thought of structural changes or moving home.

Looking for storage space in Faversham Canterbury or Herne Bay? To learn more about how Need A Space self-storage can help domestic residents and businesses in Kent and the London area click here for a quote

6 top tips for archiving your valuable business documents

Archiving is an essential task for businesses large or small. As well as being able to show a clear paper trail, evidence of contracts and agreements made, information for future repetitive activities, data on employees and product specifications, and storage for financial information you are not allowed to dispose of due to governmental legislation, it will not be long before records are beginning to interfere with daily activities on a serious level. Here are some tips to get your archiving in order, make the most of your self-storage and get on with your everyday business:

Introduce regular auditing

Before you can start boxing everything away that huge mound of paper that is not used on a daily basis, you need to do a full analysis of what needs to be kept and what can be thrown away (always think recycling). You will need to be quite ruthless and this activity necessarily causes quite a great deal of useless procrastination. The easiest way is to consider whether the data will be needed in the future or if it needs to be kept for legal reasons.

Digitalise data

Some of the documents you need to hold on to do not necessarily need to be held on hard copy, so consider digitalising that data so that it will be useful to reference in the future. This can be a little time consuming as you will need to scan these items and create an ordered place in your computer storage where you can always track back stored information. At the same time, it can reduce cost of storage and also put your mind at rest where you feel unsure about destroying certain documents.

Durable containers

We often think little about the boxes we are going to place our archive materials in, but make sure the boxes are tough and durable as they may have to store the archived data for a long period of time.

Self-storage opportunities

Self-storage can be a great way to store business archives at cheap rate. It means, as your business grows and thrives, you can keep relevant data in one place which is ordered and indexed. Of course, location is important and storage facilities need to be as close as possible for easy access. But if you are a business in London consider finding self-storage in Kent to cut overall cost of long term archive storage.

Clearly label retention dates

There will be some data that only needs to be kept for a set period of time due to government legislation. Make sure these archives are clearly labelled so you can make more room for new data coming in and easily accessible within the self-storage facility.

Looking for storage space in Faversham Canterbury or Herne Bay? To learn more about how Need A Space self-storage can help businesses in Kent and the London area click here

6 top tips for maximising space in your self-storage units

Space to store your valuable business assets or precious valuables costs money and is often in very short supply so you need to make sure that every inch of that space is used to the best possible effect. With that in mind, here are 6 top tips for making the most of your storage area:

Think vertically. There is a tendency when using self-storage to store everything on a single level. This is a terrible waste – you do not want to have to be buying extra units. So before you even start storing, map out what needs to be stored. What can be stacked? You have to think about safety here so ensure that anything on a second or third level cannot topple, sits squarely on goods below and is not too heavy up top. Your bottom level should be the heaviest goods and each level above it should get progressively lighter.

The Tardis effect. Some of the goods you will store are great storage systems in themselves. For instance, a wardrobe, a set of drawers or an appliance such as a fridge or an oven will allow you to store a whole host of things. But the key here is remembering what you have put where, so they are accessible in the future. For instance, fill fridges with a set category: i.e. kitchen goods. Label everything and keep a record as to where you will find everything. Also, as a safety concern, don’t make furniture so heavy that you cannot lift them or have to empty them to get them out again.

Fold it down. A great deal of furniture nowadays is designed to be stored away. Sometimes when we have had furniture in place in our homes for long periods we forget this, so get to grips with folding it down as small as possible. There are all kinds of little techniques you can think of: for instance, even a bed’s legs are removable. Once the legs are taken down it can easily be stored against a wall.

Talking of legs…where furniture needs to be stored in its natural state (i.e. standing up!) use the space between the legs to create a new level of storage.

Manoeuvrability. As much as you want to create as much space as possible do not forget that you need to get back in to retrieve your valuables. So leave space for manoeuvre.

Easy Access. Always place the possessions you are most likely to need most frequently at the front of the storage area for easy accessibility.

Looking for storage space in Faversham Canterbury or Herne Bay? To learn more about how Need A Space self-storage can help businesses in Kent and the London area click here

Why it is essential to think ahead with self-storage

The key to making storage easy is really about one thing: “think long term”. In many cases the task of storing is an immediate solution for getting things out of sight and out of mind. Therefore, you can fall into the trap of piling it all into that small space as fast as possible and be left with quite a conundrum when you want to get back in there and put your hands on individual items.

So a primary concern for good self-storage is to consider how you are going to make your individual stored objects accessible. Here are some fundamental tips to make it all go like clockwork:

Location

This may seem a little bit obvious but clearly the self-storage unit you use needs to be in easy reach of your home and business for easy accessibility

A handy little map

Plan out where you are going to place your items in the storage unit before you start. You may be placing your items in storage for some time and it is easy to forget. The map (leave it in the storage unit!) will make it easy to track down specific items.

Labels are an absolute must

Cardboard boxes have a tendency to look all the same and it can be really frustrating tracking down that one item you need if you do not use labels. Label every box.

Create Geo-themes

Create themes so that certain boxes will be full of a certain type of item. i.e. kitchen utensils or conference materials or sales tools etc. Then go one step further by placing those boxes in a certain area of the unit together.

Safety

Safety is always important. Remember to use signs like “this side up” on all boxes and don’t overload each box so that you are not straining physically, or putting the box at risk of breaking.

Ready to use

Pack items so they are as easy to find within the boxes and also ready to use. For instance, if you have many documents, use an index to keep each document at your fingertips. If you have clothes fold them and place them on hangers so they are ready to use.

Clear path for easy manoeuvre

There is a tendency to cram as much into your unit as possible but don’t forget you need to be able to get into your valuables, walk around them and access the ones at the back so leave yourself a path to get in and out.

Keep frequently used items at the front

There may well be items you will need to access on a regular basis. Keep these items near the front of the unit.

Looking for storage space in Faversham Canterbury or Herne Bay? To learn more about how Need A Space self-storage can help businesses in Kent and the London area click here

Security is an essential factor for Self-Storage

Trusting your valuables with a company you know very little about can be very anxiety provoking if you do not do your research properly beforehand. Here at Need A Space our experience of twenty years has told us that the reason we have loyal clients who continuously come back to us is because security, privacy, and confidentiality at the core of our of our services.

Safe storage for precious valuables and business assets

For both businesses and domestic clients alike, the valuables placed with us in storage is not the overspill that should really be going in the loft before it’s thrown out. They tend to be important assets that owners need access to. It could be valuable assets as a company grows, essential materials for sales to help with geographical issues, it could be business archives, or furniture during a house sale – the list is endless.

Need A Space self-storage is based in Canterbury in Kent and we service such areas as Faversham, Herne Bay and surrounding locations. We also welcome clients from London who are looking for cheaper self-storage deals outside of the City. But how do you find a company you can trust if you are located outside of these areas? Here are a few factors we employ and we would recommend you look out for in your search.

Have they been passed by “checkatrade”? This is a great place to start as any company that has this logo on their stationary or website needs to keep up to standards made by this review company.
How many keys are there to your storage unit/s? For ultimate safety there should only be one key which you will hold yourself.
How does the company ensure security over the whole facility? Do they take it seriously? At Need A Space we have a CCTV surveillance security system operating inside and out 24/7.
How does the company deal with emergencies such as an attempted break-in or fire prevention? There should be both robust burglar alarm and fire systems.
Is the company using the most up to date technology? Here at Need A Space we recently installed high security infra-red beams as an extra layer of safety.
Can anyone get into the facility unnoticed? There should be powerful structures to keep unwanted persons out. You should be seeing something like security fencing around the outside of the storage facility.

It’s always worth looking for those important accessories. At Need A Space we also offer secure mailboxes. This is useful when your own domestic postal address is not safe or you are in transition, or as a secondary safe mail address for your business.

Looking for storage space in Faversham Canterbury or Herne Bay? To learn more about how Need A Space self-storage can help businesses in Kent and the London area click here

How to choose the perfect self-storage provider in Kent

To help you to decide which company you use for your storage needs you first of all need to be specific about what your storage requirements are.

Are you a business with seasonal storage requirements?
Are you moving house and need to store your furniture during the period you are moving in?
Are you a student needing to store your stuff during the summer recess?
Are you a London company wanting to find a cheap storage company outside of London?
Are you looking to free up your offices by archiving all your documents?

Location, location, location

The next factor on your list however will be location. Clearly the storage facility needs to be within your catchment area (or area where you are moving to) so that you can cut down on transport costs and also ensure that all of your valuables are easily accessible.

Trust is paramount

You need a company you can trust. In some cases (especially when you are moving house) the assets you place in storage could be your most valuable possessions. You need to know that the company concerned respects privacy and confidentiality and has the facilities in place to put the processes into action. Visit the location where your possessions will be stored. Check what security systems are in place. Are these security systems robust?

Check for past client reviews (on independent sites and look out for “Check-a-trade” recommendations on the site.

Make sure those essential little extras are available

Self-storage is not always as easy as it sounds and there can be a lot of logistics involved before you know your possessions and valuables are safe and sound. The superior self-storage companies will offer extra services as well as just the storage facility.

For instance at Need A Space we offer services that will make that move smooth, easy and stress-free:

Staff on-site to offer guidance and direction
An assisted fork lift truck service to help you manoeuvre your valuables into position easily
We offer the use of our removal van. This way you put all of your contracts to do with the move in one place.
We also offer flexibility. If you want storage space for a long period of time (as many of our loyal customers do) you will probably need to increase or decrease the space capacity you are allotted at different times.
The key to a smooth move is packing well and we offer all those packaging necessities (boxes, bubble wrap, foam wrap, strong tape etc.).

The great thing about Need A Space self-storage based in Canterbury is we offer services for all requirements whether it is business or domestic. We offer superior facilities at competitive prices.

If you need guidance re the whole self-storage process, just give us a call – trust us we can get you there.

Looking for storage space in Faversham Canterbury or Herne Bay? To learn more about how Need A Space self-storage can help businesses in Kent and the London area click here

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Tel: 01227 751673 Mobile: 07841 260 500 Adrress: 1-5, Thunderhill Business Park, Hickmans Green, Boughton-under-Blean, Faversham ME13 9NT

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