4 Creative Home Storage Methods

Do you feel like your home is cluttered? Before you go out and get a self storage unit or a dumpster, consider these creative methods to more efficiently make use of the space you already have. You'll be surprised how much space you can save in your home when you think outside of the box.

1. Our plugged in lives inevitably lead to a lot of cables all over the place. Make sure in all parts of your home you neatly organize cables. Using velcro straps, like the ones in the picture above, you can reduce the floor space that cables take up below desks. This means you clear up floor space to place shelves, cabinets or boxes.

2. This classic trick is made with simple materials. You super glue the top of a jar to the bottom of a table then fill the jars with tools, spices, whatever. When you need the item just unscrew the jar to gain access.

3. Who says curtains have to just be decorative? Using shower hooks you can attach organizers onto your curtain poles. You can put shoes, supplies, toys or anything you want in this extra space.

4. I've got to admit I'm a bit of a book hoarder, so this one seemed like a genius idea to me. Get bookshelves that have an open back then you can turn them out towards your room. This also serves as a good barrier if you want to have a sense of divided space between certain rooms. 

5 Easy Tips to Pack for Self Storage Efficiently

We have all seen or at least heard of storage units that are an absolute mess. What we don't consider is actually how long it takes to sort out that mess when it comes time to remove things from self storage. What is even worse is if there is something you need to get out of self storage. Packing your self storage unit so that it is organized will save you loads of time in the future. Here are some quick and easy tips that will help plan and organize your items when you plan to move them into self storage.

Step 1: Know what you are going to store. 

Before you even move anything is when the process of self storage begins. You need to go through your items to figure out exactly what you are going to put in storage. Make an inventory of all items you want to store. If you have a bunch of smaller items you want to store try to generalize it all in one group..

Step 2: Organize Your Inventory 

Once you have created an inventory of all the items you are going to put into storage, you can start thinking about where all of these items should be placed in the storage unit. After you've organized your inventory, you can start to draw a picture of roughly where you want items to go in the storage unit. In the picture you may want to consider if you want to create a walkway or two, so that you can more easily get to items packed in the back of the unit.

• List what items you will need access to and plan to put them towards the front of the storage unit.
• On the other end of the spectrum, list the items you won't need regular access to. 
• List items that will be boxed and stacked. 
• List the heavier items that will go on the bottom of the storage.

Step 3: Figure out the Size of Storage Unit You Need  

Now that you already have an inventory of your items, it is pretty easy to figure out what size storage unit you need. You can do this one of two ways: ask a storage unit manager or figure it out yourself. Show the storage unit manager your list of items, and they can pretty accurately guess what size storage unit you need. As far as doing it yourself goes, there are many different online tools, like for example, this one, that can assist you in finding out the approximate size of storage unit you need. I personally recommending doing both to get the best estimate. I always err on side of caution by choosing a larger storage unit to avoid having to switch storage units after figuring out that the one selected is too small. And a dirty little secret of the storage industry is sometimes they will charge you extra if you need to switch to a larger unit. 

Step 4: When Packing Label Everything Very Specifically 

First off, everything you can get into a box, do it. Items left exposed in self storage can get dusty, or even worse, moldy. After that you will need to carefully label each box with the items in it. Be specific as you are willing to make yourself be, because there is nothing worse than searching through a ton of boxes to find one specific item. For example, if you are putting several boxes of paperwork in storage, make sure you sort of  label what type of paperwork, ie tax returns, invoices, are in the box. It may seem a little anal now, but trust me, if you need to find a specific item you will be thanking me.

Step 5: Take Your Time Filling in the Storage Unit 

There is nothing worse than rushing through and throwing everything in your storage unit. Make sure you set aside a large amount of time to get your storage unit filled and organized. You already have a rough plan of where items should go, so try to stick to it as much as possible. Just remember by taking time to organize everything from the get-go, you are making it faster to empty the storage unit and find items if needed.

How to Welcome a New Neighbor (and Possibly Make a New Friend)

Moving really is no fun at all. Most people can relate to how unpleasant any move can be. So next time when you see a new neighbor moving in perhaps you can give them a friendly hand. Sometimes just going over to say "hi, welcome to the neighborhood" can be enough to make the person feel less alienated in their new home. If you want to go the extra mile to make your new neighbor feel welcome, the following items can really help a person who is new in the neighborhood out. Who knows, you may even make a new friend if you are looking for new contacts in the area.

Emergency Card

One way to help a neighbor out is by creating a list of all the must-know numbers we all need. Numbers to the fire department, police, animal control, local pizza place, etc. You can even put your neighbor on there as a friendly reminder that you are available. 

Gift Card

When most people move, they are going to be spending at least a couple meals ordering a carry out. If you don't want to make them a meal yourself then you can just get them a gift card to a restaurant in the area. This can also be a good chance to support any local businesses in the areas that offer gift cards. 

Play-Date or Babysitting? 

Moving when you have kids can be a real big challenge. If you have kids, it can be a great idea to offer a play date or to baby-sit for even just a couple hours. Finding distractions for kids can be a challenge while moving, so just about any parent would appreciate a little break from their little one when they are unpacking. Don't be offended if they say no, some people are weird about allowing "strangers" watch their kids. 

Invite Over for Dinner 

If you really want to make someone welcome, why not welcome them into your own home? This can give you a chance to get to know your neighbors. This also gives the new neighbors a fun social distraction and a free meal, and that is something most of us would appreciate when going through the atrocities of a move. 

Baked Goods 

Yummy snacks of any sorts can be a good option as a gift. Fruit or baked goods are especially a good idea to help your neighbor out. Most people don't care if the baked goods are from your kitchen or the local bakery, so if you suck at baking or don't have time, buying something can be a great option.  

Should I Rent a Steam Cleaner or Just Buy a Steam Cleaner?

Pets, kids and spouses can all do some serious damage to carpets. Whether you are getting ready to move out or just want your home to look clean again, steam cleaning is an effective way to make your carpet look almost like new. You might even get used to this whole having your carpet look clean thing. This is when you may start to wonder what are the benefits of buying versus just renting.

I'm going to go through some of the pros and cons of buying a steam cleaner versus owning a steam cleaner. I have person experience renting and buying steam cleanings, but I eventually opted to buy a steam cleaner for my home after renting one a couple times. At the bottom of the page you can check out different types of steam cleaners to consider for purchase. 

Pros of Renting a Steam Cleaner 

• It usually only costs around 30 bucks to rent a steam cleaner for the day. There are lots of different locations that you can rent steam cleaners from including Rug Doctor, Home Depot, Lowe's and various moving companies. I highly recommend Rug Doctor, because they usually have a plethora of convenient locations in most areas.  
• If you have extremely messy carpets this is usually the way to go, because when you rent a steam cleaner you get a professional grade quality steam cleaner. This means that any tough stains you have will actually come up. You can actually buy a professional grade steam cleaner, but it will cost you around 500 dollars when you include tax. 
• You don't have to worry about repairs or replacement parts. All appliances eventually break, steam cleaners are no exception. 
• If you only plan on using the steam cleaner once, there is no real reason to buy one.

Cons of Renting a Steam Cleaner 

• Picking up and dropping of a steam cleaner can be a pain. Between gas, squeezing it in your vehicle and time spent, sometimes it is just better to cut your losses and buy one. 
• If new stains up you have to go rent a steam cleaner again. For people who want to keep their carpets looking new and stain free after they give it a deep cleaning, this can be a deal breaker. 
• For those wanting to give their carpets a deep clean more than once a year you'll end up spending about half of what it costs to get a low grade steam cleaner.

Pros of Buying a Steam Cleaner 

• It is available for you whenever you want it. Next time the cat, kids or whoever makes a mess, you can easily get rid of the stain. 
• If you give your carpets a deep clean once or twice a year, it keeps your carpets looking fairly new. This can be great news for people who may plan on selling soon, or if you simply don't want to play for replacement carpets for a long time. 
• Cleaning your carpet regularly is great for people with allergies. I personally have mild cat allergies and three cats. Deep cleaning the carpets is one of the many ways I can actually keep the allergies at bay. 
• You don't have to pick up or drop of the steam cleaner ever again. 
• You can lend the steam cleaner to your friends, family or neighbors as a favor. 

Cons of Buying a Steam Cleaner 

• Buying a really cheap steam cleaner will just not work as well. You may find that your purchase is a waste since it won't get out the tough stains. 
• It can be a high up front cost to get a good steam cleaner. It can be tempting to invest that money in other parts of your home. 
• Steam cleaners do eventually break. The cost of repairs and replacement parts can quickly add up. 
• If you end up never using the steam cleaner despite all your plans for clean carpets it can end up being a waste of money. Make sure to set up a schedule to deep clean the carpets, so your steam cleaner doesn't gather moth balls in the closet. 

Different Steam Cleaners for Your Consideration

Below are pictures of different types of steam cleaners for you consideration. Left click on the picture to get details about the different products.

The Dissel Upright Cleaner is a great option for people who have lots of semi-tough stains they want to address in their home. Dissel offers lots of different upgrades and versions, but this one costs a reasonable $169.99 at Best Buy.

The Portable Deep Cleaner is a great option for people who only have a couple of tough stains they want to address. This is also a great option if you want to clean out any stains in your car. You can find it at Best Buy for just $149.99.

The Rug Doctor is a professional grade cleaner that you would actually rent from most Rug Doctor locations. If you want a serious cleaner for some serious messes this is your steam cleaner, but it comes in steep at $400 for Lowe's.