Top Storage Tricks: what's worth keeping?

Ask anyone who works in a storage facility what baffles them most, and you'll likely keep getting the same answer: why do people pay to hang on to stuff they could just buy new for less money later on when they need it again? Read on for a quick guide to what you should pack your storage locker with--and what you might as well get rid of instead.

Three Things You May As Well As Throw Out...

1. Small electronic appliances. Kettles, microwaves and toasters are all generally cheaper to buy new than they are to store. They can also be a pain to stack unless you still have the boxes, and can develop faults as they sit unused for months on end. Don't cling onto them unless there's some special reason to--you're better off getting rid of them and using the space they free up for something else!
2. Any media reaching obsolescence. We're reaching a point where you can't really give DVDs away, and videos have been in that place for years. Hold on to rarities and personal favourites if you're not sure you can get them digitally, but by and large the day of the hard copy is done. When you do get rid of them, you may well find that not even charity shops will accept them as donations--they simply don't sell.
3. Old computers and technological parts. Sure, maybe one day you really will strip down that old tower and build yourself the FrankenPC of your dreams. If you haven't done it yet, though, do you really think you're going to do it in six month's time when your stuff comes out of storage again? Be realistic about things like this, and you'll save money in the long run.

And Three Things Worth Keeping Hold Of.

1. Anything of sufficient sentimental value. Of course, nobody is asking you to throw away your great-grandmother's mortar and pestle, the DVD of your wedding ceremony or the hard drive where you keep your collection of local photography. Self storage is all about helping you to preserve these treasures through different stages of your life--and by cutting the fat you'll have even more room for it all.
2. Large items of high-quality furniture. Sofas, dining tables and desks can be a pain to store, as they're bulky and difficult to transport. They also tend to be extremely expensive, though, and it can be difficult to find the right one. Keeping hold of these makes more sense than many other, smaller, easier things will.
3. Clothes. Clothes are expensive to buy, extremely personal to the wearer, and have a notoriously low resale value. Even if you're only taking what you can fit in your backpack to Europe with you for six months, it's worth having a full wardrobe to come home to at the end of it all.