August 2020 – U-Lock Mini Storage

9 Scenarios Where Homeowners Should Use Storage Units

Storage units are useful for homeowners to store valued possessions at a secure location while creating more space in their homes. Here are the top nine scenarios where homeowners should use storage units:

1. Downsizing

If you are moving to a smaller home and not everything[RM2] from your current home fits in your new place, you can store your belongings in a storage unit. Once you have settled in your new home, you can visit your storage unit to retrieve your belongings as needed.

2. Staging a home for sale

You may have a lot of things in your home that don’t necessarily look ready for a real estate showing. To enhance the look of your home interior, you might hire a stager to decorate your home. Meanwhile, you can rent a small storage unit to keep some of your house items off-site during the selling or showing process.

3. Closing date is pushed back

If you need to be out of your apartment by September 25th, but your closing date will not happen until October 7th, you need a storage unit. It is inconvenient to have to move twice, but at least you know your belongings will be kept safe and sound in the meantime.

4. Moving Back Home Temporarily During School Break

If you are going for a business trip for some time, or going abroad for studying or training, storing certain valued items at a storage unit is a great idea. You can safely keep belongings and items that you cannot take on your trip at a secure location and easily retrieve them when you are back!

5. Consolidating homes

This process can happen when a couple first moves in together or when an elderly parent moves in with family. In either situation, there is likely to be an excess of belongings. A storage unit can give you and your family time to get through the transition.

6. Creating more space at home

Even before the dawn of the Marie Kondo era, people have had a strong desire to declutter. However, sometimes we are not in a position to get rid of belongings. They might have a sentimental value, or they might belong to another family member who is out of town.

Many people will temporarily rent a storage unit so they can slowly go through the decluttering process and keep their home tidy. People who have a knack for interior decorating also may utilize storage units for house decor items they can switch out from time to time.

7. Keeping vehicles safe in the offseason

Customers can store their vehicles at our Burnaby/Vancouver Self Storage facility! If you are going to be out of town for several weeks or months and don’t have access to a secure parking spot, our car storage unit is a great solution. We have storage units in a variety of sizes. Our car storage is located in a gated, alarmed, access controlled facility that is monitored via random patrol services as well as our 24/7 digital video recording system. This robust security system will keep your vehicle safe and sound while you are away.

8. Helping organize a home renovation

Summer is here and you are ready to renovate your home. The first thing to do after selecting the home renovation company you want to work with, is finding a storage unit near you. You can store valued possessions or furniture to avoid accidental damage, while creating more space for home renovators to work freely.

9. Organizing Home Office Inventory

As more business owners are setting up home offices to work from home 100% of the time, their homes become cluttered with office supplies or documents. Yikes! This is where storage units can help. By storing documents or office supplies at a storage unit, a business owner can declutter and clear his home or working area and keep his home office organized. Additionally, keeping your office supplies at a self storage unit will prevent them from being inadvertently damaged at home by pets, kids, or every-day activities.

Some common businesses that find value in storage units include:

● Carpenters and contractors

● Landscapers

● Online shop owners

● Sales and marketing service professionals

Looking to reserve a storage unit? Find a self storage facility near you:

Questions? Feel free to call us at 1.866.647.8673 or contact us online athttps://www.selfstorage.ca/contact-us and our staff will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have!

6 Reasons Why Vancouver Businesses Are Using Storage Units

Our storage units provide additional storage space alongside a wide range of benefits that Vancouver businesses need at competitive rates. Here are top six reasons why Vancouver businesses are using our storage units:

Store inventory

If a business has recently acquired more inventory, downsized to a smaller space, seized operation, or wanted to store items from the previous season to create more room for in-season fashion items, they can most definitely use our storage units to securely store their products or office items! We offer month-to-month no-commitment contracts which mean that businesses can store their items for a couple of months when they need the extra storage space and stop using storage units once they have enough space in their offices or stores.

Store vehicles

Businesses use our car storage facility at our U-Lock Self Storage Burnaby and Vancouver location to store their vehicle during their off-season. For example, a home improvement company may experience slow periods during certain months in a year and can pause insurance of a few of their company vehicles and store the vehicles at our Vancouver facility. Doing this helps the company save tremendously on auto insurance and protects the vehicles from external damages if the vehicles were parked out on the street or a parking lot where there’s minimal security. Our car storage unit is located in our storage facility which is protected by gates and fences and monitored 24 hours a day with an HD surveillance system. Each storage unit is installed with individual alarms so when a burglar attempts to break in a storage unit, the alarm would sound and security and police enforcement would escalate to the storage facility to remedy the issue.

Store Home Decorators, Home Staging Props or Real Estate Signs

Realtors, home decors, or professionals who are associated with the real estate industry need a place to store their home decors, home staging props, or for sale signs. Using a storage unit offers you the right solution to temporarily store the items adjacent to their business, such as various types of furniture needed to stage a house for sale in order to make it more appealing. In storage, the items will stay clean and undamaged, especially in a climate-controlled unit.

Store Office Supplies During a Renovation

Renovating or relocating are also times when businesses can enjoy the benefits of storage units as they can temporarily store their stock and a range of other items during the process. Select a storage facility that offers moving truck services for convenience. With various businesses come various needs, so you might want to store diverse items such as desktop computers, file cabinets and documents, cubicle dividers and break room appliances. In the unfortunate event of a fire or storm, you can safely store your business-related items in a storage unit until you can begin carrying out your business as usual again.

Store Documents

More businesses have gone digital nowadays by using cloud services such as Google Drive or Microsoft Azure Cloud to store company documents and these businesses no longer need cabinets to store future company documents. That said, some companies may still want to retain physical copies or certain documents or don’t want to replicate digital companies of certain important or confidential documents and upload the documents onto the cloud. These companies would turn to storage units to store old company documents so these documents aren’t laying around in the office and the companies can use the additional office space for other purposes.

Maintain eCommerce Inventory

Many retail businesses today are strictly digital, meaning that they’re strictly an eCommerce company and they don’t have a brick-and-mortar store, and they need space to hold their inventory. These businesses have turned to storage units to store their inventory. These businesses are using storage units as their “warehouse”. We have a wide variety of storage unit sizes, from 7.5 sq.ft. to 273 sq.ft; businesses can select the right unit size at the right price based on their business needs!

Have questions? Feel free to call us at 1.866.647.8673 or submit a contact form at https://www.selfstorage.ca/contact-us and our staff will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have!

Want to reserve a unit at a storage unit rental facility near you? Check out our self storage facilities:

11 Things About U-Lock Storage Units We Bet You Didn’t Know

We offer Month-to-Month Contract With No Commitment

We understand that today’s world is changing constantly and it’s difficult for businesses, students, and people in general to solidify a plan for the future. To accommodate people’s needs and the dynamic environment, we offer month-to-month contracts with no commitment to give our customers the flexibility they need.

No Security Deposit

A security deposit is money that is given to a landlord, lender, or owner of a property as proof of intent to move-in and care for the domicile. Security deposits can be either refundable or nonrefundable, depending on the terms of the transaction. A security deposit is intended as a measure of security for the recipient, and can also be used to pay for damages or lost property.

At U-Lock Self Storage, we don’t require security deposits when customers are renting storage units at our facilities. This significantly minimizes the amount of move-in cost when you rent at one of our storage facilities.

Fully Fenced with Gated Facility

The security and protection of our belongings are top priorities for us. To ensure that all the units are secure, all of our facilities are fully fenced and gated which tremendously prevent burglary or theft of any sort.

Individually Alarmed Units

In addition to a fully fenced with gated facility, we’ve installed individual alarms for all the units. The alarm triggers when a burglar attempts to forcefully and illicitly enter a storage unit and our security and local law enforcement will be notified of the attempted break-in and attend the respective facility to remedy the issue.

24-hour Video Monitoring with HD Video Surveillance System

We’ve also installed 24-hour video monitoring with HD video surveillance to monitor and address any suspicious activities 24 hours a day and document all activities nearby our facilities with our HD video surveillance system. The surveillance system further strengthens the facilities’ security and prevents malicious activities from occurring.

Industrial Size Elevators

If you have a variety of items that come in different sizes that you want to store in our storage unit and you’re worried that you can’t get the items through with our elevator, don’t worry; we’ve got you covered!

Our industrial size elevators allow you to essentially transport items that a person would typically store such as household items or retail products seamlessly up and down the stories.

Wide Variety Unit Sizes

We offer a wide range of unit sizes to meet your needs! Our storage unit sizes include:

5 x 5
4 x 7
5 x 7
5 x 8
5 x 9
5 x 10
7 x 8
6 x 10
6.5 x 10
5 x 14
7 x 10
7.5 x 10
8 x 10
8.5 x 10
9 x 10
8 x 12
10 x 10
8 x 13
6 x 18
10 x 11
10 x 12
10 x 12.5
10 x 13
10 x 13.5
10 x 14
12 x 12
10 x 15
10 x 15.5
10 x 16
10 x 17
10 x 18

Regardless of the large number of items or the few items you want to the store, we have a unit size at a competitive price catered for your needs.

Access hours 6am – 9pm (extended hours on request), 7 days a week, 365 days a year

To accommodate our customers’ schedules, we offer extensive access hours from 6am to 9pm 7 days a week, all year long. If you want to access your storage unit outside the standard access hours, you’re more than welcome to request extended hours! We’re more than happy to accommodate your needs!

Car Storage Availability

Yup – we also offer car storage! At the U-Lock Self Storage Burnaby/Vancouver facility, we offer car storage services that are ideal for those who are:

Travelling out of town and want to park their vehicles in a secure location
Moved into a city in or around Metro Vancouver recently and haven’t attained parking spots
Need additional parking space because the current parking spot such as a garage is fully occupied

Like our storage units, our car storage rentals don’t require initial security deposits and are highly secured in fences and are in a gated facility. More, the car storage rental units have individual alarms installed while being monitored 24 hours a day using a HD video surveillance system.

Move-in Special Promotions

Each month, we have special move-in promotions! For example, we offer first month free or special rates on select units across all of our six facilities. To learn more about our special promotions, please feel free to get in touch and our staff would be more than happy to let you know about our latest promotion: https://www.selfstorage.ca/contact-us.

Moving and Packing Supplies Available

We have packing and moving supply for sale at our facilities. If you need supply for your next move, come to one of our storage facilities and you can purchase everything you need!

Want to reserve a unit at a storage unit rental facility near you? Check out our self storage facilities:

Security Features To Look For When Renting A Storage Unit

Security is one of the most important features to look for when choosing a self-storage facility.

Security Features To Look For When Renting A Storage Unit

Security is one of the most important features to look for when choosing a self-storage facility. When you are putting your items into self-storage, you want to have peace of mind that your items will be safe and protected by choosing a storage facility that utilizes the latest in security features. Regardless of what you are storing, here are some of the security features to look for in a self-storage facility:

Perimeter Fencing & Main Gate

Does the storage facility have a strong initial layer of security? Make sure the storage facility has perimeter fencing around the property to keep out anyone who isn’t working or storing at the property. How do people enter/exit the property? Look for a property that has a main gate with electronic gate access that can only be opened or closed when a code is entered on an electronic keypad. This ensures that the storage provider is aware of who is coming and going from the facility at all times.

Digital Video Surveillance

You want to afford yourself with peace of mind knowing that your items will be safe in storage. Look for storage facilities that have multiple cameras strategically placed throughout the property, ensuring nothing goes unseen. Digital video surveillance that is run 24/7 ensures that whether or not the staff is on-site, the facility and property can still be monitored at any time. Research also shows that just the mere presence of security cameras is enough to ward off potential thieves or trespassers.

Individually-Alarmed Storage Units

Controlled access to your storage unit is a must. Make sure that your indoor storage unit or outdoor storage unit is fitted with an alarm system that prompts an alarm if someone attempts to break into your unit. With individually-alarmed units, each renter is given a unique access code to the property, which they enter at the main gate and/or facility entrance doors to disable the alarm on their unit. When exiting, the renter will enter their access code again, thus, re-arming the unit alarm and ensuring their items are safe and protected.

Locks

As the renter, you are required to use your own lock. Ensuring the storage units are secured with a high-quality storage lock should be the priority of any storage facility and self-storage renter. Many storage facilities of a selection of self-storage locks available for purchase, but which type do you buy? When choosing a lock to protect your storage unit and valuable items, consider the following self-storage locks:

Disc Locks: A popular lock in the self-storage industry, these thickly built locks are extremely tamper-proof and are drill-proof, pick-proof, resilient against impacts. Made of heavy-duty stainless steel, these locks have a disc-like shape and built-in shackle that fits tightly around your storage unit door latch, making them very difficult for anyone to cut with bolt-cutters or grind off. Removing these locks requires electrical equipment, as well as a lot of time and effort.

Cylinder Locks: Becoming the new industry standard, like disc locks, these tamper-proof self-storage locks are drill-proof, resilient against impacts, and virtually impossible to pick. These locks have a cylinder shape, which means they have no locking bar and are inserted internally inside the storage unit latching system with no part of the lock extending out from the door, making them impossible to be cut off. Not all self-storage facilities have this configuration, so it’s always best to call your storage provider before you arrive and inquire if their roll-up doors support cylinder locks or not.

Lighting

Lighting is an effective crime deterrent and a must for on-site safety. Make sure the property of your storage provider is well-light both inside and out. If you have an outdoor storage unit, you want to make sure the property has excellent exterior lighting and is well-light at night to avoid accidents and ensure you feel safe. When inside your storage unit, you want to make sure you’re not having to hold a flashlight at all times when sorting through your items, so look for self-storage facilities with good interior lighting with well-lit hallways and aisles.

Looking for secure self-storage?

If you’re getting ready to move your items into storage and need a safe and secure storage unit for your belongings, contact your nearest U-Lock location and speak to our storage specialists. We’d be happy to answer any questions you may have, tell you all about our security features, and set you up with the right storage unit to fit your needs.