Tips For Avoiding Storage Mold

Posted on

If you are storing your items in a self-storage facility, one of the threats you need to worry about is that of mold. This is especially true if your items are those that mold can damage, such as clothes and books. Below are some of the practical tips you can use to keep mold in check.

Clean and Dry Items

Cleaning your items will help get rid of organic debris that might encourage mold growth. The cleaning also gets rid of dust that might attract moisture during storage. Drying the items ensures they don't take moisture into the storage unit.

Avoid Leaks

A leaking storage place will render useless all the work you have done in cleaning and drying your belongings. Ensure the storage unit has structurally sound walls and roofing that won't allow precipitation, such as melting snow, to seep into the storage unit.

Avoid Flooding

Flooding is a real possibility if you are using a basement or ground-level storage place. Flooding might fill your storage place with water and debris, both of which encourage mold growth.

Encourage Airflow

Mold does not need flowing or ponding water to grow; just a little moisture is enough to trigger mold growth. In fact, even high humidity encourages mold growth. Therefore, ensure your storage place has good airflow to disperse any moist air that might otherwise be trapped in the storage place and condense. Tips for encouraging airflow include raising storage boxes above the ground, leaving spaces between storage boxes and storage walls, and leaving aisles between rows of storage boxes.

Use Desiccants

Descants are substances that attract moisture in the environment around them. If you place a desiccant in a storage box full of clothes, for instance, the desiccant will attract moisture and leave your clothes dry. Examples of desiccants include cat litter and silica gel.

Use the Right Packaging and Boxes

Lastly, you can also keep mold at bay by selecting the right packaging and storage boxes. Note that there is no right box or packaging that suits all items; the storage box or packaging depends on what you want to store. For example, books are best kept in breathable boxes that won't trap moisture within them.

Hopefully, you will also keep your valuables in a storage facility that plays its part in keeping mold at bay. Talk to your storage facility manager about the measures they have in place to protect their storage units.


Share