Renting a self-storage unit is a great way to hold on to belongings that you don't have room for in your home. As much as you want to put things into your unit and forget about them, there will come a time where you need to navigate all of the boxes that you have. These tips will help ensure that your self-storage unit doesn't turn into a big mess.

Categorize Your Boxes When Packing

Storage units have a limited amount of space, but you should not be cramming everything in with no rhyme or reason to get your belongings to fit together like a Tetris puzzle. Try to keep like items together rather than just trying to make things fit.

It helps to group items that would normally go in the same room in the same box. Label these boxes by writing the name of the room on every side of the box. It will ensure that you can identify the box no matter how it is stacked in your storage unit.

Construct An Item Log With Photos

Your storage unit may not seem overwhelming at first, but over the years, it will be difficult to remember what you have in storage. It's a good idea to take a photo of what is inside every box before you put it away. You can rename the photo on your computer and then write file name on the box itself. You will appreciate that you took the time to do this years from now when you have to locate something small among dozens of boxes.

Create Aisles In The Storage Unit

When possible, you should leave some space for aisles in your storage unit. Even if it's just a small gap along one of the walls that allows you to easily get to the very back. This will help prevent you from needing to remove everything from the storage unit just to find that one box you are looking for.

Place Frequently Used Boxes Up Front

There are some things that you know for sure that you are going to go back and get out of storage, like holiday decorations or sporting equipment. Try to keep these boxes up front so that you don't have to go digging for them. Items like old books and clothing your kids have outgrown can go towards the back.

Follow these tips and your self-storage unit will stay very organized.