Did you know that clutter in your home can have negative effects on your and your family’s mental health?
That’s why, if you have a cluttered home, you should take the time one weekend to clean up and get organized.
When cleaning and organizing your home, you’re going to find items that you want to keep but store away someplace new. The best place to do just that? Your attic.
With that in mind, there are some attic storage mistakes that need to be avoided at all costs. This is especially true if you’re a new homeowner, and thus, don’t have much experience with attics up to this point.
In this article, we’ll break down 7 helpful attic storage tips that you can use to get the most out of your space. We’ll tell you what to do, and what not to do, so you can keep both your home and your personal belongings in good condition.
Now then, let’s get started!
1. Overcrowding Your Attic
If you’re a new homeowner, and you have access to an attic for the first time, you want to fill it up with lots of old junk you no longer need quick access to. And while attics are a great way to remove clutter from your home, overcrowding your attic space is a bad idea.
The weight of having too much stuff in your attic isn’t good for the overall structure of your home. It also increases your chances of damaging your home in other ways, including a few we’ll break down in more detail later on this list.
A pro tip? Leave enough space in your attic so that you can comfortably move around. Doing this will help keep both you and your home safe from harm.
2. Damaging Your Ceiling
Most attics don’t have the entire floor covered with plywood. In other words, the ceiling joists, and the sheetrock that makes up your ceiling, is exposed in what is the floor of your attic.
When in your attic, it’s very easy to step off of one of these joists and damage the sheetrock that makes up your ceiling below. This can be quite costly to fix and even require you to repaint your whole ceiling, including the area you didn’t damage, to make everything look good as new again.
Stepping through your ceiling can also cause a serious injury, which is even more reason to be careful when walking about in your attic. Loft boarding, as long as you understand the cost, can be a good investment and help solve this problem for good.
3. Damaging Your HVAC System
If you have an attic, there’s a good chance that a piece of your HVAC system is located in it. That HVAC system is one of the most expensive items in your home to repair, which is why you want to take great care of it when using your attic.
The best way to do this? Avoid storing anything near your HVAC unit so it can breathe and function properly. Also, be sure to avoid damaging your ductwork, so you can get proper airflow in all rooms of your home.
4. Storing Important Documents or Photos
We’ve all got those important documents that we need to keep in a safe place. Marriage certificates, warranty information, and old family photos are the kinds of things we want to store away but know where they are at all times.
While it may seem like a good idea, storing personal items in your attic isn’t recommended. The heat, along with moisture in the air, makes your attic a bad spot for anything that you can’t afford to get damaged.
5. Storing Food and Liquids
Buying food in bulk is a great way to save money and limit the number of trips you need to take to the grocery store. This can be especially helpful if you live far away from your nearest grocery store, and thus, don’t want to take long trips weekly for food and drinks.
If you have plans of storing food and liquids in your attic, find somewhere indoors to store them instead. The heat is just too much for most food and liquids, which can cause them to go bad before you get the chance to eat or drink them.
6. Storing Electronics or Instruments
We’ve already touched on the elements in your attic, specifically the heat and moisture in the air, as well as what it can do to some items when stored there. With that in mind, it’s no surprise that your attic isn’t the best place to store that old television or computer that you have put away for an emergency.
On top of that, instruments don’t do well in the attic either, as the heat can cause them to bend or even break. Once again, we recommend that you find space in your home somewhere to keep these items so they aren’t damaged permanently.
7. Storing Wooden Furniture
Instruments and electronics aren’t the only things that can break or be damaged when stored in your attic. Wooden furniture can also be damaged in your attic over the years, leaving it looking way worse than it did when you first stored it away.
On top of that, it isn’t a good idea to store heavy items, like wooden furniture, in your attic. So, if you have to keep these items, consider storing them somewhere inside your home where the temperature is regulated better.
Attic Storage Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make
Well, there you have it! Those are 7 attic storage mistakes new homeowners, and even existing homeowners, need to avoid!
As long as you keep these ideas in mind, your home and your belongings should be safe from harm. And remember, you yourself can be harmed when in your attic, so watch your step and be careful when walking or moving items.
Looking for more new homeowner tips and tricks? Check out our blog!
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