Self-storage solutions have become increasingly popular since the turn of the millennium. Businesses, homeowners, Amazon sellers, and just about everyone else has found ways to benefit from them. 

The question of whether they are safe or not, however, is a concern for many. Do these facilities really keep your belongings as secure as they’d like you to believe? 

How Self-Storage Companies Keep Your Possessions Safe

What exactly keeping your stuff “safe” means to you depends on who you are and why you’re using self-storage. Here are some of the ways that the industry has accommodated the safety concerns of all the different types of people who use it. 

They Prevent Unauthorised Access

If you operate a business, you have a legal duty to ensure that you take precautions to ensure that personally-identifiable data does not get into the wrong hands. Self-storage facilities are, therefore, a potential risk. 

Operators, however, want to attract business and so many have developed sophisticated security systems to prevent unauthorised access. Nobody can get at the contents of your container other than you, thanks to keycodes and security cards. 

They Prevent Criminal Activity

Most self-storage units invest heavily in defences against theft. To say that stealing a person’s possessions from a self-storage facility is challenging would be an understatement. 

First, storage companies use CCTV to track all of the containers or units in their facility. Second, the majority operate round-the-clock on-site security personnel who monitor video feeds and patrol the perimeter. Third, many use sophisticated perimeter fencing with sensors to detect any suspicious activity and immediately alert the guards. And finally, each container has a code to unlock that only you, the customer, know. 

They Prevent Environmental Damage

Okay, sure, thieves stealing stuff from your containers is unlikely, but what about environmental damage? Particular possessions, such as electronics, artwork, clothes, stamps, antiques, household appliances, and leather furniture, are all prone to damage in certain climatic conditions. 

Never to be outdone, self-storage companies have found ways to deal with this too. The vast majority offer customers the option of using “climate-controlled storage.” These units maintain a constant internal environment using HVAC systems. You set the optimal humidity and temperature for your possessions, and then the unit does the rest. Most units keep temperatures in the 10 C to 25 C range and prevent the buildup of condensation. 

Conclusion

When you think about it, it’s probably safer to use self-storage than it is to keep your possessions at your home or on your business premises. Thieves and other malicious actors know where to find your valuables if you keep them in the obvious place. 

But when it comes to self-storage, the situation is different. Your stash of valuables could be inside any one of hundreds of heavily guarded containers. The likelihood of a thief choosing the right one is relatively slim. 

Self-storage operators also protect your possessions against environmental damage too. The quality of the storage you get from one of these companies, therefore, is probably just as good, if not better than if you kept them on-site.