When people use rent storage units, they sometimes take steps to try to lower the costs associated with using this service. If you're tempted to do this, it's vital to be wary of the false economies that may result in you having to spend much more on this service than was really necessary. Here are two examples of supposed money-saving ideas that could lead to this.

Transporting the items to and from the unit yourself instead of using a removal company

Attempting to transport a dozen or more boxes of goods, or a collection of furniture, to the facility without the help of a professional removal company in order to save yourself money will probably lead to you incurring additional expenses.

The reason for this is as follows; if your vehicle is not quite big enough to hold, for example, the armchair that you need to take to the storage unit, then this chair may end up being damaged if you try to squeeze it into the backseat of your car. Any wooden or metal components (such as the feet or the arms of the chair) may sustain chips or scratches whilst being pushed into or pulled out of your vehicle, and the upholstery may end up tearing. If the chair is damaged, you will then have to buy a replacement.

Furthermore, this approach could also damage the interior of your vehicle; the seating in the back, for example, may tear and the chair's aforementioned feet or arms could scratch the window panes. Repairing this damage could also cost you a lot of money.

Conversely, if you simply pay the (very affordable) fee charged by a removal company, and have them transport your large items to the storage unit, neither your vehicle nor the items in question will sustain damage. Additionally, this fee will probably be lower than the bills you would incur as a result of trying to carry out the transportation process yourself.

Renting a very small storage unit

If you're strapped for cash, you might be tempted to rent the smallest (and, therefore, cheapest) unit that you can possibly fit your items into; however, this is probably a bad idea that could lead to more bills later down the line.

If for example, you pick a unit that is too small for the number of items that you need to store in it, it will end up so full that there might not be enough room for you to walk around inside it. When you then need to pick up a specific item from the unit, two things may happen. Firstly, you might end up being struck and injured by a falling box or piece of furniture when you try to extract a particular item from the overstuffed unit (which could lead to an expensive medical bill).

Secondly, if the item you need is at the back of the unit and can only be accessed by pulling out all of the other items, you may become so frustrated that you just end up leaving it there and buying a duplicate instead.

As such, it is best to rent a spacious unit so that you can store your items in a manner that will allow you to retrieve them quickly and safely.