Okay, real talk. I’m gonna tell you what not to put in your storage unit, and I’m not reading from a rulebook. I’m telling you this because I once stored a bag of potting soil and learned a very gross, very expensive lesson.

Let’s get into it.

Food. Just No

I don’t care if it’s a sealed bag of rice or a can of soup. Don’t do it.

Think about it. You know how your dog goes crazy when you open a bag of chips from two rooms away? Now imagine a mouse. Its whole life is about finding food. That “sealed” bag of pasta? It’s a dinner bell. They will chew through the bag, through your box, and then through your old yearbooks to make a cozy nest right next to their new food source.

I had a friend who stored a box of those instant oatmeal packets. Seemed harmless. He came back to find the box shredded and a family of mice had set up a five-star resort in his sofa bed. The cleanup cost more than the couch was worth.

And cans? They can rust. They can also explode if they freeze. You do not want to be the person scrubbing ancient bean juice off of your grandmother’s quilt.

Plants are a Heartbreak Waiting to Happen

Look, I love my houseplants. But a storage unit is a dark, silent tomb for them. They will not “be okay for a few weeks.” They will slowly starve to death without light.

But the dead plant isn’t the worst part. The worst part is the mold. That damp soil in a dark, still space is a paradise for mold spores. They’ll get everywhere—on your clothes, your books, your photo albums. Everything will smell like a wet basement forever.

If you care about your plant, give it to a friend. If you care about your other stuff, don’t put the plant in storage. It’s that simple.

Pet Stuff is a Sneaky Problem

“This is different,” you think. “It’s for my dog.”

A mouse does not care. That bag of high-protein, expensive kibble is the best meal it will ever find. They can and will gnaw through that thick plastic. I’ve seen it. A bag of birdseed is basically a bag of mouse food.

And used pet beds? They smell like your pet. That smell can attract other curious animals or just make your whole unit stink. It’s not worth it.

Why We’re So Annoying About This

When you rent a unit from us, you’re trusting us to keep your stuff safe. The biggest threats to your stuff often come from inside the unit—from the things people store.

Our number one job is to make sure that your neighbor’s bad decision (like storing a bag of potatoes) doesn’t become your problem (like mice chewing up your baby photos). That’s why we have these rules. It’s not to be difficult. It’s to protect your things from other people’s mistakes.

The Bottom Line

Your storage unit is perfect for your winter clothes, your camping gear, your old furniture. The stuff that just needs a safe, dry, clean place to sit for a while.

So when you’re packing, just do a quick sanity check. If you could eat it, if it’s alive, or if your pet would eat it, leave it out.

And if you’re ever looking at something and you’re not sure, just picture me, scrubbing moldy soil out of a cardboard box, and you’ll have your answer.