How to Squeeze Out More Storage Space from Your Home

Feeling cramped in your home can affect your sense of wellbeing. Instead of relaxing and being comfortable in your own private space, you get stressed by not having enough room to breathe.

Whatever the reason is behind your cramped quarters — whether it’s because you have too much clutter or simply that your home has really limited space — the only thing you can do to address this problem right away is to work with the space you already have.

However, with a bit of research and effort, there are a couple of other solutions you can implement to have a bit more space in your home:

1. Find the best storage solution

If you have already used up all your storage spaces and you have tons of extra items you hardly use stored in your home, a mobile storage unit will be helpful in downsizing the amount of your personal belongings. You can keep your extra items inside an offsite storage unit for future use, or disposal.

A good storage solution will help you:

  • Create more space at home
  • Streamline organization when you group similar items together for storage
  • Make it easier for you to find items you may need occasionally

2. Get rid of stuff you don’t need

To create more storage space in your home, you also need to eliminate items you no longer need. Learn to declutter as disorder can drain your energy, and cost you time and money. Habitual deep cleaning and decluttering are vital in maximizing storage spaces.

To declutter efficiently:

  • Go room by room and break them up into zones
  • Work quickly and decide which items you’ll keep and toss away

For items you want to get rid of, you can consider donating them rather than simply throwing them out.

3. Take advantage of high ceilings

If your house has a small perimeter but has a high ceiling, creating a loft space in the ceiling area means you can have a lot of storage space or even an additional sleeping area.

Having more space means you can also improve the layout of your place and make your home feel larger than it really is.

4. Buy items fit for your spaces

Make sure that before you purchase anything new, consider your available storage spaces whether they include closets or drawers, or an idle corner in your home. There’s nothing more frustrating than going home only having to force the item you bought into the space to make it fit. Whatever you buy should fit your intended storage space so that it doesn’t look cramped.

5. Manipulate light

Light has the ability to make a house feel larger than it really is. Set different types of lighting features around your home to brighten up rooms and add a sense of height. Clean your windows often to allow natural light in from the sun.

To bring light from all angles, intensities, and levels, opt for a dimmer effect as well as high and low lighting systems.

6. Use multi-functional furniture

Your living room gets the most traffic. Maximize the space of your living area by making use of multifunctional furniture like ottomans that can hold video game accessories and other such items. A coffee table with open shelving and drawers below can also be used to store magazines, photo albums and other reading materials.

Having some ‘hidden’ storage space in a room can help you stay clutter-free.

7. Redesign your interiors

To make your living space feel bigger without extending (especially when you have no such option), you can remove internal walls or turn small rooms into open-plan spaces.

Another popular option is to knock down the wall or divider between the dining room and kitchen to create a kitchen-diner effect. To see what might work for your home structure, do the following:

  • Make a scale drawing of your home without internal walls.
  • Think about what interior design layout would work best if you start from scratch.

For best results, consult with a professional interior designer.

8. Dig down or expand up

If your house doesn’t have room for expansion, you can consider extending upwards or dig downwards to create a basement below ground level.

Although this construction project may require some serious financial investment, the end result can add significant value to your home. Most importantly, it will give you more space for storage and perhaps even a room or two which would be advantages if done correctly.

When you feel like you’ve outgrown your house and there’s no room left for anything else, the tips above will help free up space.

The key to making a home spacious relies greatly on your decluttering skills. Make it a habit to declutter regularly and never buy an item which you don’t need as this will only end up cramping your home.

If worse comes to worst, you can always get a storage unit to free up some space to better organize your home and for you to breathe easy.

AUTHOR BIO

Chris Humphrey is the General Manager of Easytruck Moving & Storage. In 2013, the company combined their expertise in professional moving services & storage to create an entirely new approach to the business – and mobile storage was born! Easytruck now operates over 30,000 sq.ft. of air-conditioned facilities in three convenient locations in Dubai and is the only Mobile Storage operator in the UAE.