What Not to Store in a Garage

Posted on March 10th, 2023

Garage Storage Advice from Absolute Garage Builders

Stating the obvious, our garage is supposed to be the place where we park our cars. Over the years, however, for many of us, the garage becomes our main storage area for things overflowing from inside the house.

There is, of course, nothing really wrong with that as most garages have ample room for our vehicles, as well as things we want to store outside our daily living quarters. But the downside is that we often put in the garage things that can become a potential hazard or things that can be ruined by garage storage.

Three Basic Rules

Before we get into specifics, here are three basic rules regarding garage storage. Don’t store in your garage

• Any belongings that could be damaged by humidity and moisture.
• Items that can be destroyed by extreme and fluctuating temperatures.
• Any hazardous materials that could potentially damage the home.

Some Specifics – 10 Things Not to Store in the Garage

With those general guidelines in mind, here’s our list of 10 things you should not store in your garage.

1) Food – When you store food in the garage, including pet food, you’re just offering tasty treats to insects and rodents. If you store pet food in your garage, make sure you’ve placed it in a tightly sealed plastic container, as rodents can easily eat through paper.

When it comes to your food, you might ask, can I store canned food in the garage? No, you should not. Contrary to popular belief, canned food can spoil. For long-term food storage, store food items in your house at a temperature between 50 and 75 degrees.

2) Wine – Fluctuating, extreme temperatures in the garage can damage the wine you’ve paid a pretty penny for and make it really undrinkable. Store your wine inside the house and not in the garage.

3) Propane tanks – A garage is no place for these. If a leak develops when stored in your garage, the slightest spark could touch off a disastrous fire. For propane safety, store these tanks outside, preferably in a place where they won’t be exposed to direct sunlight and extremely high temperatures.

4)  Leftover paint – We equivocate a little here, because depending on its formula if some paint freezes during winter, it can still be used when it thaws. Check the label for recommended storage temperatures.

5) Important papers and documents – These can easily be damaged by the humidity in your garage. Buy a fireproof box and store deeds, wills, marriage and birth certificates, insurance policies, and other extremely important papers in the house.

6) Books – The garage is no place to store the books you cherish. Insects like silverfish love to feast on the paper and the glue in the binding.

7) Photographs – Like the books you cherish, the photographs containing so many wonderful family memories should never be left in the garage. These should be stored in the house, either in albums or acid-free boxes.

8) Firewood – Who doesn’t love a warm, cozy fire in winter? Still, the garage is no place to store your firewood as it can attract bugs and rodents that may easily make their way into your house. It’s best to store firewood in a covered shed 20 feet or so away from your house.

9) Electronic equipment – This kind of equipment, like computers, can easily be ruined by fluctuating temperatures and humidity in the garage. Find a place in the house to store them, and if worn out or no longer needed, donate them to a non-profit that might be able to salvage components.

10) Clothing and sleeping bags – These should never be stored in the garage as they can easily become moldy, and rodents love to chew on the fabric.

Garage Construction by the Pros at Absolute Garage Builders

We hope you find these suggestions helpful, as well as other garage-related blogs on our website. And when it comes to garage construction in the Chicago area, we hope we’ll be the company that first comes to your mind.

We have numerous floor plans to choose from, and free, no-obligation estimates are always available.

When it comes to garage construction in the Chicago area, no one does it better than Absolute Garage Builders, so get in contact with us today!