Winter will be over in a flash. Which means that you’ll have to put away your thick wool sweaters, your kids’ puffy coats, ice skates and skis soon. To make sure that your family’s winter items survives until next year, you’re going to have to follow these crucial storage tips!
Winter Clothes
It will be tempting to store your winter clothes in a cardboard box and then move it into your garage. This area is often poorly insulated, which means that your clothes will be vulnerable to strong temperature fluctuations, moisture, mould and mildew.
Ideally, you want to store your clothes in a space that is clean, cool and dark. It should be temperature-controlled and have low moisture levels. These factors will prevent fabric fading, pests, mould and mildew. If you want to learn more, check out these 51 great storage ideas to make sure that your items are safe, no matter the season. There’s one idea for almost every week of the year!
Before you put those clothes away in a storage unit, you should wash them. Arrange them in cotton/canvas storage containers. Put sachets of lavender or cedar chips inside to keep moths at bay. Moths love to destroy fabrics found in winter clothing, including cashmere, mohair and wool.
Winter Sports Equipment
Skis:
- Clean and wax your skis before putting them away for storage.
- Store them in a temperature-controlled environment.
- Strap them together to maintain their shape.
- Keep them off of concrete floors.
Snowboards:
- Clean and wax your snowboards before putting them away for storage.
- Store them in a temperature-controlled environment.
- Keep them off of hard surfaces. A good solution is to rest them on a wall-mounted skateboard rack.
Ice Skates:
- Do basic ice skate maintenance before putting them away for storage.
- Store them in a temperature-controlled environment. Too much moisture can rust the blades.
- Open up laces to let air circulate inside. This prevents mould, mildew and strong odour.
- Apply WD-40 or mineral oil on the blades. Wrap them with clean, dry towels. This will stop rust.
Snow Blowers
You can store a snow blower in a garage or shed throughout most of the year. It can still be sensitive to moisture, so you’ll have to do a few things before you put it away:
- Drain the gas or use fuel stabilizer to lower the risk of condensation getting inside of the fuel tank.
- Lubricate metal parts with rust-preventative spray.
- Get a snow blower cover.
Snowmobiles
Your snowmobile would do better in a climate-controlled storage unit than a garage. Plus, it would free up a lot of garage space for you. Whether you decide to put in a unit or keep it in the garage, follow these steps:
- Drain the gas or use fuel stabilizer.
- Wipe down and wax surfaces.
- Lubricate metal parts with rust-preventative spray.
- Get a protective cover.
- Suspend it off of the floor on a snowmobile dolly.
You don’t want to get any unpleasant surprises next winter when you pull out your coats, sweaters, skates and other seasonal things. You want everything to look just as good as it did when you first put it away.
Thank you for the tips. I thought the section about the skates was very interesting. I would have never have thought to use WD-40 on the blades. I’m definitely trying that this spring!
Great tips! I’m guilty of kind of regrowing the winter equipment wherever I can find room.
Good tips; I always have issues with my snowboard and skis. I may have to move them to the basement.
Great tips, to many times we have experienced rust on skate blades, will have to try wd-40
Great tips! It’s challenging to find space for those bulky items.