Are you getting ready for a traditional spring cleaning blitz? Now is the perfect time to declutter! Figuring out what to keep, what to toss, and what to put into self storage is tough whether you’re spring cleaning or just clearing out the garage.

How do you decide what to keep and what to get rid of? Here are a few questions from Storage Altona to help you make the tough calls.

WHEN IS THE LAST TIME YOU ACTUALLY USED IT?

Years ago when you bought that popcorn popper, you had visions of movie nights with your friends and family all around the living room. Since then, how many times has it actually come out of the cabinet?

A common rule of thumb is that if you haven’t used something for a year, you probably won’t miss it. Ask yourself if the space it takes up wouldn’t be better used some other way, even if just as breathing room. If so, it may be time to place it in Storage Altona, or to throw it out.

DO YOU EVEN LIKE IT?

We all keep things around for reasons even we ourselves cannot comprehend. Maybe it was a gift from Aunt Sadie, maybe it was trendy three years ago. It could be something all your friends had but never quite caught on with you.

It may seem like an obvious question, but when in doubt about throwing it, out ask yourself – do I even like this? If not, chuck it or store it in Storage Altona while you decide what to do with it.

DOES IT SERVE MORE THAN ONE PURPOSE?

Let’s go back for a moment to the example of the popcorn popper. That is definitely a single-purpose item with a job that can be done quite well by other multi-purpose items. A pan on the stovetop or even a microwave can make popcorn just fine while also being generally necessary and used for other things.

IS IT WORTH FIXING?

When you run across an item during your spring cleaning and find yourself saying, “oh yeah, that’d be fine if I just…” then the end of that sentence should be “throw it out.”

If you’ve kept a non-functioning item around for a prolonged period of time without repairing it, what are the chances that you’ll ever get around to it? Is it worth the time, energy, and expense of fixing it? If so, great. If not, off to the bin.

WHAT IS IT REALLY WORTH TO YOU?

Obviously the real value of things doesn’t always boil down to their intrinsic financial worth. Sentimental value can be just as important, and some things you simply would never want to let go of. You have to look at some things and ask just HOW important they are to you.

If there can be a financial criteria for keeping certain items, there should also be sentimental criteria. A box of sentimental keepsakes can quickly turn into a hoard of 200 concert t-shirts. What are they really worth to you?

There’s nothing wrong with keeping things, for whatever reason, but if you’ve got an excuse to purge some of the clutter, now is a great time. Hopefully these questions will help you decide what can stay, and what has to go and if you need more space contact us for self storage in Melbourne. What sort of criteria do you use when going through your stuff? Let us know!

Image credit: Vintage postcard via Blue Mountains Library, Flickr CC