As a contractor, the heart of your business is your tools. However, large tools, like tile saws, sandblasting equipment, air-powered nail guns, and the like, can take up a significant amount of space in your truck or at home.
These valuable tools can also be at risk if you leave them at unsecured job sites. Unfortunately, it isn’t unheard of for expensive tools to “walk away” at night.
More and more tradespeople, including electricians, plumbers, landscapers, and general contractors, are relying on self-storage units to safeguard their tools, free up space at home, and provide a central location to grow their business.
Is contractor storage right for you? Let’s look at some of the benefits a storage unit can offer.
The Top 5 Reasons Self Storage Is a Game-Changer for Tradespeople
As your business grows, it may no longer be as simple to store all your tools and materials in your truck. It’s time to expand and create a home base so that you can keep everything protected, organized, and accessible. Contractor storage units could be the answer.
Here’s why:
1. Unbeatable Security for Tools, Equipment, and Materials
It can be risky to leave your expensive tools, construction materials, and valuable equipment at a job site. It only takes one theft to cost you big and set back your project. Investing in contractor storage gives you multiple layers of security.
Price Self StorageⓇ facilities, in particular, are always surrounded by fencing and protected by an electronic gate. Only current customers have an active gate code. We also monitor each facility with multiple security cameras and require all customers to lock their units. Finally, our facilities close down at night, eliminating the chance of individuals coming by in the wee hours of the day.
You can rest easy knowing your tools and materials are protected in storage.
2. A Cost-Effective Hub for Your Business
Tradespeople are, in essence, small business owners, and sticking to a tight budget is a must, especially when income varies throughout the year and by the job. Contractor storage units are a cost-effective way to invest in a central business location.
Many contractors start by working out of their trucks, but the more your business grows, the more you may struggle to fit all your tools, materials, and supplies in your work vehicle or in your home garage. Renting a storefront or even warehouse space can be prohibitively expensive, especially when your income fluctuates over the seasons.
Storage units are almost always less expensive than renting retail space or warehouse space, especially because you can choose a storage unit sized for your specific needs.
3. Unmatched Organization and Efficiency
As your business and your services grow, you may find that you need to invest in more tools and materials. Keeping everything stashed in your truck can lead to a lot of disorganization and wasted time.
A contractor storage unit gives you the space you need to efficiently store and organize all your tools of the trade. For example, if you own a landscaping business, you may want to rent a storage unit where you can store your riding mower, commercial-grade trimmer, leaf blowers, and other bulky equipment in one part of the unit.
In another area of the unit, you can store seasonal supplies, like mulch bags, seeds, and decorative gravel. You can also bring in shelving systems to organize all your tools, like pruning shears, rakes, shovels, and more.
By organizing your storage unit, you’ll be able to quickly and effectively load the tools and materials you need for the jobs scheduled that day.
4. Ultimate Convenience with Drive-Up Access
Outdated concepts of storage facilities often include the notion that you have to walk through long corridors or up stairs to access your individual storage unit. While these types of units still exist, modern-day self-storage buildings for contractors often include units with drive-up access.
As the name implies, these units offer convenient, roll-up doors that face the outside of the building. Drive-up storage units are ideal for busy tradespeople who need to access their unit quickly and efficiently. Drive-up units also make it extra convenient to pick up large tools, equipment, or heavy materials quickly and easily (no stairs necessary).
5. Flexibility to Scale Your Business
The beauty of renting a contractor storage unit is that you don’t have to stay in a single unit forever. As your business grows, so can your storage unit.
For example, you may only need a small storage unit to store your tools when you start your business. However, over time, you may decide to offer more services, which require more tools and supplies. Alternatively, you may need to temporarily upgrade to a larger unit to store building materials for a large, long-term project. Once that job is over, you can downgrade back to a smaller unit until you book your next big job.
Many storage facilities allow you to upgrade to a medium or even large unit to get all the storage you need. At Price Self Storage, we offer month-to-month leasing to give you even more flexibility. This arrangement can be ideal for tradespeople who may have different storage needs throughout the year.
Choosing the Right Contractor Storage Unit: Must-Have Features
If you’re seriously considering investing in storage for tradespeople, choose a storage facility that meets your needs. Here are a few factors to consider as you research local self-storage buildings for contractors:
- Security: The location should have multiple layers of security that make you feel confident about storing your valuable tools.
- Location: The facility should be located within your geographic work area and close to major roads or highways for easy access.
- Leases: Look for facilities that offer month-to-month leasing so you’re never trapped in a long-term contract.
- Drive-up access: Most tradespeople appreciate drive-up access storage units for fast retrieval and drop-off.
- Room for growth: Make sure your facility allows you to easily switch units so you never have to pay for storage space you don’t need.
- Competitive pricing: Compare the pricing between facilities so you can get all the features you want at an affordable price.
At Price Self Storage, we offer affordable, secure, and flexible storage for tradespeople of all types. Our customers love our month-to-month leases and the wide variety of storage unit sizes we offer throughout California. Most of our facilities also offer drive-up access storage units, and select locations provide parking and vehicle storage for your extra work vehicles.
Find your nearest Price Self Storage location today.