Moving and self-storage
self-storage facility
A self-storage facility is a business that rents secure space where customers store and retrieve their own goods. U.S. industry codes describe it as renting space such as rooms, compartments, lockers, containers or outdoor space. The customer holds the key or code and visits the site to use the space.
Why it matters
A self-storage facility is a fixed site, so the customer drives or trucks goods to it. Portable storage reverses that: the container comes to the customer. Some facilities rent containers or outdoor space, so the line between the two blurs. A common mistake is to compare only the monthly rent. Add the truck rental, the extra handling and the time spent on each trip. Rules for access hours, gate codes, insurance and what you may store differ by facility, so read the lease. Operators of portable storage often compete with, or partner with, these sites.
Definition source: census.gov
Related terms
storage unit
A storage unit is a rented space for keeping personal or business goods. It may be a room, a locker, a container or an outdoor space. Customers fill it, lock it and come back for the goods later. The word covers both fixed units at a facility and portable ones.
drive-up storage
Drive-up storage is a self-storage unit on the ground level with an outside door, so a customer can park a vehicle next to or in front of it. It works like a small garage. Some sites also offer drive-up units inside a covered building.
climate controlled storage
Climate-controlled storage is indoor storage built to hold a more even temperature, and sometimes humidity, than an ordinary unit. Facilities describe it with words such as air-conditioned, heated or humidity-controlled, and features differ by site, so a customer should ask what the unit actually offers.
mobile self-storage
Mobile self-storage is a service where an empty storage unit is delivered to your location. You load it at your own pace, and the company picks it up and moves it to a new place for unloading or to storage. NPSA describes it as removing the hassles of traditional static self-storage facilities.
off-site storage
Off-site storage means keeping a portable storage container at the provider's facility instead of on the customer's property. The customer fills the container at home, the provider picks it up, and the container stays in a secure storage center until the customer asks for delivery.
storage center
A storage center is a secure site where a portable storage company keeps customer containers off the customer's property. After a customer fills a container, the provider picks it up and stores it at the center until the customer wants it back or wants it moved.
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