SELF STORAGE TIPS: BEST WAY TO STORE YOUR MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
Whether you're a professional musician, a casual player, or simply want to keep a treasured trumpet safe until your child is old enough to play, sometimes you need to store your musical instruments in self-storage.
Proper preparation is key to protecting your instruments from damage while in storage. The biggest threats are heat, cold, humidity, and dust. Extreme temperature changes and high humidity can cause brass instruments to expand and contract, wood and strings to warp, drum skins to dry out, and mildew to develop. Dust can also accumulate inside electric guitars, keyboards, amplifiers, and sound mixers.
Using humidifiers in winter and dehumidifiers in summer can help maintain a stable environment. Ideally, instruments should be stored at around 70°F with 42% humidity.
Protect Your Instrument
Always store your instrument in a hard case designed specifically for it. The case should be in good condition, free of fraying or deterioration. For extra protection, place a layer of acid-free tissue between the instrument and the case's soft lining, which can sometimes cause damage over time. Draping a clean cloth over strings inside the case and placing the case inside a polyethylene bag will help protect against humidity. A sturdy case also guards against impacts, UV light damage, and insects.
Drums: Loosen drum skins to prevent stretching, cover the set with a sheet or tarp to keep dust away, oil leather surfaces, and polish all hardware.
Piano: Wrap legs, the piano bench, and pedals in heavy padding to avoid damage. Cover the piano with a sheet or tarp. You don't need to loosen the strings, as the cast-iron harp is built to withstand pressure, but baby grands should ideally be stored on their side. Consider professional moving for pianos.
Woodwinds & Strings: Separate woodwind and string instruments into sections to protect joints from pressure. Remove reeds and mouthpieces, thoroughly clean and oil each piece, and place tissue paper between the pads of woodwind instruments.
Clean Instruments Before Storage
Clean your instruments thoroughly before storing. For wooden string instruments, apply a wax paste made specifically for wood—avoid oil or alcohol-based polishes as they can dry out the wood. Brass instruments can be treated with brass wax, available at most music stores.
Store Above Ground in Appropriate Containers
Keep instruments off the floor by using pallets, shelving, or casters. Store backup CDs, DVDs, or flash drives in waterproof containers to protect your music collections. Handle unpacking carefully when retrieving your instruments.
Removal From Storage
When removing instruments from long-term storage, take your time cleaning, reassembling, and tuning them to ensure they're ready to play.
Consider Insurance
Protect your valuable instruments with insurance. Many self-storage facilities offer policies covering fire, burglary, vandalism, and natural disasters.
