Advice sought from hoarders of tools,etc
 

I have been downsizing for a few years now and don,t want to interfere with the thread about sold my truck.
I had a storage unit half filled with stuff pilfered. In some ways they did me a favour but obviously I wouldn,t pay to store my stuff if I didn,t value it.

QUESTION for the brain trust ??
WHAT IS YOUR STUFF WORTH TO MAKE IT WORTH PAYING TO STORE it long term.

Some of my things are car parts, cylinder heads, wheels etc.Other things like garden tools ,carpentry tools, levels ,crowbars drywall tools boxes of nails, boxes of vicegrips.
A knockdown car rotisserie, spray guns, automotive granite top bathroom vanity , taps,
camping gear, 2 canoes with paddles

Figure a small one is $60/month. That's more than $600 a year. If you have a canoe in there and your use it twice a year you could rent it for $50 a shot at REI (I think). That's $500 you're not spending.

Obviously, it's not the only thing in there, but I went to an auction once and they are all chock full of camping gear. That stuff doesn't fit in a closet?

Worse is Christmas junk. I have a basement full of it. I'd never pay to store it.

Anyway, that's how I look at it.

If you have a lot of (good, useable) tools that you need to store if space is limited right now, do this-
Find a friend, maybe even an old friend, that is staying put in a home with lots of room (big garage, shed, shop) that is into the things you are, and ask if they'd lie to have your tools for an indefinite amount of time. This only really works for tools, no old parts, christmas tree decorations, etc. But it works for tools- because everyone can use extra tools around.

A friend did this with me- he was moving, didn't have room for a while and didn't want to get rid of all his tools (power tools, hand tools, large snap-on set) and so I took them into my garage. I had free use of all of them. It was good deal- I needed some more tools but was too cheap to go all-out, he didn't have the room. I figure he'll settle down in a few years and want them back. If not, no big deal. If I need to move somewhere else and need it all gone, he is trustworthy enough to come grab them up and find somewhere else to go with them (it all fits in 1 truck load).

I know what you mean. And if you get rid of a tool within a week you will need to use that very tool.

Is there somewhere where you can just put the stuff for free like in a ceiling space or a basement belonging to some family member.

Now that I am seeing a few replies ,let me elaborate
In my effort to downsize I sold a 4 plex we owned last year. We leased 1/3 of the 3 car garage back to ourselves to give us added time to reposition all our junk.
We paid $600 for 6 mo. storage.
When we went to get our stuff it had been pilfered.
It,s been quite enlightening to investigate.
Local police feel it was an inside job and advise me to go after the new owner in small claims .(civil not criminal court ). Since the new owner, owned the building he didn,t break and enter. He owned the lock too. He claims doesn,t know anything etc.
I had no separate insurance coverage because I no longer owned the building and didn,t think to try and cover it seperatly.
How much do YOU value mixed storage ,some of which had been there for the 25 years that I owned the building. Looking at the example of the SnapOn tools . Snap on even very old stuff is still expensive to replace.
I believe I can prove him liable under old common law called bailee/bailor relationship.
How much was lost becomes he said you said as I had no accurate inventory.
What dollar value do you guys have stored in various places ,attic,friends garages ,rented space whether paid or for free. By the cubic foot would be ideal but also by any other measure ?

My dad has a storage business, charges around $60 and up. Most spend more on the storage that the stuff inside is worth.

But some use it for short term use, moving, someone died, ect. And there are a few that just dont have the room where they are and its cheaper to rent a space. I know one lawn care business keeps there mower's and stuff there.

I just got to the point that I'm not using the stuff. I was actually thinking of having a metal building put up to give me more room to work on things. Then I realized that the 50 grand or so I was going to spend was just a waste. I could get rid of the projects and buy something already done if I really wanted. And the stuff was just getting in the way. I guess part of it is I'm getting older and I'm just tired of dealing with it.

I store everything in our two car garage and small storage shed. If I get something new and it won't fit then something has to go to accommodate it. We have a chain link fence and security sign on our garage. We wife's sister wanted to store a big Mercedes Suv on our property. My wife said no. We don't pay for storage. Everything we own we have on our property. We don't trust others and we are downsizing and getting rid of stuff as we are in our 60's. Not ready for a condo yet ......

The way I look at it is the stuff only has value if you sell it or use it. Otherwise its just a cost. If your not using it, are you keeping it for others to have after your gone? Is it an investment?

I'm giving my kids first crack at some of my tools that I no longer use or need, I don't need the money, and they will end up with some of it anyway. Ive also given them some nice spoons, why am I storing them? They can use them and why make them wait, hopefully years, to own them.

But its still your stuff, my mother in law had rooms full of junk, she said it made her happy. You have to figure out what its worth to you.

I could only dream that I was robbed or the house burned down. I would love replacement value.

I estimate my total loss at about $25k for new . I just got off the phone with my insurance company and turns out I may have $6k of coverage for household goods temporarily stored off site. I never considered my home insurance I was only thinking about the policy I carried on the rental.
This was news to me since I assumed no coverage since I had sold the rental building(which I had been insuring when I owned it).
Now depends on if they rule mysterious disappearance or break enter theft.
The new owner says doesn,t know how the lock got broken ,LOL, not him.
Now if I get $6 k that,s much better than nothing.

Also a lesson here I am insured by a large ins. comp with no local agents. (TD bank) . Call centre in Toronto. If I had a local agent like I used to I expect the agent would have picked up on this long ago.

We kept lot,s of things for our kids when they moved out. Most got thrown away by them or us . They would rather furnish their home from IKEA instead of getting the old fuddy duddy stuff from us.

My sister and bil went and purchased a used shipping container that they put on one of their properties as a storage unit. All steel with lockable doors. Think they gave 1-2k for it. Would cost a little more up front, but eventually would pay for itself.

Generally you are covered up to 20% of your home policy for goods stolen while away from your home. Your insurance company will have a independent insurance adjuster that will cover your area for them. As you made a police report that the items were stolen it will be hard for the insurance company to say they mysteriously disappeared and what does that matter, they were taken without your permission.