Drive-up Storage, The Original Self Storage Solution
Imagine two guys a half-century ago, sitting around, enjoying an iced tea, solving life’s problems. First guy says, “man, my house is getting crowded.”
Second guy asks, “what about your basement?”
“That’s where I’m building that rec room. Don’t want to mess up that dark walnut paneling we just put up either.”
“Well, why don’t you just put your extra stuff in your garage?”
“Can’t. It’s full, too. Can’t even get the car in there. Boxes on top of boxes.”
“Sounds like you need …”
At the same time: “Another garage!”
“I bet a bunch of people could use an extra garage.”
And that was pretty much the birth of drive-up storage.
Drive-Up Storage Access: Convenience That Doesn’t Go Out of Style
The first self-storage facilities were little more than some low cinder-block buildings with a roof and corrugated metal roll-up doors. The driveways around the facility were wide enough to drive a moving truck down. The novel idea was that someone could rent one of these storage units, put their own lock on it for exclusive access, and visit it pretty much whenever they wanted to.
Since then, the industry has added a lot of features and amenities to storage facilities, making more sizes, adding climate-controlled storage units, computer-controlled gate access, perimeter fencing, video cameras and so on.
Even with all the advancements in technology and expanded offerings, drive-up storage is still a very convenient storage solution, and one of the main types of storage units you can expect to find at many storage facilities. Some might have climate control, others might even be inside of a larger building. Sizes range from that of a small units the size of a closet (for just a few important things) up to large storage units bigger than a garage (for everything out of a house or business) or medium room-sized units that are great for several rooms of furniture, personal belongings and more!
Drive-up Self Storage Locations Near Me
So, how does one rent a drive-up storage unit?
Back in the day, you couldn’t turn to the internet to search for outdoor self-storage near me. If you needed a drive-up access storage unit, you would have to see a sign on a facility, remember their name, and then look them up in the phone book when you got home.
It’s gotten a lot faster to find all the storage facilities in an area. Just start by searching your phone or computer for something like drive-up storage unit near me or even just storage near me.
Or, use our storage location finder to find the closest Store Space location.
How It Works
Here is a step-by-step guide to renting a drive-up access storage from Store Space.
There are a couple of ways to rent an outdoor drive-up self-storage unit, and we’ll get to all of them, so since you’re already here on the internet, we’ll start there.
- Just enter your city, state or ZIP into our storage location finder.
- Scroll to pick the location nearest you. Pro tip: If there are several locations nearby, simply click the buttons on the map nearest your location.
- Scroll to see a sampling of the available units. Drive-up units will be labeled as such.
- Click NEXT when you see the one you want. Or, click “See all units at this location” for available inventory.
- Make your free, no-obligation reservation to lock in your online rate and move-in date. Pro tip: Click the text box to get reminders about your unit.
- After making a reservation, you have the option to complete your rental online. Here’s why that’s your best option:
- Best online rates
- Takes just minutes, and includes your Rental Agreement
- Won’t have to stop in the office on move-in day
- Expanded move-in hours
It's that easy to rent drive up storage. Now you're ready to move in.
Other ways to rent
Of course, you can always rent these ground-level storage units in person or by phone with help from one of our exceptional storage specialists, just by calling the store or 833-786-7366. They will guide you through the rental process, asking questions about what you plan to store to help you get the storage unit that best suits your needs. If you’re at the store during office hours, you can also get a tour and pick up moving and packing supplies!
How to access your storage unit
Being on the ground level makes drive-up access storage very convenient, especially for people who need to get to their storage unit on a more frequent basis.
If you’ve completed your rental online, you have a lot more freedom on move-in day. You’ll get a text message with your gate access code (it’s a unique PIN you enter, like at an ATM), and you can skip the store and go right to your unit. Most of our locations are open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., so you don’t need to wait for the store manager. (If you do need to complete your Rental Agreement, most store offices are open 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Mon. to Sat.)
Your rental confirmation will have your unit number on it—these are prominently displayed on the buildings, so you shouldn’t have any issues finding YOUR storage unit.
Now you’re driving, you see your storage unit and you drive your car, truck or van RIGHT UP NEXT TO THE DOOR. How convenient is that?
Roll up the door, unload your stuff, roll the door down, put your lock on it, drive home.
Pro tip: Read our blog for tips and tricks to properly organize your storage unit.
How to manage your storage account online
Want to know the easiest way to manage your storage account online? Make sure you sign up for AutoPay when you’re filling out your Rental Agreement. Our free, automatic billing service just deducts your storage costs from your chosen account each month, so you never have to worry about missing a payment again.
Of course, you can always log in to your account on our website for access to things like billing history, preferences and so on. You can even access our online QuickPay feature with just your phone number and ZIP code.
Tour A Unit
Benefits of touring a drive-up storage unit
When you tour a unit, you can see how easy it is to get to your storage unit. You can also experience how big a storage unit really is. Did you know that the ceilings are often up to 9 ft. tall?
What to look for during a storage unit tour
Start by checking to ensure that the storage facility is clean. Look for important features, like intact fences, video cameras, doors that roll up, gates that work, and so on.
How to schedule a tour at our drive-up storage facility
You can schedule a tour for storage units with drive-up access by calling the store manager. Or, just drop by during office hours (hours are posted on our store pages online).
Pricing
Store Space offers transparent pricing options for drive-up self-storage. Just look on our store pages and you’ll see our low, online rates and current move-in offers.
There are several factors that influence the cost of a drive-up storage unit: The location of the facility, the size of the storage unit you’re renting, any additional features, such as climate control, that the unit might have, and so on.
How to find the best pricing for your storage needs
To find the best pricing, we recommend Store Space. Admittedly, we might be biased, but we know our great move-in deals and low web rates for new customers are competitive, and when you combine that with our month-to-month rentals, you’ve got a great deal!
Start with our storage location finder for the store nearest you!
FAQs
Q: What does drive up mean in storage?
A: Drive-up storage units are ground-floor units, usually in an outdoor facility, you can drive your car or truck right up to, making unloading a snap!
Q: What will a 10x15 storage unit hold?
A: A 10x15 storage unit is almost the size of a one-car garage, and can hold approximately three rooms’ worth of personal belongings, like boxes and bins, plus furniture and more.
Q: What is the most common type of storage unit?
A: The 10x10 is the most common type of storage unit. These can be found in drive-up, climate-controlled, and hybrid storage locations.
Q: What are the benefits of a drive-up storage unit?
A: In addition to the main benefit of simply having a place to store items out of the way of daily life, drive-up storage has the added benefit of convenient access and car-side loading and unloading.
