Pittsburgh, PA University Storage

Although students are generally settled once they move into their dorm rooms, they actually end up moving around quite a bit during their college years.  Most students go home for the summer if they aren’t working near campus, or go to study abroad and are gone for months at a time, or they are just moving back and forth between semesters.  Whatever you may be doing, you’re not always in one place.  The best way to avoid having to move your stuff very often is to put it into self storage.  Pittsburgh has 44 storage facilities, so you’ll definitely be able to find one that suits your needs.

Students Need Flexibility

As a student, your schedule is usually pretty set up for you.  The four years that you spend at a university require you to stay put and take classes.  The only thing you actually do have control over is your class schedule, but even then you may or may not be able to get the times you’re looking for.  Generally students take classes during the day and study late into the night, making it difficult to make a trip to their storage unit at a decent time.  As a student, we recommend that you try to find a facility that allows for 24-hour access to your storage unit.  This way you can get to your things whenever you need them and don’t have to plan your whole day around the facility’s hours.

You should also look for a place that offers month-to-month leases, which is generally the case for most storage facilities.  You may only need to store your things while you’re away for the summer or sign up for a study abroad program, so don’t sign up for a long lease thinking that you can’t customize it to your needs.

Security in Pittsburgh

Something you might not think of when considering putting your things in self storage is security.  Pittsburgh has an annual property crime of 10,235 crimes and is safer than only 11% of the cities in the U.S.  Because of these high statistics, and for safety in general, you should look for facilities that take strong measures to prevent theft.  Some things that you should look for are:  if the facility has an on-site manager, 24-hour surveillance cameras, gated grounds, good lighting, security guards, and units with individual alarms on them.  Any combination of these things will help to keep your stuff safe.  Also, before choosing a facility, talk to managers about any other steps they take to prevent crime.

Students of the University of Pittsburgh

There are 14 colleges and universities in Pittsburgh, one of the largest of which is the University of Pittsburgh.  This university has an undergraduate enrollment of 18,757 and a graduate enrollment of 9,860.  43% of these students live on campus, making the 145 acres that it covers look pretty small.  The school offers more than 100 majors and minors and has 528 registered student clubs and organizations.  It is also situated very close to two of the three rivers that Pittsburgh is bordered by, making it common for students to engage in activities such as kayaking, sailing, fishing, and other water sports.

Given how much there is to do for students attending this school, it’s pretty obvious that they will need a place to store the things they use for extracurricular activities.  There are actually two great storage facilities in the area. Guardian Storage is 1.1 miles away from campus and has a great referral program.  If you refer someone, you either get $50 rent credit for your next month’s rent or a $50 American Express gift card.  This is a great way for you to save some money on your rent!  There is also STORExpress Self Storage, which is also very close by.  This facility offers student lockers, which are great if you need some storage space but don’t have enough stuff to fill up an entire room, and a band rehearsal room.  If you’re starting up your own band or are in the school’s marching band, you should definitely look into using the space they provide.  It’s not very common to be able to find places that allow for band practice, especially a storage facility!

Weather can be Tricky

Pittsburgh gets very humid during the summer, and snowy during the winter.  In the summer, be sure to store your things in a climate controlled unit so that the humidity doesn’t damage your great-grandmother’s antique painting or your awesome mountain bike.  For the winter, you might want to try to find a facility that has covered and heated loading and unloading zones.  With temperatures dropping so low, you won’t want to go to your facility unless there’s shelter from the snow and some heat that will make the process easier.