What to Consider When Storing Electronics

When moving or storing electronics, it’s important to keep the vulnerability of these items in mind no matter how or where they’re being transported. It’s important to keep boxes or containers with electronics labelled and stored separately from the rest of your items to ensure that they’re not forgotten about or exposed to the elements.

The following are some of the most common elements that can harm your electronics:

High Temperatures

If you’re moving during the summertime or storing your items during these months, it’s a special concern to make sure your electronic items are not left in a hot moving van or in a storage unit that is not climate controlled for any elongated period of time. Continuous or elongated exposure to heat can cause damage to internal hardware, and shorten the lifespan of microchips, batteries, circuit boards, and more.

Humidity

Another noted enemy for the lifespan of internal hardware is humidity. In environments with high humidity, it’s easy for condensation to build up and create a film of moisture on the internal parts of your electronic devices. This can lead to malfunctions or short circuiting. Additionally, the buildup of condensation can cause rust to form in your electronics, or cause electronics to lose connectivity.

Dust

A less considered concern when moving or storing electronic devices is exposure to or the buildup of dust. Dust build up can cause a number of issues in your devices, including conductivity issues, heat build-up or overheating, or compromise cooling systems.

How Do I Keep My Electronics Safe?

Storing your electronics correctly can mean the difference between having your items work good as new right out storage, or have them corrode or degrade internally while packed away.

• Separate and organize all electronics. To prevent physical damage as well as keep like devices with like, make sure you know what is where and not to store larger electronics on top of smaller ones.
• Remove batteries to ensure that nothing corrodes and leaks out into your device, or down onto other devices while in storage – this can cause serious damage. If you’re working with devices containing lithium batteries, charge them to 50% before storage, and keep them away from any heat source.
• Keep everything clean before storage and make sure to remove any existing dust or contaminants using a compressed air gun.
• Unplug everything and separate all pieces. Take all attachments off of main units and keep everything separate make sure nothing is broken or compromised during transport or storage.
• Keep all screens covered and cushions to avoid scratches, cracking, and other damage. Keep all gaps or vents covered as well.

Make sure to do your research prior to storing your electronics away to ensure they’re kept in a cool and dry environment that will not harm them in any way. Keep everything secure and back up your data before packing everything away.

Need accessible storage options? Contact Odyssey Storage today.