Never Store These 8 Things In Your Basement
The basement seems like the perfect place to stash away extra belongings. It's out of sight, spacious, and often underused, but not everything belongs down there. Some items don’t handle the conditions well, and others could end up attracting greater damage. Before you box it all up and head for the stairs, take a moment to think about what’s really safe to store below ground level.
Scented Candles and Wax-Based Items
Items made with wax or fragrance oils tend to lose their integrity over time, especially in areas with unstable conditions. The wax can soften, melt slightly, or warp. The scents can fade or even change entirely. Even without direct heat, these products don't stay the way they were meant to. If you’ve got a stockpile of candles, soaps, or similar goods, they’ll last longer if kept somewhere stable and dry.
Anything Paper
Delicate paper items often go into storage after just a few uses. Things like sheet music, specialty papers, or scrapbook supplies are especially vulnerable to moisture and air quality. They curl, discolor, or fuse together. If you enjoy working with these materials, or hope to pass them along, it's worth keeping them in a place that won’t slowly break them down. Basements are rarely that place.
Holiday Decorations with Fabric or Foam
Artificial wreaths, tree skirts, and decor with plush or padded parts can attract more than dust in long-term storage. Foam and fabric take on odors easily, and can even attract insects or mice if not sealed properly. Once affected, they're incredibly hard to clean or restore. Hard plastic decorations tend to survive better, but softer materials are best stored with more care in another part of the house.
Spare Flooring and Leftover Tiles
After a renovation, extra flooring often gets tucked away for future fixes, but when it's stored somewhere that sees changes in humidity or temperature, even the spares can start to warp or degrade. Vinyl becomes brittle, wood may swell, and adhesive strips lose their grip. If you want those extras to actually be usable later on, it’s worth giving them a better place than a damp corner downstairs.
Extra Personal Care Products
That stash of shampoos, lotions, or backup toiletries seems like it would be fine out of sight, but time and exposure are rough on products made with oils or active ingredients. Bottles can bloat, leak, or separate inside. Even sealed items don't hold up well in less-than-ideal storage conditions. They're often forgotten, and when found again, no longer feel safe to use. A linen closet or cabinet is usually a better home.
Framed Artwork or Wall Decor
Frames made of composite materials don't hold up well if stored where moisture is present. Backs can buckle, corners loosen, and the art itself may spot or stick to the glass. Unframed canvas pieces are just as vulnerable, too. Even if you’ve wrapped them, the environment can slowly wear them down if it's volatile enough. Storing decor flat or upright in better-controlled areas gives it the best chance at surviving until it’s ready to hang again.
Backup Pet Supplies and Food
Extra pet beds, treats, and food bags often end up stored away until needed. But soft bedding can get musty and stale, and dry food can spoil more quickly than you'd think. Once opened, the scent of treats or kibble can draw in pests, even if the packaging still seems sealed. For your pets’ comfort and safety, it’s better to keep these items accessible and in a place you can check regularly.
Inflatable Gear and Soft Plastics
Pool floats, air mattresses, or anything inflatable doesn't fare well when packed away in an ever-changing environment. The material becomes sticky, seams weaken, and once-a-year use turns into a surprise failure. If you’re relying on these items for comfort or fun, consider storing them in a place where temperature and exposure are more stable.
Not everything is made to survive long-term storage below ground. The basement can be useful, but it's not always kind to the things we forget about. A little attention to where and how you store your belongings can make a big difference in what’s still usable when you need it again. Think of storage as a means of protection, not just convenience, and you’ll avoid replacing what could’ve lasted longer.