I was thinking about storage solutions for your Crown Point , Dyer , or Munster home. I’m not talking about color coded, stackable bins, or any of that. What I had on my mind was how to make effective use of underutilized space. After the garage the two most likely candidates for family storage are the basement and the attic. Here are a couple pros and cons for storage both above your head and below your feet, and a thought or two on how to do it right.

Attics are difficult to access, and their entry points are significantly narrower than the hallway downstairs. However, attics are great out of the way, forgotten spaces in the house, and anything you are able to haul up a ladder can be easily put out of site and out of mind. That means no nosy children or pets accidentally breaking priceless family keepsakes. A word of caution though. Attics are warm, and can get downright miserable during the summer. Be careful not to store Grandpa’s old letterman jacket up there. Painted leather, like the sleeves on many of those coats can sweat natural oils in the heat and ruin the finish. So it’s safer to keep delicate materials and fabrics elsewhere if possible. This includes old family reel to reel movies, video tapes, and music cassettes. All of these can suffer in the heat. Here’s the hot tip for using your attic for storage: install a folding ladder and some flooring for safety, and easier accessibility.