Residence at Dino's Storage

Wow!!! I thought I had heard just about everything!!!! I know that the homeless population is all over the United States right now and getting worse with the economy being the way it is. When I came in to check my messages this weekend I found out that one of my tenants was using his drive up storage space as a residence!

Now I realize that it has four walls and is out of the wind, but the storage garages at Dino's Storage are not residences and it is against Dino's policies for anyone to stay in their storage unit. Hopefully we don't have to deal with this problem again!

Storage FAQ's

The majority of the customers we serve have never used storage before. Here is a quick and simple guide to five of our most frequently asked questions. To view a complete list of our Common FAQ’s, visit our FAQ page.

1) What is climate control and do I need it?
Answer: Climate control definitions can vary, so be sure to ask who you rent from what they call climate control. Sometimes it is strictly heated, sometimes it includes air conditioning. At Dino’s, we heat and cool but also run dehumidifiers where necessary to keep the humidity at levels that will not promote mold growth. While we cannot guarantee the temperature or humidity level, we do our best to maintain them so your items remain in the condition you left them in.

2) How do I best utilize the space I’m paying for?
Answer: I find most customers over-estimate the amount of space they need. If you pack your items well, you can save a lot of space, therefore saving time and money. Use the same size boxes, label them specifically (not just by room, but itemized) and try to box most of your items. Items that aren’t boxed will be awkward and hard to stack. Storing shelves or bookcases? Use them to hold those unboxed, odd-ball shaped items. Storing a dresser? Keep the clothes folded in the drawers and put the screws and bolts from the unassembled furniture in a baggy inside also. Don’t forget to label the baggy!

3) What kind of lock should I buy? Can I just bring one from home?
Answer: You bet you can bring one from home. But if you don’t have one, you can sure buy one from us. We sell pad locks and disc locks. No lock is thief-proof, but Disc locks are the most secure type in the storage world and very reasonably priced. We strive to be at or below our competitors prices and you save yourself a shopping trip by grabbing one off our shelf.

4) When can I move in?

Answer: Just sign on the dotted line and the space is yours!

5) Why should I buy a mattress or sofa cover?
Answer: Even in a climate control unit, dust can accumulate. Mold particles can spread through the air. Bugs and little creatures can make their way inside a building and into your unit. Mattresses and couches are expensive to replace. Spend the extra few dollars to save yourself hundreds!

Storage Burglars (followed by their arrests) on the Rise

You may have caught me (no pun intended) on WOWT's Burglaries & Break-ins on the 14th regarding the break-ins at a Dino's Storage at the end of March. The story is called, "A couple who steals together is arrested together". A man rented a storage unit under a stolen identity and instead of moving his items in that evening, he moved someone else's out. The occurrence of break-ins has increased dramatically over the last two years in the storage industry. Facilities that never had the problem, suddenly were being hit as well. There are several things storage companies and customers can do to prevent the crimes and reduce the damage when the crime does occur.

1. The customer needs to protect their unit with a cylinder disc lock, not a pad lock. Cylinder disc locks are virtually impossible to break off with bolt cutters. Disc locks require grinders and are too time-consuming for thieves to hassle with. The price difference is minimal: $4 at our sites.
2. The renter should make sure their homeowners or renter’s insurance covers items off-premise of their residence. If it does not, or they do not have insurance, purchase storage insurance from the facility they rent their storage unit from. If the facility does not offer storage insurance, they should not entrust their items at that location. No storage company is going to cover loss or damages to the stored items.
3. Once you have rented a storage unit, visit it often to make sure the items are still there, untouched, and in their normal condition.
4. The self-storage company should have cameras around the facility, especially at all exits and entrances. We focus our cameras on these places instead of on units.
5. Limit who enters the property and find out who is entering the property by having coded access. Each customer has their own five digit code. The software will tell us what code, whose code, the date and time, and what door or gate was used with that code.
6. The manager should pay attention to who is visiting and when.
7. The property manager should walk their property daily to spot problems immediately.
8. Businesses should encourage the police to drive through their property frequently, train the drug detection dogs there, and have drug dogs investigate near suspicious areas.
9. Require a government issued ID at the time of signing. No ID, no lease.
10. Don't give your code out to anyone you wouldn't give your SSN to.

The three most recent set of break-ins (3 different Dino's facilities) have all been captured on video and all perpetrators and their co-conspirators have been arrested. This can't be a coincidence. Sonny Joynes and Tamara Kulm, the thieves featured on TV last week, had broken into at least two other NON Dino's storage facilities prior to setting foot on our property and were not caught. I can't speak for the other facilities and I can't tell you what kind of gates, fences, cameras, etc, they have. However, what I can say is that Dino's has upped their game and thieves should take note and learn from those who came before them. As a customer, you can protect your items when you aren't there by carefully choosing where you rent from, keeping your code a secret, and putting a disc lock on your door. If we all do our part, there won't be opportunity for the bad guys.

Self Storage Video

Video might sound exciting, but it really is not. But it is very important, especially when coupled with data showing who is using doors and gates. Two weeks ago one of our facilities had a stupid criminal use his code to access our building and then cut locks from some of the storage units. But with the combination of video surveillance and records from the doors the police were able to quickly track down the perpetrator and take him off the street.

When we record 24 hours per day we get a lot of video we will never use but when needed it is great. Fortunately the newer systems are digital and permit us to highlight particular portions of the screen and then alert us when activity occurs in a highlighted area so we do not have to look at everything. And sometimes we even start out wondering who did some damage only to find something else, like how the wind and not a person damaged a door at one of our locations yesterday.