Cardboard Storage Boxes

Cardboard storage boxes are very popular amongst people who want to archive various items and those that need temporary storage when moving houses or relocating to another country. The main reasons are because they are relatively cheap and durable enough to hold items of different weight and size, making them a very effective storage solution.

Ideally you wouldn’t want to spend too much money on storage boxes that you’re either only going to use to transport things or put away in the garage where no one else will see them. Therefore practicality and simplicity are significantly more important attributes than visual appeal. However, having said that, there are also cardboard boxes that look pretty which I’ll cover. In this hub, I’ll let you know what different kinds of cardboard storage boxes you can expect to see on the market so you’ll be able to better decide which is more suitable for your purposes.

One of the common items a household (or office for that matter) has is paperwork. I’m referring to bank statements, tax returns, legal documents, etc. There is only a limited space on your shelf and cabinet to keep them. Eventually, when you know you won’t be looking at them that often anymore, you would want to archive them. On one hand you wouldn’t dispose of them in case of future reference and on the other hand, you wouldn’t want them to occupy several files on your desk or shelf. Another situation might be that you are moving between offices so you'll need a temporary storage for all your work.

Cardboard file storage boxes have folder rails which allow you to hang files (as suppose to stacking piles of paper) making the task of looking through your paperwork that much easier. The lids on top provide a level of protection from dust and dirt. They are sized to fit letter and legal size paper.

If you are a collector of trading cards (e.g. baseball cards, basketball cards) or of comic books, then you’ll likely have accumulated a lot over the years. As such, a proper way of cataloging and organizing these items is of great importance. These kinds of items are not bulky so small cardboard storage boxes are more appropriate. The boxes tend to have a height and width just right for cards or comics, but are fairly deep allowing you to hold several copies within one box.

There are other cardboard storage boxes suitable for small items like photos, magazine and dvd. The width and height of the boxes are designed to fit these different sized items such that the space within the boxes is maximized and there is as little air space as possible. Additionally, some brands come with index cards or tabs giving you the ability to label and group items in each box for easy identification.

These boxes are appropriate for bulky and sometimes heavy items. For example, as your kids grow up, their taste for toys and entertainment will change. Over time, you’ll accumulate a bunch of toys which you might be reluctant to throw away, sell or give away because of their sentimental value. These toys can be stored in cardboard boxes. It should be noted that the boxes are made from two strong layers of corrugated cardboard so they handle fairly heavy items. However, I would avoid putting power tools and the like in them. The best thing to do is to check the specifications in the product descriptions for the boxes. There's usually an indication of the allowable weight.

Aside from long-term storage, these large boxes are good as temporary storage when moving between two places. They have built-in hand holes for easy handling. Also, most of them are reusable. When you buy them, they usually are unfolded flat as one piece, so you’ll need to fold the various edges and corner to form the required box shape. This “assembly” process doesn’t require any special tool. Once you’re done using the boxes, you simply unfold them again and put the away – efficient use of space.

One of the most annoying items to move is clothing. Folded garments are fine as you can simply stack them on one another in a box. However, things like shirts, skirts and dresses which normally are hung in the closet pose a problem. If they are folded then placed in a box, you’ll need to iron them once you take them out at the destination. This can be a time consuming exercise, particularly if you have a lot of such clothing items. A possible solution is to get cardboard clothing storage boxes, which have built-in rails allowing you to leave clothes on hangers and transport them as is.

Permanent and temporary storage are the two most common reasons for using cardboard storage boxes. However, there are people who also treat them as gift boxes or simply want a box that looks nice. Unlike the other boxes I’ve described, this particular type has an additional layer of decorative paper on the box surface, usually showing some visually appealing design.