If you’re thinking about storing some items on a long-term basis, you have likely given some thought to the type of packing materials to use. For the most part, people tend to use either plastic or cardboard boxes for storing their items. Both have their advantages, but plastic boxes are often the clear winner in such a comparison. Here’s why:

They last longer than cardboard boxes

It doesn’t matter whether you’re storing items for one week or five years. What does matter is the medium with which you store your possessions is durable and does its job well. Yes, cardboard boxes are cheaper to buy than plastic ones. But, they don’t tend to last as long! Cardboard can’t really stand up to the elements very well, especially if things get stored in damp conditions.

The advantage of using plastic boxes is they don’t turn into soggy paper if they get left in damp or outdoor conditions.

Yo can stack plastic boxes with ease

Have you ever tried to stack lots of cardboard boxes, each with differing contents? If not, one thing you’ll notice is you can’t stack cardboard boxes very well. You’ll find that some columns of stacked boxes end up tilting precariously, and with a slight tap or nudge can easily come tumbling down!

When you use plastic boxes, their shape won’t get easily deformed due to the contents. That means you can stack them high up in facilities that offer self storage in Crawley, or indeed any other part of the UK!

Plastic boxes are easier to carry

A disadvantage of cardboard boxes is they are seldom easy to carry. Most have no handles to assist with carrying. While there are some with cut-outs on the sides to aid with transporting, the downside is they become even less waterproof or protected from the elements.

What you’ll notice about plastic boxes is they are both sealed and offer a practical way to lift them. If you find that you’ll need to carry a plastic box with someone else due to its weight, the moulded handles will help make light work of this task. When two people try to carry a cardboard box, it can often be a frustrating task.

Plastic boxes can take more weight

If you need to store lots of small yet heavy items, it can be challenging to do so with cardboard boxes. Even if you use double-walled cardboard boxes, they can’t take a lot of weight strain for a long time before ripping open!

In such circumstances, it instead makes sense to use plastic boxes! The beauty of using such a storage medium is they can take a lot more weight than their cardboard counterparts and aren’t likely to spectacularly empty their contents due to weight strain!

What are the downsides of using plastic boxes?

While plastic boxes are more durable and easier to transport and store than cardboard ones, the only real disadvantage of them is they aren’t easily recyclable. But, because they last for such a long time, they are seldom discarded like cardboard ones.