Attic Cleaning And Insulation Replacement Downey, CA

Attic storage mistakes

The Attic space is mostly used as storage for the not-so-needed or the extra stuff for as long as they are not needed again. This makes the attic a very static space; rarely disturbed or cleaned or even visited. We store away the junks and forget about them, but all that undisturbed junk ruins the attic’s health. Not all the materials are suitable for being stored in an attic but we rarely segregate them before storing.

Some of the materials which should never be stored in an attic are as follows:

FOOD

Foods, if stored in an attic, may go stale and decay; decaying food will cause fungal growth and will also result in the growth of scavenging worms. Food will attract small animals and insects and cause serious infestation problems. Temperature fluctuations in the attic also cause food to expire faster i.e. reduces their shelf life.

IMPORTANT PAPERS

Prolonged exposure to attic humidity and the everyday temperature changes can cause mildew growth on the papers (paper items are negatively affected by heat) and paper eating bugs and moths will contaminate the attic in search of food. Mice and rats are also known to chew and tear papers. Important papers may also be destroyed by water from a leaky roof.

FLAMMABLE LIQUIDS

Paint, cleaning products, gasoline, turpentine, and other hazardous flammable chemicals should never be stored in the attic space. They can leak and spread on the floor and catch fire on coming in contact with a fire source.  Such chemical fires are very powerful and can spread rapidly and cause extensive damage to the property and life forms in the vicinity.

WOODEN FURNITURE

Shortage of space has compelled you to store away your wishful-furniture in the attic? You should not store wooden furniture in the attic. Wood, when subjected to sudden temperature fluctuations undergoes uneven expansions which result in the formation of cracks; those cracks will ruin the furniture and render them useless and unaesthetic.

LEATHER PRODUCTS AND FABRICS

Leather products require a good deal of maintenance. Even if you are storing them away in the attic due to space issues, you shouldn’t. The humidity in the attic will result in mildew and fungal growths. That will damage the products. Fabrics are ruined by cloth-moths; they feed on the fabrics to derive nourishment. That results in the formation of randomly sized holes in the fabric. It’s best to store them in some other location under the protection of mothballs or other preservatives.