A storage trailer is a convenient place to store extra items. These trailers work in a variety of situations including when your garage is full or you are moving to a new home. If you are filling the storage trailer and parking it for a long period of time, you should take precautions to ensure the trailer is protected.

1. Make Sure the Storage Trailer Is In Good Condition

Before loading your possessions into the storage trailer, make sure that the trailer is in good condition. Check it for rust and holes in particular. If there are even small holes in the top or sides of the trailer, your stuff is likely to get wet and ruined. Similarly, if the bottom of the trailer is rusted out, rodents may get inside and threaten your stuff.

If the trailer is not in adequate condition to protect your items, you may want to hire or buy a new storage trailer. In a pinch, you can try covering a worn out storage trailer with a tarp. To deal with holes on the bottom, make patches with metal mesh.

2. Apply a Rust Inhibitor

If your storage trailer has rust, you should attempt to stop it with a rust inhibitor. Scrub off the existing rust with a piece steel wool and apply the inhibitor to the area with a sponge or cloth. That helps protect the outside of the trailer.

3. Grease Moving Parts

This tip applies to utility trailers, but it is also applicable for any trailer that is in long term storage. Make sure that you grease all the moving parts. That includes the hitch, the suspension, and the axles. You may also want to lubricate brake components.

This can be time consuming as you have to crawl under the trailer, but it helps to ensure that all the parts are ready to go when you are ready to use the trailer the next time.

4. Protect the Tires

If your storage trailer is full of stuff and sitting there for weeks or months, that is a lot of weight on the tires. To protect them, you may want to jack up the trailer to keep the weight off the tires; try to get the trailer as even as possible so your stuff isn't sliding around or pushing against each other in awkward ways.

Make sure that the jack is strong enough to hold the trailer as well as all of its contents. If that's not possible, consider moving the trailer once in awhile so that a single spot on the tires is not always under pressure. You also may want to oil the wheel bearings. Note that if the wheels stay in the same place for a long time, the oil can collect in one area. To prevent this and keep the oil evenly spread, you should spin the wheels once in awhile if the storage trailer is on jacks.

To protect the rubber from UV rays, you may want to put covers on the tires. 

5. Remember Security

Finally, it is important to remember security. If you are storing the storage trailer on your own property, make sure that it is locked, and you may even want to consider putting motion detector lights on it. They will light up when someone approaches and either scare them away or alert you.

If you're parking the storage trailer in another area, make sure that it is safe. For instance, do not just park it on a street. Put it in a secured storage yard or on private property that is well secured.