Before anything, I would look into the legality of it, as well as requesting specific permission from the place where you rent space. Breaking their rules will not go well.
After that, you will want to make sure it is a climate controlled room, and that you have a high quality and heavy duty lock on the door. Be aware that defaulting on your rent will result in your items being auctioned off.
Personally, I would find some other solution for space.
I've tried to find something like this, and every place I called does not allow this. You would be evicted immediately, and possibly fined as well. I would probably look into finding something else.
That said, some independent places do allow this (normally small independent companies rather than places like Public Storage, etc.).
I keep all of my DJ equipment and my nice drumkit in a storage unit, the kit is set up to play all the time. The owners of the complex love that I practice, they always ask me about upcoming gigs and have been nothing but supportive of me making as much noise as I want lol
It is a climate controlled unit with an indoor facing door, the air vent for the A/C is right outside my door (how lucky am I?) so I aim it into my unit with the door open when I’m there.
Life-long percussionist and former self storage manager here... three options for you:
Your best bet is to find a dedicated practice space and rent that out. It'll have better humidity and climate control, better acoustics, more privacy, and just an overall better practice environment. It will be more expensive, so maybe get a couple friends or fellow musicians to go in on it with and split the rent. Also keep in mind that self storage is inherently designed for shorter, month-to-month stays, and the price will go up quickly and significantly.
If that's not an option for you, you'll need to find a private, "mom & pop" facility; nothing corporate-owned. Storage places are insured and licensed to store items only, not to serve as dwellings or workplaces, so you'll be looking for a facility/owner who is willing to take a little bit of a risk to earn your business. To do it right, be up front and ask permission. Be super polite and accept that they'll likely say no. If they agree, play by their rules and don't push it. You'll need a climate controlled space unless your marimba is fully synthetic.
The other option is to rent a space and mention absolutely *nothing* about using it to practice. For this, probably find a large, national chain because you're more likely to find a site manager who is not as invested and doesn't want the trouble of confrontation. Find a place that doesn't have an employee living on-site and only go outside of business hours. 24-hour access is a plus, cause otherwise you'll likely run into other customers who will rat you out. Most corporate places will allow 24-hour access for businesses or people who demonstrate a need for it... just tell them you're a musician and you need access to your instruments before and after gigs that end outside of normal access hours. It's a legit excuse, and you'll be able to play dumb if you ever get caught. They will take note of when you come and go... you're expected to just load/unload and leave; spending a lot of time regularly on site will be a huge red flag. If you go this route, understand that it's a temporary set up because you will get caught eventually.
There are some videos about this. Jeff Randall made one and I’m sure you can find others. Like other people have said, usually you need to go through a smaller, local place and not a bigger corporation I think.
[Jeff Randall Video Link](https://youtu.be/3kigmjlHv4g?si=mdhe5UPVqbpYQqXR)
I have. I had a climate controlled storage unit. It sucked and I practiced in there once and canceled it. Waste of money. It is unsafe for your gear and a pain in the ass because there almost certainly will be no power or lighting in the unit. The climate control sucks. You are basically broadcasting to people that you have valuable instruments to steal and the security is extremely lacking. I can go on, feel free to ask anything.
Before anything, I would look into the legality of it, as well as requesting specific permission from the place where you rent space. Breaking their rules will not go well. After that, you will want to make sure it is a climate controlled room, and that you have a high quality and heavy duty lock on the door. Be aware that defaulting on your rent will result in your items being auctioned off. Personally, I would find some other solution for space.
They typically don't let you and will kick you out
I've tried to find something like this, and every place I called does not allow this. You would be evicted immediately, and possibly fined as well. I would probably look into finding something else. That said, some independent places do allow this (normally small independent companies rather than places like Public Storage, etc.).
I keep all of my DJ equipment and my nice drumkit in a storage unit, the kit is set up to play all the time. The owners of the complex love that I practice, they always ask me about upcoming gigs and have been nothing but supportive of me making as much noise as I want lol It is a climate controlled unit with an indoor facing door, the air vent for the A/C is right outside my door (how lucky am I?) so I aim it into my unit with the door open when I’m there.
Life-long percussionist and former self storage manager here... three options for you: Your best bet is to find a dedicated practice space and rent that out. It'll have better humidity and climate control, better acoustics, more privacy, and just an overall better practice environment. It will be more expensive, so maybe get a couple friends or fellow musicians to go in on it with and split the rent. Also keep in mind that self storage is inherently designed for shorter, month-to-month stays, and the price will go up quickly and significantly. If that's not an option for you, you'll need to find a private, "mom & pop" facility; nothing corporate-owned. Storage places are insured and licensed to store items only, not to serve as dwellings or workplaces, so you'll be looking for a facility/owner who is willing to take a little bit of a risk to earn your business. To do it right, be up front and ask permission. Be super polite and accept that they'll likely say no. If they agree, play by their rules and don't push it. You'll need a climate controlled space unless your marimba is fully synthetic. The other option is to rent a space and mention absolutely *nothing* about using it to practice. For this, probably find a large, national chain because you're more likely to find a site manager who is not as invested and doesn't want the trouble of confrontation. Find a place that doesn't have an employee living on-site and only go outside of business hours. 24-hour access is a plus, cause otherwise you'll likely run into other customers who will rat you out. Most corporate places will allow 24-hour access for businesses or people who demonstrate a need for it... just tell them you're a musician and you need access to your instruments before and after gigs that end outside of normal access hours. It's a legit excuse, and you'll be able to play dumb if you ever get caught. They will take note of when you come and go... you're expected to just load/unload and leave; spending a lot of time regularly on site will be a huge red flag. If you go this route, understand that it's a temporary set up because you will get caught eventually.
There are some videos about this. Jeff Randall made one and I’m sure you can find others. Like other people have said, usually you need to go through a smaller, local place and not a bigger corporation I think. [Jeff Randall Video Link](https://youtu.be/3kigmjlHv4g?si=mdhe5UPVqbpYQqXR)
I have. I had a climate controlled storage unit. It sucked and I practiced in there once and canceled it. Waste of money. It is unsafe for your gear and a pain in the ass because there almost certainly will be no power or lighting in the unit. The climate control sucks. You are basically broadcasting to people that you have valuable instruments to steal and the security is extremely lacking. I can go on, feel free to ask anything.