SMARTBOX of San Antonio was proud to sponsor the 2008 American Diabetes Association’s Tour De Cure.  The American Diabetes Association’s Tour de Cure is a one and/or two day bicycle race from San Antonio to Austin via San Marcos, Texas.  This year’s race, put on by the South and Central Tour de Cure division, raised over $500,000 with over 1300 participating cyclists.

This is the second year that SMARTBOX of San Antonio has participated in the Tour de Cure.  In the past, SMARTBOX has provided storage and transportation for water and other goods needed during the race.  Smartboxes have also been stacked two high to serve as anchors for the balloon start and finish lines in San Antonio, San Marcos and Austin.

“We have really enjoyed our partnership with the American Diabetes Association.  As a family owned and operated, San Antonio business it is important for us to give back to the community and donation our Smartboxes for the Tour de Cure has given us an ideal opportunity to do that,” said Jim Plumhoff, president and co-owner of SMARTBOX San Antonio.

In my marketing activities to get the word out about SMARTBOX, I am often questioned about the various uses of a SmartBox.  Sometimes people inquire about the more direct uses, such as storage of excess home items or simply moving from point “A” to point “B” - both locally and long distance (via SMARTCARE). 

But there are a myriad of uses that you may not think of, but ultimately is a great use of a SmartBox.  So here are some other things that you may not have thought of:

• Remodeling
  • Rather than cram items from two rooms into one while having work done, why not instead put the items into a SmartBox?
• Garage addition
  • Likewise with remodeling, we have a lot of clients that utilize a SmartBox when having a garage built or rebuilt.
• Home Staging and/or De-Cluttering
  • As referenced below in this issue, now more than ever Home Staging is really important.  With the increased inventory of homes for sale, you need to do everything you can to make your home stand out above all others.  A SmartBox is a fabulous solution as we do all the driving and you only need to pack once.
• Kids going off to – or coming back from – College
  • Why “schlep” your kids things in a rental truck – or worse, in the back of your vehicle – when you can call SmartBox to do the “schlepping” for you?
• Disaster Relief
  • These are the calls we hope to never receive, but we’re glad to be able to provide our services when needed.  With the glut of flooding as of late, tornado’s, etc what does one do on short notice when something like this occurs?  SMARTBOX is a great resource as we can fit into tight spaces, respond with short notice and we’re very affordable.
  • Add to that, most insurance companies will reimburse you for the use of a SmartBox during your time of need.
• Military, Fire and Police Personnel discounts (offered by most - if not all SMARTBOX Franchise locations)
  • General uses for SmartBoxes qualify you for a discount if there is an immediate family member serving our country or municipality.
  • Additionally, if you’re being shipped out for active duty, you can use SMARTBOX to keep your items safe while you go off to keep us safe!

Many, many other uses….  I’d venture to say a thousand-and-one uses, or more!!!

1. Google – Shocker, I know!
2. O’Reilly Media
3. Yahoo Search
4. Tom Peters Company
5. Ask.com
6. Adobe Software
7. General Motors
8. Sunbelt Software
9. Thomas Mahon
10. The Otter Group

The reason I point out the top 10 blogs above is that it’s interesting in that they are not necessarily the ones you would expect.  Some are obvious – Google and Yahoo.  But some of the others I’d venture to say are blogs for companies and/or people from companies you’ve never heard of.  I know that’s a safe statement on my end.  So how does this all fit in to SMARTBOX and our Corporate Blog?  Hopefully this Blog will become – over time – a useful resource of information regarding the Portable Storage (and storage in general) industry along with tips on moving, packing, organizing and the like.  There are so many resources out there it’s hard to know what’s valid and what isn’t.  Rest assured, if it says SMARTBOX, it’s legitimate.  Greg Kaufman SMARTBOX Chicago – Owner

“The roof is leaking and my stuff’s soaked” Unfortunately, this isn’t an uncommon complain in self-storage facilities or with metal portable or mobile containers.  More times than not, roofs aren’t the source the leaks, but condensation is dripping down on the contents below.  Metal has become the industry standard in self-storage due to its durability, attractiveness, low maintenance and ease of use.  However, without taking the proper precautions, metal roofs can have problems with condensation.

What is Condensation?

Condensation is a natural phenomenon in which water vapor in the air is returned to its liquid state.  All air contains water vapor in differing amounts.  When air is cooled, the amount of water vapor it can hold is reduced.  The point when it becomes too cold for the air to hold its moisture level is called the dew point.  If the air is saturated, it will release this moisture in the form of droplets until such point as it is back below the dew point or the temperature goes back up (Refer to “Condensing the Facts”).

For our purposes, condensation depends on three main factors:

·         Temperature inside the building or container

·         Temperature outside the building or container

·         Relative humidity (amount of moisture in the air)

Metal-roofing panels are not good thermal insulators, so as the cold outside air hits the roof panel, it cools.  When the relatively warm moist air inside the building meets the cold panels, the dew point is reached and water condenses on the underside of the roof panel, causing water to drip on the contents in the unit.

Why Worry about it?

You have a well-written rental agreement that excludes water damage, so why worry about condensation at all?  Maintenance issues cost time and money.  They also can lead to unhappy customers, which ends up costing more money.  Even worse, rumors of dissatisfaction can spread fast.  It only takes one time for conditions to be just right for condensation to wreak havoc.

If it is taken into consideration in a self storage building plan, they can minimize headaches with a little preventive medicine.   With most all portable or mobile container there is little being done to prevent the problem even though it is more problematic as it moves around in different climates.

Combating Condensation

The traditional way to deal with condensation is to keep the temperature on the underside of the roof panel from reaching the dew point.  This is done through the use of insulation.  A vapor barrier is added to keep the moisture in the air from reaching the roof panel.  In the building process, a vapor barrier is spread over the purlins, and insulation is rolled on top of that.  The roofing is then attached on top.   Once again this is not practical or commonplace with portable containers.

There is another system that has been used for years in Europe and has been winning favor in the US, particularly for the non-climate-controlled self-storage industry.  This system uses a fleece coating that is adhered directly to the roof panel.  The roof panel with coating provides a medium for trapping this moisture in specially designed pockets.  The fleece holds the moisture until conditions go back below the dew point and releases the moisture back into the air in the form of normal humidity.  Thus, the fleece acts much like a sponge that soaks up the moisture when it appears and releases it as it returns to its humid air state.

This material is self-adhesive and is applied to the panel in the roll-forming process.  As a result, it arrives at the building site already in place and set to be installed with the roofing panels immediately.

The membrane is designed to be resistant to aging, and has an adhesive that keeps moisture from coming into contact with the metal panel, actually providing an additional layer of protection for your metal roof.  It’s a simple idea that cuts cost, time and condensation in the end.

Condensing the Facts

·         Condensation occurs when the humidity conditions inside the building and temperature of the meta-roof panel reach the dew point.

·         Condensation will continue to drip until either the temperature goes back above the dew point, or enough moisture is released in the form of water droplets to alter the dew point.

·         The traditional method for dealing with condensation is to insulate the roof so the temperature on the panel never reaches the dew point.

·         In self-storage it only take once for the vapor barrier to be ripped and contents damaged.

SMARTBOX Portable Self Storage offers you pricing up front with no hidden charges.  There are no fuel charges tacked on after the fact, allowing you to budget your move without fear of extra expense.  Even better, SMARTBOX’s delivery system has the ability to service multiple customers in one trip, saving us gas, and allowing us to provide our service at a savings.  Next time you move, think about filling up your rented or borrowed truck, and then think about letting us do the driving.