Putting a saddle in a storage unit -- thoughts?

[Foxtail]

I’m being told to help make space in our apartment, and one of the objects up for consideration is the very nice saddle that’s been languishing now that I’ve taken a hiatus from riding. I’ve never had to put a saddle in a storage unit before, and obviously I’ve got some concerns. While I’m perhaps being a bit irrational about it getting stolen, I am worried that the unit won’t be climate controlled enough. It’s heated, but I don’t know how well the humidity is controlled. And I live in the PNW; I don’t want to come back to a storage unit to find a several thousand dollar saddle mildewed beyond repair.

Anyone in a similar climate keep extra tack in a storage unit? Thoughts? Experiences?

[2DogsFarm]

My saddle lives in my barn.
Actually both my saddles are there.
Barn is unheated, saddles have simple, unlined, fitted cloth covers.
The one in use gets a wipedown with a leatherwipe after use.
The other has not seen the back of a horse for more than 5yrs & could use some serious conditioning for dryness.
Neither has shown any sign of mildew from our very humid Midwest Summers or chill & damp Fall & Winter.
TBH, Spring can be pretty damp too.

I have more problems with mildew on a saddle I keep displayed in my LR.

[lifeishorsesarelove]

I wouldn’t consider a storage unit comparable to an unheated tack room. Those metal buildings with no windows are basically just big solar ovens. The inside can easily reach double the outside temperature on a hot day. Add humidity and… yuck.

I wouldn’t risk it if you don’t have to… I had most of my household items in storage this spring/summer/fall and the few pieces of tack I had in there that were not in bins were not in great shape, they were mildewed but salvagable. The stuff in bins fared better. And I’m in southern ON, where we get humid but nothing compared to what some areas of the states get.

there’s also the concern of pests. Any decent storage facility will have a pest control regime, but if you get stuck next to a unit that breaks a bunch of rules and stores food, there will be mice in your unit, potentially damaging your tack.

[TMares]

No way I’d consider doing that.

[TCA_Arabians]

You can buy products that are designed to absorb moisture in storage. I wouldn’t store it in plastic. Don’t suppose there’s room on the floor of your closet? Up on shoe boxes or something? I have a thermometer that also measures humidity. You can also buy insurance from many storage places.

[Zu_Zu]

No !

Wouldn’t risk its ruin …

choose something else less valuable in terms of material and emotion to go to the storage unit.

place saddle on stool in a closet perhaps ?

keep it ‘comfortable’ please.

[ManhattanOnTheRocks]

I just had a storage unit flood due to a sprinkler pipe bursting. Two trunks filled with water… Now trying to salvage everything in them. Don’t do it!!!

[Angela_Freda]

Replacing a saddle is $$$$, aggravation, and $$$$.
I would mention that to whomever is telling you your saddle takes up too much room in the apartment. Then politely decline the suggestion of storing one of the most valuable items I own in a storage unit.

[stryder]

I also live in the PNW, and have had things in a storage unit. Second floor, interior unit in a climate-controlled building. Never any whiff of mildew or mold, no condensation, no downside to it. All depends on the storage unit.

[SnortyPants]

I’d sell it if I were in your shoes, honestly. Maybe put it up for consignment at a high-ish price then you’ll know it might stick around in climate controlled environment until you’re ready to ride, and if not, you have the $$ to replace.

[OneTwoMany]

Great advice from posters above. If you want to preserve your saddle, keep it in a climate controlled area and condition it at least a few times a year. If this is not a realistic option, consider selling your saddle.

[hoopoe]

I would not, mostly because of the COST of a climate controlled storage unit. For that you could probably upgrade your apartment.

Seriously, however, it is very likely you can find a more compact or space alternative way of storing it at home. Can you hang a rack from the ceiling or mount a rack high on a wall ( i am assuming it is an english saddle) The footprint of a saddle is not that much

If you apartment is so crowded that you have to put stuff in storage, the saddle itself is not the issue. Take a hard look at what you have and how to get rid or downsize most of it.

last resort would be storage. Do you have a horse friend who could adopt it and store it in their loving home?

[WNT]

If you absolutely have to store it, find a Rubbermaid container (high quality, not the cheap Sterilite stuff), put a breathable cover on it (I’ve had good luck with basic polarfleece) and pack it with some loosely crumpled newspaper. Give it a good rubdown with Kocholine or a conditioner with a mildew inhibitor.

For extra care, put a couple bigger tubs of dehumidifier granules in the unit. I actually stored a medium sized Rubbermaid bin of strapgoods in my trailer in Virginia with few of these precautions followed (just conditioned before storage), and they did better than the bridles I’d carefully stored in a bridle bag in the barn tack room.