Reasons Not to Store Things Under Your Manufactured Home

While it may seem practical to keep things in the crawlspace underneath your manufactured home, we don’t recommend it for several reasons. Today’s modern manufactured homes incorporate more storage options than ever before into their designs, which makes it easier to store items inside your home rather than outside. And if you’re looking for somewhere to keep tools, sports equipment or other outdoor items, you may want to consider a storage shed. Some of our Clayton home models even include attached garage options for maximum convenience.

With that, let’s go over some reasons why you don’t want to store items under your home.

1. It’s Not Always Dry

Manufactured homes are sealed in various ways to help prevent moisture from entering them, but it may still be damp underneath your home. This could potentially lead to mold developing over time, which you definitely don’t want on any of your items.

2. It Can Be a Fire Hazard

That being said, you’ll also want to consider what could happen if you store any chemicals or flammable items under your home. These can all create a fire hazard, so it's better to play it safe than sorry by keeping the area under your home free of any extra items.

3. Protect Your Pipe Systems

Putting items under your home could also potentially damage the piping or cause scrapes and tears in parts of the underbelly that are designed to protect your home. Also, if a pipe leaks or bursts and you have things stored underneath your home, you may have a hard time getting to the pipes, and your items could be destroyed.

4. Makes Releveling More Difficult

If your home needs to be releveled, or if you choose to relocate it, at any point in the future, you will need to first remove all of the items underneath your home. And this reason leads directly to the next problem with storing items underneath your manufactured home.

5. It’s Not Easy to Get To

Because the space underneath a manufactured home is not usually very large (or well lit), it can be hard to actually get to any items you store there. That’s where built-in storage options around your home can really come in handy, so your things are easy to get to when you need them.

6. Bugs Can Gather

While no one likes the idea of crawling into a dark, confined space, that’s not a problem for insects and spiders. So, the best way to keep bugs from getting in your stuff in the first place is to keep items away from places where bugs like to gather.

7. And Animals Too

Space underneath your home can also be attractive to raccoons, opossums, mice and other animals you don’t want to share your space with. If they manage to find their way in, these housemates can be difficult (and expensive) to evict. Make your home a less appealing spot for them and don’t create any dark and cozy corners where they can nest.

Looking for more tips on keeping your manufactured or modular home in great shape? We’ve got you covered on our Studio blog, from ways to organize your space to routine maintenance checklists.