Hosting for the Holidays? How to Clear Out the Guest Room in Oakwood, GA

Hosting Thanksgiving this year? If your guest room has slowly turned into the storage room, you're in good company. It happens in a lot of homes around Oakwood and Gainesville. The treadmill nobody uses, boxes left over from the last move, the dresser you're saving for one of the kids. By November there's no room left for the people actually coming to visit.

A storage unit is the simplest way to get that room back without throwing out things you want to keep. Hometown Storage is a locally owned facility at 3625 McEver Rd in Oakwood, near Mundy Mill and a short drive from Gainesville and Lake Lanier. Here's how to clear the spare room before the family shows up, what size unit you'll need, and how to protect the furniture and keepsakes you're moving out.

Why does the guest room turn into a storage room?

Because it's the one room nobody uses every day. A spare bedroom is the easiest place to set something down "for now," and a year later the bed is buried.

It's usually a mix of things that all have a reason to stay. Furniture from a parent who downsized. A crib or high chair you'll need again for the grandkids. Boxes from a move that never got unpacked. Exercise equipment, a sewing table, a box of old tax files. None of it is trash, so none of it leaves. A storage unit gives those things a real home and gives the room its job back.

What should you move out of the spare room before guests arrive?

Start with anything you won't touch until spring. If you haven't opened a box since last Thanksgiving, it can live in storage through the holidays without anyone missing it.

Good candidates include spare furniture, extra mattresses and bed frames, exercise equipment, baby gear between grandkids, boxes of keepsakes and paperwork, out-of-season clothes, and anything you're holding for a child who's moving out soon. Leave the guest bed, a nightstand, a lamp, and an empty dresser drawer or two. Guests mostly need a place to sleep, somewhere to set a suitcase, and a clear path to the bathroom.

If you've got college kids coming home from the University of North Georgia for break, this is also a good time to sort out what's theirs. Their extra boxes can go into the same unit, and they can pick through them over Christmas.

How much storage space do you need for a guest room cleanout?

Usually less than you'd think. A 5x10 unit holds what's piled up in most spare rooms, and a 10x10 fits a full bedroom set with room for boxes.

If you're also clearing part of the garage or a bonus room, a 10x15 gives you space to spare. As a rough guide, a 5x10 holds about what fits in a small bedroom, a 10x10 holds the contents of a one-bedroom apartment, and a 10x15 handles a two-bedroom home. Our post on what size storage unit you need goes through each size in more detail.

The easiest way to decide is to see the sizes in person. We have a show unit with the common sizes marked right on the floor, so you can stand in a 10x10 and picture your dresser and boxes inside it before you rent.

Should you use climate-controlled or drive-up storage for furniture and keepsakes?

It depends on what's going in. Climate-controlled is the better fit for wood furniture, mattresses, photos, paperwork, and family heirlooms. Drive-up works well for sturdier items like exercise equipment, plastic bins, and bed frames.

North Georgia humidity is the reason. Gainesville averages around 70 percent humidity in the summer and stays in the mid 60s even in January, which is above the 60 percent level the EPA recommends to keep mold away. An attic or garage around here swings from hot and damp in August to cold in January, and that's hard on wood, fabric, and paper. Our climate-controlled units sit inside a building with an interior hallway, which keeps those swings out.

If you're splitting the difference, our climate-controlled vs drive-up comparison walks through which items belong where.

How do you move a dresser or bed frame without a lot of heavy lifting?

Pick a facility where you don't have to carry it up anything. Every unit at Hometown Storage is on the ground floor, so there are no stairs or elevators between your vehicle and your unit.

With a drive-up unit you back right up to the door and unload in one trip. With a climate-controlled unit you're rolling down a flat, wide hallway. Either way, a two-person job stays a two-person job instead of turning into an afternoon.

Don't have a truck? We're a U-Haul dealer, so you can rent one right from our office, load up at home, unload at your unit, and return it where you picked it up. Our post on U-Haul rentals in Oakwood covers truck sizes and how to reserve.

A few packing habits help too. Take the legs off tables and bed frames, and wrap them with the hardware taped to the piece it came from. Stand mattresses on their side in a mattress bag. Put the boxes you'll want first, like holiday decorations, in front of the unit, not the back.

Can you get it done before Thanksgiving?

Yes, with a weekend to spare if you start now. Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26, which leaves a few weekends in November to sort, pack, and move.

A simple plan: sort the room into keep, store, and donate on the first weekend. Reserve your unit online or stop by the office. Make one trip with the big furniture and a second with boxes, then set the guest room up the way you want it.

The gate is open from 5am to midnight, seven days a week, so evening trips after work fit easily. Our office is open Monday through Friday from 9am to 4pm, Saturday from 9am to 1pm, and Sunday from 12pm to 4pm if you'd like help picking a unit or want to walk the show unit.

What happens after the holidays are over?

You decide. Everything at Hometown Storage is rented month to month, so you can keep the unit as long as it's useful and move out when you're ready.

Plenty of people find the arrangement works better than they expected. The guest room stays a guest room, and the unit becomes the place for holiday decorations, seasonal clothes, and the things they're saving for later. Standard rates come with a 12-month rate guarantee, so you're not guessing about the price next year. And when the decorations come down in January, they've already got a spot waiting.

Can you see a storage unit before you rent?

Yes. Stop by during office hours and we'll walk you through the show unit and the property, so you can see the size, the door, and the free disc lock that comes with every new rental.

We opened in July 2025 as a new, locally owned facility with climate-controlled and drive-up units, vehicle parking, and U-Haul rentals on site. You can call us at (470) 703-0223, stop by 3625 McEver Rd, or reserve online. Give your guests their room back this year.

Frequently asked questions

What size storage unit do I need to clear out a guest bedroom? A 5x10 is enough for most spare rooms: boxes, a dresser, a nightstand, and a few smaller pieces. If you're moving a full bedroom set with a queen or king bed plus boxes, step up to a 10x10. If the garage or a bonus room is part of the project too, a 10x15 gives you room to work. Our show unit has the common sizes marked on the floor so you can see the difference in person.

Do I need climate control to store a mattress or wood furniture in Oakwood? It's the safer choice. North Georgia stays above the humidity level where mold and mildew grow for most of the year, and wood, fabric, and mattresses absorb that moisture. A climate-controlled unit protects them through both the damp summer and the cold snaps of winter. Items like plastic bins, metal bed frames, and exercise equipment do fine in a drive-up unit.

Can I get into my storage unit in the evening during the holidays? Yes. The gate is open from 5am to midnight every day, including weekends and holidays, and your personal code works any time in that window. The gate stays closed from midnight to 5am. Cameras record around the clock.

Is there a long-term contract if I only need storage through the holidays? No. All rentals at Hometown Storage are month to month. You can rent for the holiday season and move out in January, or keep the unit longer if it turns out to be handy. There's no penalty for staying a short time.

Do I have to buy a lock? No. Every new rental comes with a free disc lock, and you keep the keys. Disc locks have a short, shielded shackle that's hard to cut, which is why they're the standard for storage doors.

Can I rent a truck to move furniture to my unit? Yes. Hometown Storage is an authorized U-Haul dealer, so you can rent a truck or trailer at our office, move your furniture, and return the truck to the same place. Reserve ahead during busy weekends so the size you want is ready.