Museums, Product News, Science & Technology Museum, Natural History, History Museum

Storage for Oversized Museum Collections

Saving space and protecting artifacts and specimens, no matter the size.

April 30th, 2020 - 2 min read

Sometimes a museum’s mission to protect and preserve artifacts, artwork, or natural history specimens results in the need to store a variety of exceptionally large or heavy objects. These objects can be cumbersome and difficult to store.

Fortunately, your local Spacesaver museum planning consultant can design compact mobile storage systems to optimize space and keep large objects organized and protected, just as they would for a typical museum collection. Spacesaver’s mobile systems eliminate empty aisles to promote the efficient use of space while also maintaining the highest standards of organization, accessibility, and preservation.

Museum Q&A

How should we store oversized objects in our museum collection?

In the past, some people simply suggested storing large museum objects like furniture or farm implements on the floor. Today most experts agree you should never store any museum object directly on the floor, due to the risk of damage from flooding or water seepage, mildew, pests, or other hazards. Shelving or compact storage systems get objects up off the floor and away from potential damage. When space is a concern, heavy-duty compact storage systems can be used to compactly store even the largest museum objects like furniture, natural history specimens, farm implements, and more.

Industrial-strength mobile systems optimize space for even the heaviest museum objects...

Heavy-duty Preservation

The Naval Undersea Museum uses an ActivRAC system to store torpedoes that weigh thousands of pounds. Read the Story.

Moveable Museum Collections

This museum uses Spacesaver’s ActivRAC® Mobilized Storage System and Industrial Cantilever to store horse-drawn buggies, farm implements, and snowmobiles.

Museum Storage Solutions

Collections already have a place in history. Our storage solutions ensure they'll have one in the future.

Museum Storage Solutions

Collections already have a place in history. Our storage solutions ensure they'll have one in the future.

Widespan Museum Shelving

The Field Museum uses RaptorRAC® Widespan Shelving to store large natural history specimens. The shelving is mounted on compact mobile storage systems to save space. Read the Story.

In addition to compact mobile systems, Spacesaver offers a range of other sturdy museum storage solutions, including widespan shelving and custom solutions like the industrial cantilever racking pictured above. As with all our museum offerings, these products are coated in non-off-gassing powder-coat paint and are engineered for safety and ease of access.