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09.09.2020

A cubic meter: what does it mean and what can you store in it?

In contrast to a square meter, the cubic meter is a three-dimensional space, i.e. a volume of 1 by 1 by 1 meter. That doesn’t sound like much at first, but on closer inspection it turns out to be a real miracle of space. The mass of different substances is given in kilograms per cubic meter. Reinforced concrete weighs around 2,500 kg per cubic meter, gold even 19,300 kg. A weight that is almost impossible to move. If you had a tub with a volume of one cubic meter, you would have to let in 1,000 liters of water to fill it up. And if you stack A4 paper together to form one cubic meter, you need around 100,000 pieces. But very few of us have almost 20 tons of gold to store. We have summarized in the following article what a cubic meter also offers in terms of storage space.

The volume thing

Specifying volume can be useful in many areas. For example, in architecture, the enclosed volume of a building must be specified. The built-up area alone would say too little about the design of the building. In addition to this, the architect not only has to pay attention to the area during planning, but above all to the development of the room height. After all, we humans move as three-dimensional beings in a three-dimensional space. The apartment rent, on the other hand, is calculated according to square meters, i.e. the floor area of the apartment. This is because we live, work, sleep, eat and spend a large part of our time in this area. However, that does not exclude us from being able to use the room height and thus the volume of our apartment for sophisticated storage systems.

In chemistry, the volume of substances plays a crucial role. The change in volume provides information about the state of a substance. With water, for example, the volume depends on the state of aggregation, depending on whether it is currently liquid, solid or gaseous. The expansion of gases, i.e. the attempt to occupy a larger volume, can put pressure on containers and even lead to explosions if there is a sudden increase.

Transport companies charge in cubic meters

If a transport company only billed by square meter, fair pricing would hardly be possible in this industry. Someone who would have to transport flat goods, furniture, etc. would have to pay the same as someone who transports tall things that take up space. Apart from that, it would hardly make sense to leave half the truck empty when its strength lies in its large loading volume. In addition to the area, which varies depending on the vehicle model, the loading space is up to three meters high. This is above the standard room height of apartments. If you are not sure how much of your own furniture will fit in a moving truck, it is best to ask the company directly. They usually already know a lot about the necessary transport volume per square meter of living space and are also well versed in the subject of stacking and interlocking.

The Euro pallet: How it can be used for one cubic meter of storage space

Everyone knows them, the standardized Euro pallet. It measures 1.2 by 0.8 meters, which corresponds to 0.96 square meters. It is 14.4 centimeters high and can withstand an almost unbelievable weight of 4.4 tons. It is therefore extremely stable, made of wood and can be reused hundreds of times. Whether as a private person in the basement to protect the contents of the warehouse or as a company to move heavy material more easily with a forklift, the Euro pallet can be used in many different ways. The transportation industry as we know it today would hardly function without this tool. Thanks to it, cargo can be loaded and unloaded more quickly and easily, and securing is also significantly simplified. What does that have to do with the storage space of one cubic meter? There are standardized stacking frames with a height of 20 centimeters for the Euro pallets. These can be stacked on top of each other and connected to each other. In this way, the pallet becomes a large box that offers storage space for lots of folders, books, odds and ends, magazines, shoes, sports equipment and the like. To get about one cubic meter, you could stack 5 collars on top of each other. Even if heavy objects are stored in this “pallet box”, it can still be easily transported from A to B using a forklift.

This much apartment content fits into one cubic meter

Additional storage space may be necessary for a number of reasons. Often there is no basement or no additional storage room in the apartment that could be used to store things that are not used every day. During a move, it may become necessary to temporarily store your own apartment contents. Then it makes sense to pack everything in moving boxes. These small space miracles can withstand a lot, can also be carried by one person and can be easily labeled. In the end you know what’s in where and you save yourself a long search. But where to put the boxes if the new apartment is not yet available? 8 fully packed moving boxes in standard format fit in one cubic meter of storage space. If you proceed in a planned manner when putting away the boxes and arrange and stack them properly, you not only save boxes and storage space, but also trouble and time when clearing out your new home. It is important that fragile objects such as dishes or containers with liquids are adequately protected against damage. They are either packed separately or wrapped in dampening materials such as newspaper, bubble wrap, etc.

What else fits in a cubic meter?

Of course, not only private individuals need temporary or permanent storage space, companies also have a lot that needs to be stored for a short or long term. Especially in today’s age of digitization, more and more companies are creating space on their shelves and sorting out old files that are already recorded in a digital system. However, there are often obligations to keep certain documents. Or you play it safe and want to have the original documents ready to hand at a later date. A cubic meter of storage space can be a great help, as around 134 folders fit in it. If you don’t have that many folders to store, you still have room for books, advertising material, promotional goods and other documents that may arise in a company. In addition to paperwork, there are often old electronic devices, keyboards, screens and the like that have to be stored temporarily, either until they are disposed of or sold on.

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