No. A Wigwam unit is for storage only. It can hold your tools, materials, instruments and stock, but it can't be where you make, repair, paint, play or rehearse. Clause 22 of our terms says you "will use the Unit solely for the purpose of storage", and it rules out noise or vibration that can be heard or felt outside the unit, and connecting power unless we've authorised it. What you can do there is load and unload, sort your things, pack them for a move, and collect what you need, normally between 6am and 10pm (check your site's page, and confirm your site's hours with us before you plan early or late visits).
Makers, artists, bands, small businesses, anyone booking for someone else and existing customers each have a section below.
What our terms say
Clause 22 opens: "You will use the Unit solely for the purpose of storage and shall not (or allow any other person to):" The parts that matter for a workshop, studio or practice room:
| Clause | Exact wording | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| 22(a) | "use the Unit as offices or living accommodation or as a home, business or mailing address" | The unit can't be run as an office or be your business address |
| 22(b) | "use or do anything at the Facility or in the Unit which may be a nuisance to Us or any other person (including the escape of any substance or odour from or generation of noise or vibration which may be heard or felt outside the Unit)" | No noise, vibration, dust or smells reaching beyond your unit |
| 22(d) | "paint or make alterations to or attach anything to the internal or external surfaces of the Unit" | No fixed benches, pegboards, acoustic panels or soundproofing on the walls |
| 22(e) | "connect or provide any utilities or services to the Unit unless authorised by Us" | Nothing can be connected to power unless we've authorised it, so don't plug in tools, lights, amps or chargers |
| 20(a), 20(b) | You must not store "any Lithium ion batteries exceeding a watt-hour (Wh) rating of 160 Wh unless they are built-in and cannot be removed from the otherwise permitted Goods" or "portable battery chargers, power banks or any similar portable power source" | Power banks and portable chargers can't be stored; nor can removable lithium-ion batteries over 160Wh |
What you can and can't do in the unit
| You can | You can't |
|---|---|
| Store tools, machinery, materials and offcuts | Cut, sand, drill, weld, glue or assemble |
| Store easels, canvases, frames, lights, stands and backdrops | Paint, craft, or set up and shoot photos or video |
| Store drums, amps, guitars, keyboards and PA | Play, practise, rehearse, record or teach |
| Store stock, samples and packaging | Make products, meet customers or run an office |
| Load and unload, sort and stack, and pack your own things for moving | Fix anything to the walls, or connect power unless we've authorised it (22(e)), or use a portable heater (clause 19) |
| Collect what you need for a job, a gig or a fair, and bring it back | Let anyone else do any of the above in your unit |
The storing-or-working test
Our guide to running a business from a storage unit puts it this way: "if it involves tools producing output rather than tools being stored, it has moved from storage use into workshop use." If you're not sure which side something falls on, ask us before you do it. Our building materials guide gives the reason: "dust, offcuts, running machinery and the fire risk that comes with cutting and powering tools are not compatible with a block of sealed units".
Woodwork, furniture restoration and repairs
Your tools, workbench, timber, furniture waiting for work and finished pieces can all be stored, stacked safely and collected when you need them. Sanding, stripping, cutting, gluing and finishing happen elsewhere. Our building materials guide describes a unit as "a secure store you load from, not a place you build in." Wood finishes and white spirit are covered in can I store paint and decorating supplies? Working on a car, motorbike or bike has its own page: can I work on my car or bike in a storage unit?
Art studio, craft room or photo studio
Easels, canvases, frames, finished work, craft materials, lighting stands and backdrops can be stored. Paint, thinners and spray cans can't: clause 18(c) names "paint", "cleaning solvents" and "compressed gases" (see can I store paint?). Clause 18(e) also bars "chemicals, radioactive materials, biological agents, toxic waste, asbestos or other potentially hazardous substances", so ask us before you store glaze materials; our prohibited goods list has the rest. Painting, throwing pots, crafting and photo shoots are work, not storage. Meeting clients or models there isn't allowed either: clause 22(a) rules out using the unit "as offices".
Band practice and rehearsal space
A unit is a good place to keep a drum kit, amps and PA between gigs, but not to play them. A kit being played is exactly the "noise or vibration which may be heard or felt outside the Unit" that 22(b) rules out. Quiet or unplugged practice is still practice: the unit is for storage only (clause 22). How to store instruments well is in can I store musical instruments?
Loading kit in and out for rehearsals elsewhere is fine.
Small businesses: stock, orders and your address
Storing stock, tools, samples and packaging is fine. Making products, meeting customers or running an office there isn't, and 22(a) means the unit can't be your business address: see can I use my storage unit as a business address?
Our guide to storing craft-fair stock puts it simply: "Store, load and collect, yes. Use the unit as a retail space, meeting room or workshop, no."
Our own pages don't agree on whether you can pack online orders in a unit, so ask us before you plan around it, and see can I pack orders in my storage unit?
Booking a unit for someone else
If the unit is in your name, for a teenager's band, a club or a relative, clause 22's "or allow any other person to" makes the rules yours to keep for anyone who uses it.
Already renting with us?
The same rules apply now. If you've been working or practising in your unit, move that part elsewhere. If you've fixed anything to the walls, take it down (22(d)). Using the unit for anything other than storage is a breach of the agreement, and clause 41 says: "In the event of illegal or environmentally harmful activities on Your part or a breach of this Agreement (which, if it can be put right, You have failed to put right within 14 days of a request from Us to do so), We may terminate the Agreement immediately by notice." If you're unsure whether something you do counts, call us on 0800 2545585.
Where to work instead
Keep the kit in the unit and work somewhere built for it:
- a workshop let or small industrial unit: ask the landlord about power, noise and hours;
- a rehearsal studio, which hires out rooms for playing;
- a makerspace or community workshop, where members share tools and bench space;
- a shared artist studio.
Tradespeople usually do their prep at home, on site or in the van, with the unit holding tools and stock between jobs. Our terms don't set out whether a quick task, such as cutting a length off a cable drum or checking a tester, counts as storage, so ask us before you rely on it. They do bar storing "portable battery chargers" (clause 20(b)); ask us whether a mains tool charger counts.
Keeping your kit with us
For a secure place to keep tools, materials, instruments or stock, get a price online or call us on 0800 2545585. To find a site, see our locations.
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