Storing furniture in a humid climate comes down to three things: put it away completely dry, cover it with something that breathes, and keep air moving around it once it is stacked. In Cairns that matters most from the start of the wet season through to autumn, when the air rarely dries out and mould can take hold on timber, leather and mattresses in a closed space. Here is how we prepare furniture for storage in Far North Queensland, and what to check before you lock the door.
Key takeaways
Mould in stored furniture needs moisture, so the job is to keep moisture out from the start. Clean and dry every piece before it goes into storage, and give anything that has been wet a full day or two to dry out properly. Cover furniture with breathable material such as cotton sheets or moving blankets rather than sealing it in plastic for the whole stay. Lift everything off the floor, leave gaps between items and the walls, and put moisture absorbers in drawers and cartons. In Far North Queensland, check on stored furniture every few weeks through the wet months from October to April.
Why does furniture go mouldy in storage in Cairns?
Mould needs moisture, and Cairns has plenty of it for half the year. Bureau of Meteorology long-term averages for Cairns Aero show mean rainfall of 436.1 mm in February, against 26.9 mm in August, with mean 9am relative humidity of 78 percent from February through April. Around 16 days of rain a month from January to March means the air around a storage unit rarely gets a chance to dry out.
Queensland Health puts it plainly: in northern Queensland, mould can be an issue across the wet season even without floods, and it can be common in buildings. A storage unit is a building nobody opens the windows in. Furniture that goes in carrying a little moisture, from a damp house, a rainy loading day or a fresh wipe-down, gives mould the start it needs. Fabric couches, mattresses, leather and raw timber suffer most, because they soak up moisture and hold onto it.
When is the risk highest for stored furniture in Far North Queensland?
The wet season is the danger window. The Bureau's Get Ready Queensland update of 14 October 2026 notes that October marks the start of the northern wet season, and that Queensland's severe weather season runs from October to April. The tropical cyclone season itself officially runs from 1 November to 30 April.
In our experience, furniture stored during a Cairns winter is easier to keep right. It goes in dry, and the first few months of the stay are the driest of the year. Furniture loaded in a January downpour, then left alone through February and March, is where most of the trouble starts. So plan the storage period with the calendar in mind, because a three-month stay from June is a very different job from a three-month stay from December. If the move itself falls in those months, our guide to moving during cyclone season covers the moving day side of it.
How do you prepare furniture before it goes into storage?
Preparation is most of the job, and it happens at the house, not at the storage unit. Everything going in should be clean, because dust, crumbs and body oils on fabric give mould something to grow on. Everything should also be dry, which in a Cairns summer means more than a quick wipe with a cloth. This is the order we suggest working through in the week before the move:
- Vacuum couches, armchairs and mattresses, including the seams and under the cushions.
- Wipe timber and hard surfaces with a barely damp cloth, then dry them straight away with a clean towel. Do not wash furniture down the day before it goes in.
- Empty, clean and dry every drawer and cupboard, then leave the doors open for a day so the inside airs out.
- Defrost the fridge and freezer and dry them completely, and drain a front loader washer and leave its door open overnight, as covered in our guide to draining a washing machine before a move.
- Clean leather with a product made for it and let it dry fully before it is covered.
Anything that has been wet needs real drying time. WorkSafe Queensland's guidance on managing mould says to clean up wet areas and water damage within 24 to 48 hours. After flooding, Queensland Health advises that porous items that cannot be easily cleaned and have been wet for more than two days, including mattresses and leather goods, should be thrown out. A mattress that got caught in a storm on the way out of an Edge Hill house needs a dry day under a fan before it goes anywhere near a storage unit.
Should you wrap furniture in plastic for storage in a humid climate?
Not for the whole stay. Plastic wrap earns its place on the truck, keeping rain and dust off between a Smithfield driveway and the storage unit. Left on for months, it traps whatever moisture is already in the timber or fabric, and on a warm day that moisture has nowhere to go. That is how a couch comes out of storage spotted with mould on the underside.
For storage, swap the plastic for something that breathes: cotton drop sheets, old bedsheets or moving blankets. Mattresses are the piece people ask about most. A mattress bag keeps it clean in transit, but for a long stay in a humid climate we suggest opening the bag or cutting a few vents in it, and standing the mattress on its side, off the floor, with air on both faces.
Plastic for the truck, cotton for the unit
Plastic wrap and mattress bags protect furniture from rain and dust while it is carried and driven. Once the furniture is in storage, take the plastic off timber, leather and fabric pieces and cover them with cotton sheets or moving blankets, so any trapped moisture can escape instead of sitting against the surface.
How should furniture be stacked inside a storage unit?
Air has to move around everything. A unit packed wall to wall and floor to ceiling has dead pockets where damp air sits, and that is where mould shows up first. This is how we suggest loading a unit in Far North Queensland:
- Lift everything off the concrete on pallets or timber battens, because a slab can hold moisture and stays cooler than the air above it.
- Leave a hand's width between furniture and the walls, and a walkway down the middle so you can get in to check things.
- Stand mattresses and sofa cushions on their sides with space around them, rather than pressed flat against a wall.
- Keep drawers and cupboard doors slightly open, and wedge fridge and freezer doors ajar.
- Put moisture absorbers in drawers, wardrobes and cartons of linen, books or photos.
Cartons matter more than people think. Second-hand boxes that have already sat in a damp garage lose strength and can sag once they are stacked, so use clean, strong cartons for anything going into storage. We sell moving boxes and packing supplies if you need them. Linen and clothing you want to keep fresh for a long stay travel well in lidded plastic tubs with a sachet or two of silica gel inside, packed only once the contents are fully dry.
What should you look for in storage in a humid climate?
Ask before you sign, not after. In Far North Queensland, the questions that matter are about water and air, not just locks. Ask whether the unit has taken water in a storm before, how the roof and door seal, whether there is any ventilation, and whether you can get in to check on your things during the wet season. A unit you cannot visit until April is a unit you cannot fix in February. Where a provider offers climate control, ask what it actually controls: temperature, humidity, or both.
R2G runs storage in Cairns alongside our removals, and we expect customers to ask us exactly the same questions. If you are still weighing up whether you need storage at all, our guide on when storage makes sense during a move walks through the common situations, from a gap between settlement dates to a renovation that runs over time.
How often should you check stored furniture during the wet season?
Through the wet months, we suggest a visit every few weeks, and again after any big rain event or cyclone warning. Open the unit and let it air for a few minutes. Then look where mould starts: the underside of couches, the backs of timber pieces closest to the walls, mattress edges and the inside of drawers. Swap out full moisture absorbers, and check the floor near the door for any sign of water.
Never put an evaporative cooler in a storage space to freshen it up. WorkSafe Queensland's guidance notes that water-based coolers are not suitable in the tropics, and they work by adding moisture to the air, which is the last thing a closed unit in Manunda or Gordonvale needs in February. The same guidance suggests a dehumidifier where a building tends to get damp, and that is worth asking any storage provider about.
What should you do if you find mould on stored furniture?
Deal with it the day you find it. Move the affected piece out into fresh air, away from your other things. The Australian Centre for Disease Control's mould advice says to clean mould-prone surfaces with household detergent or white vinegar diluted four parts vinegar to one part water, to scrub about 50 cm around the visible patch because not all mould is visible, and not to use a dry brush, which can flick spores to other areas. Dry the surface completely afterwards.
Sealed timber and laminate usually clean up well. Mattresses, fabric couches and rugs are harder, and the same advice is to have contaminated rugs, carpets and mattresses professionally cleaned or replaced. For anything more than a small patch, a mould remediation specialist is the right call. Anyone in the household with symptoms should see their doctor, and Queensland Health's 13 HEALTH line (13 43 25 84) gives advice at any time.
“In our experience, the furniture that comes out of storage mouldy is the furniture that went in damp. Give it a dry day at the house before we load it, and most of the problem is gone before it starts.”
, R2G Moving Team
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to store furniture in Cairns during the wet season?
Yes, with the right preparation. Furniture that goes in clean and dry, covered with breathable material, lifted off the floor and spaced away from the walls holds up well through a Cairns wet season. The risk comes from furniture stored damp, sealed in plastic for months, or left unchecked through the heart of the wet season, when Cairns rainfall and humidity peak.
Should you cover stored furniture with plastic or cloth?
Use cloth for storage and plastic only for transport. Plastic wrap keeps rain and dust off on the truck, but left on for weeks in a humid climate it can trap moisture against timber, leather and fabric. Cotton sheets and moving blankets keep dust and scuffs off while letting moisture escape, and that airflow is what keeps mould away.
Do moisture absorbers work in a storage unit?
They help, particularly in drawers, wardrobes and cartons of linen, books and paperwork. In a humid climate they fill quickly, so check and replace them each time you visit the unit. They are not a substitute for putting furniture in dry and keeping air moving around it, but they do take the edge off the moisture in a closed space.
How long can furniture stay in storage in a tropical climate?
There is no fixed limit. Furniture can stay in storage in Far North Queensland for months or longer as long as it went in clean and dry, is covered with breathable material, and is checked regularly through the wet season. The longer the stay, the more those visits matter, particularly from January to April.
Getting your furniture packed and stored dry in Cairns
R2G has been moving Queensland households since 2014, with depots in Cairns City and Archerfield. Our Cairns removalists wrap furniture for the trip and can load your unit the way this guide describes, off the floor and clear of the walls, and our Cairns packing team can pack linen, books and fragile items into clean cartons before they go in. Tell us how long you need storage, and which months it covers, when you get a free quote, and we will plan the job around the weather.
