Where Do People Store Large Christmas Yard Decorations?

It's the second week of January. The Christmas tree, ornaments, and stockings are all packed away neatly in the garage, but your front lawn is still looking merry and bright. Those oversized Christmas wreaths and Santa's sleigh with all nine reindeer seemed like a good buy at the time, but now you’re wondering where you’re supposed to store those large Christmas yard decorations. 

Most people squeeze them into the garage, attic, shed, or basement, but each spot comes with a catch. Inflatables are the easy part, since they fold down into a bin. The hard part is the rigid stuff: the sleigh, the rooftop reindeer, the giant ornaments, and the 12-foot tree that comes apart in sections but still eats up a closet's worth of space.

If you’re not willing to skimp on holiday cheer, then grab some hot cocoa and check out our storage tips for your oversized Christmas outdoor decorations. 

Key Takeaways

• Most people store large Christmas yard decorations in the garage, attic, shed, or basement, but rigid pieces rarely fit well in any of them.
• Full-size sleighs, rooftop reindeer, oversized ornaments, and 12-foot trees cause more storage headaches than inflatables, which fold down small.
• Clean, dry, and break down every piece before it goes into storage, and keep the hardware bagged and labeled.
• A climate-controlled storage unit protects plastic, paint, and wiring from heat, cold, and humidity.
• Size your storage space around your biggest piece, not the number of bins.

Looking for help with ornaments and indoor décor? Our Christmas storage ideas guide covers the rest of the holiday bins.

Already know your garage can't take another season? Find a self-storage facility near you.

Where Do Most People Store Large Christmas Yard Decorations?

Most people store large Christmas yard decorations in whatever space they already have: the garage, the attic, a backyard shed, or the basement. Those spots work fine for a few bins of lights. They get tricky once you add a sleigh the size of a loveseat or a team of reindeer with full antlers.

The Garage

The garage is the most popular choice, and for good reason. It's close to the yard, it has a wide door, and nothing has to go up a ladder. The trouble is that a full-size sleigh can claim an entire parking spot for 11 months. Add a 12-foot tree and a reindeer team, and the car ends up in the driveway. Many garages also aren't insulated, so decorations ride out summer heat and winter cold right next to the lawn mower.

The Attic

Attics look like free real estate until you try to fit a reindeer through a pull-down hatch. Most rigid yard pieces simply won't make the trip. The ones that do face the hottest spot in the house all summer, which is rough on painted plastic, glue, and wiring. And carrying sleigh panels up a ladder isn't anyone's idea of a fun Saturday.

The Shed

A shed keeps decorations out of the house, which is a plus. Standard shed doors are often too narrow for a sleigh or a tall figure, though, so you end up taking pieces apart just to get them inside. Sheds also tend to collect moisture and the occasional mouse. Neither one is kind to fabric, cords, or cardboard boxes.

The Basement

Basements offer plenty of floor space, but getting there is the problem. Narrow stairwells and tight turns make oversized ornaments and sleigh sections hard to carry down without scuffs. Humidity is the other concern, especially in older homes, since damp air can lead to mildew on fabric and rust on metal frames.

Leaving Them Up Until Next Year

Some people skip the storage question and leave the reindeer on the roof until next December. It's tempting. Still, months of sun can fade paint and wear down plastic, and wind and snow add up over time. Plenty of HOAs and neighbors also have opinions about a sleigh in July. Taking everything down protects your investment and keeps the neighborhood peace.

What to Do Before You Pack Anything

Before any decoration goes into storage, clean it, dry it, and take it apart as far as it will go. A few minutes of prep in January saves you a frustrating afternoon next November. Run through this quick checklist:

• Wipe off dirt, salt, and debris, then let every piece dry completely so moisture doesn't get trapped under a cover or inside a box.
• Break down anything that comes apart. Put screws, stakes, and brackets in a zip-top bag and tape it to the piece it belongs to.
• Snap a few photos of the assembled display so setup goes faster next year.
• Test lights and motors now, while you still remember which strand went out on Christmas Eve.
• Take batteries out of anything battery-powered so they don't leak during the off-season.

A few supplies make the job easier. Moving blankets, bubble wrap, and sturdy bins do most of the work. Storage Star sells packing and moving supplies like boxes, tape, and bubble wrap, and our guide to packing seasonal items for storage has more ideas.

How to Store Outdoor Christmas Decorations, Piece by Piece

The best way to store outdoor Christmas decorations depends on the piece. Rigid figures need padding and floor clearance, lighted pieces need tangle-free coiling, and anything round or fluffy needs room so it doesn't get crushed. Here's how to handle the big ones.

Full-Size Santa's Sleigh

A full-size sleigh stores best when you break it down if it's designed to come apart, cover it with something breathable, and keep it off bare concrete. It's usually the biggest piece in the display, so it decides how much space you need.

Start by removing any detachable runners, seats, or light strands. Wrap the corners and decorative trim in moving blankets or bubble wrap, since those are the spots that chip first. Then cover the whole sleigh with a breathable fabric cover or an old sheet instead of a plastic tarp, which can trap condensation underneath.

Set the sleigh on a pallet or a couple of 2x4s rather than directly on the floor. That small gap lets air move and keeps the base away from moisture on concrete. If your sleigh doesn't come apart, measure its height, width, and length before you pick a storage spot. Some Storage Star locations offer drive-up storage, so you can back up to the door instead of carrying a sleigh down a hallway.

Rooftop Reindeer Displays

Rooftop reindeer displays store best with the mounting hardware removed, the antlers and legs protected, and the figures kept upright or nested together. Antlers and thin legs are the most fragile parts, so that's where most of your packing effort should go.

Unclip harnesses, lights, and roof brackets, then bag and label them by reindeer. (Dasher's bracket goes in Dasher's bag. Trust us on this one.) Wrap antlers in bubble wrap and tape the wrap to itself, not to the paint.

Wire-frame reindeer are lighter and can often nest inside each other. Molded reindeer should stand side by side with a blanket between them so they don't rub. Avoid setting anything on top of a reindeer, even a light box, since steady pressure over a full year can bend a leg or crack an ear.

Oversized Outdoor Christmas Ornaments

Oversized outdoor Christmas ornaments should be stored one at a time, wrapped in padding, with nothing stacked on top. They're light for their size, which makes it easy to forget they dent and crack under weight.

Wrap each ornament in bubble wrap or a soft blanket, then pack it in its own box or a deep bin with crumpled paper filling the gaps. Keep the hanging caps and hooks in a labeled bag, since those small pieces tend to vanish. Store ornament bins on a top shelf or at the very top of a stack.

Giant Christmas Lights

Giant Christmas lights, like jumbo bulb strands and oversized C9-style lights, store best wound loosely around a reel or a sturdy piece of cardboard with the bulbs protected. Big bulbs knock into each other when they're tossed in a bin, which is how you end up with cracked covers and dead sockets.

Wrap each strand in a loose loop, working from one end to the other so it unwinds cleanly next year. If the bulbs come out, store them separately in a divided ornament box or an egg-crate style organizer. Label each reel with its length and where it hung, like "roofline" or "porch railing," so setup becomes a matching game instead of a guessing game.

Large Outdoor Christmas Wreaths

Large outdoor Christmas wreaths keep their shape best in a wreath bag or box sized to their diameter, or hung on a wall hook. Flattening is the main risk, so keep heavy items far away from them.

Measure across the widest point, including the bow, before you buy a storage bag. A wall hook inside a garage or storage unit works well too, since it keeps the wreath off the floor and out of the stack. For pre-lit wreaths, take out the batteries and coil any loose light strands so they don't tangle with the greenery.

Christmas Lighted Garlands

Christmas lighted garlands store best coiled loosely around a tube or hanger, then bagged and labeled. Tight wrapping crushes the greenery and bends the wires inside the light strand.

Wrap each garland around a large cardboard tube, a pool noodle, or a sturdy hanger, keeping the coils loose. Slide it into a storage bag or a long, flat bin, and keep the plug end on the outside so you can test it next year without unwrapping the whole thing. A quick label with the length and location, like "front door" or "mantel," saves time when December comes back around.

12-Foot Christmas Trees

The easiest way to store a 12-foot artificial Christmas tree is to take it apart by section and pack it in a storage bag made for its height. A tree that size breaks down into several sections, and each one is long, heavy, and awkward to carry.

Fold the branches down toward the pole as you pack so they lie flat and don't bend out of shape. Tree bags are labeled by tree height, so look for one made for a 12-foot tree instead of squeezing it into a smaller bag. If the tree is pre-lit, check each section for dead bulbs first. Fixing a strand in January beats fixing it with family on the way.

Store the sections lying flat or standing upright against a wall, with nothing heavy leaning on them. Big trees often come with a bulky stand, so bag that separately and label it with the tree.

Why a Storage Unit Works for Oversized Christmas Decorations

A storage unit gives oversized Christmas decorations a dedicated home outside your house, so the garage, attic, and basement go back to everyday use. For rigid pieces that don't fit through doors or hatches, it's often the simplest fix. Here's what that looks like at Storage Star:

• Climate control: Climate-controlled units are typically kept between 55 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit, which helps protect painted plastic, wiring, and fabric from extreme heat and cold.
• Easier loading: Some locations offer drive-up units, so you can unload a sleigh straight from your truck.
• Flexible terms: Month-to-month rentals let you keep a unit for as long as you need it.
• Security: Fully gated facilities, 24/7 video surveillance, and onsite staff keep watch while your decorations wait for December.
• Room for more: Store Halloween props, patio furniture, and other seasonal gear in the same unit and rotate them through the year. (Our guide to storing large Halloween yard decorations covers the October crowd.)

Access hours vary by location, so check your local facility's page for details. If your display includes electronics or delicate finishes, a climate-controlled storage unit is worth a look.

What Size Storage Unit Do You Need for Christmas Yard Decorations?

The right storage unit size depends on your biggest piece, not how many bins you have. Use these ranges as a starting point, then compare them against your own measurements and the storage unit size guide.

• 25 sq ft: A few totes of lights, garlands, and ornaments, plus a large wreath or two. The size guide lists this size for small seasonal items.
• 75 sq ft: A 12-foot tree plus bins, or a small set of reindeer. The size guide calls out seasonal décor at this size.
• 100 sq ft: A full-size sleigh with room left over for bins and wreaths.
• 150 to 200 sq ft: A full yard display, including the sleigh, a reindeer team, the tree, and oversized ornaments, plus other seasonal gear like patio furniture.

Not sure where you land? Measure your sleigh and tree, then use our interactive storage unit tool, or reach out to your local facility with any questions before you rent.

Give Santa's Sleigh a Proper Off-Season Parking Spot

Your yard display took time, money, and a few scraped knuckles to put together. A clean, secure spot for the off-season means it comes back next December looking the way it did this year, and your garage gets to be a garage again. Ready to make room?

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