Storing clothes
Researched and written by Ashley Davis · Reviewed by Emily Johnson · Last reviewed August 2026
Clothing in storage is ruined by three things: dirt left in the fibres, damp, and cardboard. Wash and fully dry everything before it goes in, because body oils and food traces are what draw moths and what oxidise into stains that will not lift later. Store folded garments in rigid sealed bins rather than boxes, hang the pieces that must keep their shape in wardrobe boxes, and keep the whole lot off the concrete.
Do clothes need washing before storage?
Yes, including anything worn once. Perspiration, body oils and food residue are invisible on the hanger and are exactly what clothes moths and carpet beetles feed on, and the same traces oxidise over months into yellow marks that no longer wash out. Dry-clean what needs it, but remove the plastic film before storing, since it traps solvent vapour and moisture against the fabric.
What should clothes be stored in?
Rigid plastic bins with a sealing lid, for anything folded. Cardboard absorbs moisture from the air, transfers acid into fabric over time, and is both food and nesting material for pests. Vacuum bags save space and are acceptable for synthetics and cottons over a short stay, but they crush the loft out of wool, down and anything tailored, so those go in loosely packed.
What should be hung rather than folded?
Anything whose shape is built in: suits, tailored coats, structured dresses and anything in a heavy woven fabric that creases permanently. A wardrobe box takes these on the rail with a cover over the top. What should not hang is knitwear, which stretches out of shape under its own weight over months and never recovers. The wardrobe box page covers the box itself.
How do you keep moths out of stored clothing?
A clean garment in a sealed rigid container is the protection, and everything else is secondary. Cedar and lavender repel weakly and do not kill larvae already in the fibres, which is why washing first matters more than any sachet. Mothballs work but leave an odour in fabric that lasts for months, so if they are used at all they go in a sealed bin that will be aired thoroughly afterwards.