Seven things you should never keep in the attic including Christmas decorations

A house attic can be an ideal place to keep many unwanted or barely used items out of sight out.

Most properties with an accessible loft usually contain boxes filled with holiday decorations, camping equipment, family pictures or even a nostalgic game console or treasured old toy.

If you don't have a garage then an attic is commonly considered to be the most convenient place to keep things safe and avoid downstairs getting too cluttered.

READ MORE:Annual shot of vaccine could be only way to fight Covid, says Pfizer boss

However a cleaning expert has warned that keeping items in the attic may actually cause them to become badly damaged.

Joyce French, at HomeHow, said some items could be ruined forever and may even pose a risk to your safety.

From Christmas decorations to bottles of wine and cardboard boxes to important documents - here are the seven things you should never keep in the loft.

There a number of reasons why you shouldn't keep food or drink in the attic.

Some loft spaces can get so hot in the summer months that canned goods will actually start to cook inside the tin - so if you're planning to stockpile baked beans, look for another place to store them.

The warm temperatures can also spoil expensive wines, while mice and rats thrive in a humid attic environment, and can also contaminate and chew through food items.

Instead, Joyce says perishables and bottles of wine should be stored in a cool, dry place so that they will stay safe for consumption even after a long time in storage.

Many of us keep important documents, such as birth certificates and passports, together in one place.

But the loft is one of the worst places to keep these, as they don't hold up well with temperature fluctuations.

Your important documents will begin to fade, get damp, dusty or stick together as time goes on.

Invest in a storage drawer unit for documents you need and bring them downstairs.

Got an old cassette player or Gameboy gathering dust in the attic?

Everyone has outdated electronics that they just can’t let go of. However, old electronics can still overheat in the loft.

The circuitry can blow and ruin your item forever - so it’s best to keep beloved electronics in a cooler environment downstairs, take them to a recycling centre, or sell them online.

If you’re storing things in cardboard boxes in your attic, it may be time to reconsider.

Pests like mice and bugs are attracted to cardboard and glue, feeding off it and making it their home for breeding.

Cardboard boxes also tend to become damp and disintegrate over time, potentially damaging the precious items inside.

As our Christmas decorations come down and the New Year begins, it is time to store away your holiday décor.

But next year's festive season could be a lot less merry if you keep the decorations in the loft.

Delicate fabrics, items that are painted, and special plastic ornaments may warp in the heat and are prone to damage in a humid environment, like the attic.

Instead, store holiday decorations in a large plastic container box in a cool environment, such as the garage.

Maybe you've inherited antique wooden furniture and it's not quite your style, but you don't want to throw it away.

It may be tempting to store it in the loft, but you shouldn't - as wood can warp in the damp, crack in the heat, and grow mould in humid conditions.

Wood also tends to attract woodworm, which can eat away at wood furniture.

After doing up the house, you may have leftover paint, but oil-based paints can heat up to hazardous, combustible levels if stored in a hot roofspace.

They are highly flammable, so should be kept in a temperature-controlled spot, like a spare cabinet.

The dramatic temperature fluctuations can break down latex paint too, making it unusable.

Download the LancsLive app for free oniPhone hereandAndroid here.

To keep updated, followLancsLive on Facebookand@LiveLancs on Twitter.

Have you got news for us? Contact our newsdesk onlancslive@reachplc.com.

Get all the latest news, sport and what's on stories sent to your inbox daily with the LancsLive newsletter here.