Fencing equipment is both wonderful and horrible. It’s wonderful because it allows us to do the thing that we love most – fencing. It’s horrible because it can be a beast to store and keep organized. Storing Fencing Equipment at Home may be tricky!
Keeping your child’s fencing equipment neat, clean, and in working order can be incredibly challenging. Fencing bags can fester with sweaty shoes and half eaten protein bars if not cleaned out regularly. That expensive fencing equipment can become damaged if it’s not properly taken care of at home and on the road.
These seven ideas for storing fencing equipment at home will not only make life as a fencer family easier, it’ll help to ensure that fencing practice is more effective because equipment will be in working order!
1. Golf Bag Caddie
This kind of shelf system has been used by lots of fencers, and it seems as though it was made just for fencing! This one is available on Amazon, but you can find all kinds of variations online. The shelves are perfect for stacking shoes (outside of the fencing bag so that they air out), and there are lots of places to put whatever fencing equipment you might need. The only downside is that you have to lean the bags in there pretty perfectly, and it’s not big enough for most travel bags. But overall for an affordable, reasonably sized organizer for your child’s gear, a golf bag caddie is pretty hard to beat.
2. IKEA Ivar System
If you’re a big IKEA fan, then the Ivar System might just be for your fencing family. The great thing about this one is that you can really make it into anything that you want it to be. Create space for fencing bags, shelves for weapons, add drawers or cabinets to hold gear. Make the whole thing fit just right into the space that you’ve got – they’ve even got corner pieces to fit any awkward spaces. You won’t be the only fencing family that’s got some IKEA for storing equipment, we promise.
3. Gladiator Storage Racks
If you’ve got some free wall space, then Gladiator storage racks might just be the ticket for getting your family organized. These are made for garages, but they’re stylish enough to carry their weight inside the house. They can safely hold foils, epees, and sabres with their coated hooks. Large hooks keep bags off the floor. Masks fit onto the sideways hooks without falling. Attack baskets to hold shoes and shallow hooks for gloves. Of course jackets and pants work beautifully on this system, staying wrinkle free and ready to wear. The best part is that everything looks really cool hanging on the wall!
4. Hall Closet
If you can manage to clear out a closet in a hall or somewhere convenient in your house, then this is a great solution for storing fencing gear. Consider using the gladiator storage racks like we’ve shown above in order to make the most of the space and to keep gear off the floor. A closet allows you to keep gear out of reach of pets and small children (assuming you’ve got some of either). Jackets and masks can stay neat and organized this way, and the top shelf can be used for more delicate things.
One consideration for closets is moisture. Sweaty fencing gear can fester a bit in a closet, so it’s important to make sure that gear is dry when the door is closed. Be sure to put some kind of moisture absorbing something in the closet either way, so that you won’t find yourself with mildew.
5. Spare Room
If you’ve got the space and a family that’s full of very serious fencers, you can even use a small spare room to create your own armory. Many families do this in a utility room, a small spare bedroom, or even just a corner of a garage. You can outfit the space just as a traditional armory, with shelving for equipment and a table that can serve as a place to make repairs to equipment.
This might sound like a big investment to make in your fencing, but it’s one that’s well worth the time and effort if your family is a heavy fencing family that is constantly dealing with equipment. Dedicating a good bit of space to the cause can save you a lot of headaches and can help you to keep calm and organized. Every family we’ve known that’s done this has thought it was well worth the space and effort.
Bonus: Tips for car storage
Gear sometimes ends up staying in the car, sometimes for longer than is really proper. Here are a few tips for making sure that fencing gear in the car stays as well kept as possible.
- Cedar chips – Keep a cloth bag full of cedar chips in your trunk to soak up excess moisture. Change them every couple of months.
- Trunk nets – These sometimes come with your car or van, and you can attach them to the sides of the trunk to hold things in place and keep them from getting lost into the back of the trunk!
- Bungee cords – Again, use these to secure equipment bags in the trunk to keep them from jostling around.
We don’t recommend permanently keeping fencing gear in your car for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that it’s not incredibly secure – we have heard of people losing gear to theft after leaving it in the car! Beyond that, it’s just more likely to get damaged during motion, to get crunched with other stuff, or to rust due to moisture. Gear belongs in the house or in the club!
Storing fencing equipment is one of the most basic and important aspects of fencing. It can be a little overwhelming for fencing families, particularly if you’ve got multiple fencers! Hopefully these storage tips will give you some ideas to help you get your fencing gear stored properly.
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Keep gear out of the car to avoid temperature extremes.