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Japan Trunk Room

The emergency exit sign at the entrance to the trunk room. Beware of shady characters!
The emergency exit sign at the entrance to the trunk room. Beware of shady characters!

In the basement of my mansion, along with the garbage room, the bicycle sheds and the car parks, there are also 2 floors of trunk rooms. The storage space here is for residents who can’t fit everything inside their rooms upstairs. The floor space inside the trunk rooms is quite limited, but its great to have somewhere to throw the empty suitcases, seasonal clothing etc.

I felt like I was in a seen from 'Men in Black' or 'The Matrix' when I was walking down this corridor. Doors upon doors with little space between them
I felt like I was in a seen from 'Men in Black' or 'The Matrix' when I was walking down this corridor. Doors upon doors with little space between them
... and then I came upon my door
... and then I came upon my door
Inside the space is pretty tight, but it does the job alright. Hope nobody has any bodies stored down here
Inside the space is pretty tight, but it does the job alright. Hope nobody has any bodies stored down here

The whole place is air conditioned and each room has its own individual light. It’s actually very well organised for a basement facility in a mansion.

Entry way to trunk room number 9 and 10
Entry way to trunk room number 9 and 10

Do you have trunk rooms in your part of the world? Are they bigger than this?

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11 comments

T.Aaron November 14, 2009 at 12:17 pm

That’s pretty neat. Is that common to all mansions in Japan, or just certain ones?

I could use a room like that, I’m moving into an apartment soon. (though, I’m gonna try and use the bedroom for storage. If I have some overflow, I suppose I could just store it in the storage areas down the street.)

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shibuya246 November 14, 2009 at 12:27 pm

Most larger buildings may have a trunk room in the basement. Some smaller ones might offer you a tiny space near your front door (on the outside of your room). Typically it is newer buildings that are doing this. Also, my apartment building is a mix of owners and renters, so i think they made it a little bit better to attract more owners with cash. I am just a renter 😉

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whipcracker November 14, 2009 at 12:50 pm

RT @Shibuya246: Japan Trunk Room, Japan Buildings | Shibuya246 http://bt.io/ALFh
Growing up in Wi, I never lived in an apartment building, but I’ve heard they do have some type of storage area. I’ve mostly lived in houses up there and all of them have basements where you can use it for storage, also that is where people do their laundry. And some have turned theres into a rec room or another bedroom if needed. Here in Tx the soil is too sandy to support basements, also the ground shifts to much, which would be unsafe. But he apt. buildings, well most of them have a storage area.

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shibuya246 November 14, 2009 at 8:22 pm

Dont like the idea of the soil sifting. then again i am living in Tokyo 🙂

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salvidali November 14, 2009 at 2:27 pm

about the “trunk rooms” – in USA most extra stuff that won’t fit in the mansion has to be stored in storage places away from living space – they have large and small storage spaces and even portable “trunk rooms” – put extra stuff in and a truck will haul it to a “trunk room” storage place.

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Chlose November 14, 2009 at 5:29 pm

Here in Hawaii, you have public storage… No such thing as these trunk rooms as far as i know, but it would be neat to have some.

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shibuya246 November 14, 2009 at 8:21 pm

Public storage facilities accessible by car became quite popular in Japan a few years back as well. Many people were investing in them at the same time small parking car lots were popular. Still these small trunk rooms help out with just a small bit of overflow and they are in the same building.

I wonder if I could rent my space out and get some rent money back? 🙂

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CuteCreatures November 14, 2009 at 8:13 pm

People here in the UK store things in their garage or loft. Things can get damaged when stored in the garage though due to damp. I had no idea there were basement trunk rooms in Japanese buildings – quite an insight!

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shibuya246 November 14, 2009 at 8:19 pm

The ventilation and damp control looked to be quite sophisticated. You could virtually live down there if you dont mind the small space 😉

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Neksus November 14, 2009 at 8:57 pm

The space in the basement is bare concrete floor, bare concrete walls… everything is bare.
When it rains too much water floods, so I had to put metal book shelves (hon dana – that’s because jlpt is coming close :)) 20cms high from the floor. The door is just tin shaped to look like one. This is how they built it, not how I wanted it.
In my previous house we had a room under the roof, was good, well lit, had a window, and had great view on the Alps…

To have such a clean and well kept space is a open eyes daydream to me……

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Kris Eskra April 14, 2010 at 4:24 am

I wouldn’t say trunk rooms are common in Japan, but they are gaining popularity. The average (even new higher end) mansion rarely has them. I’ve hardly ever come across them in the 4 times i’ve apartment hunted. This last time though I had trunk room as a requirement (or an apartment that had abnormally large storage) and it was pretty hard to find buildings with them. The building I moved into does have them, however there is only 35 for 209 rooms and you have to pay rent on it if you want it. But it’s an all renter highrise so probably not worth one for every room. I am renting one though, worth every penny (errr yen) because Im a shopaholic who hates clutter. Mine is the same size as yours, though some of the ones i’ve comr across have been half that size.

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