Pro Tips
The secret to moving
The secret to moving is to BOX AND BAG EVERYTHING.
Preparation is the key here.
Everyone wants the move to go as efficiently as possible so customers will want to be boxed-up, bagged-up and ready to go before the movers arrive on moving day.
In general, it goes like this:
Buy bags and boxes
'Make' the boxes
Fill the boxes
Label the boxes
- Buy bags and boxes -
Plan on needing approximately 10 boxes per room. In general, medium size boxes should be the most common size for your move. Use small boxes for any items that are heavy in numbers, for example: books, canned goods, tubs of liquid from under the kitchen sink or from the laundry room, etc etc.
A box of 40-50 gallon ‘hefty’ bags with drawstrings work well.
And tape. And packing paper. And markers.
- Make the boxes -
Make several boxes at once before you begin filling them. For example, create 5 or 15 boxes for a room and then pack the room.
A box needs three strips of tape on the bottom. First, close all the flaps on the bottom. Second, put a long strip of tape along the center where the flaps meet. Lastly, put a strip of tape along each side of that first strip. The end result is one wide strip of tape along the middle where the flaps meet.
- Fill the BAGS AND boxes -
Use giant hefty bags for anything soft, for example: pillows, blankets, comforters, towels, clothes, etc etc…
You can use hefty bags for clothes in closets that are on hangers. Squeeze together about 5 to 15 hangers, then open up the hefty bag and pull it up from the bottom. Use the straps to tie around the hooks at the top. In some situations, you may want to drape the hefty bag over the hangers and put a hole in the center of the bottom of the bag
Fill boxes as much as possible (but not overflowing) - this makes them rigid, therefore better and safer for moving and stacking.
Don't worry about putting odd shaped items like brooms or guitars in boxes.
By far, the safest place for a TV during a move is in a TV moving box.
We don't want items inside boxes to shift around during the move. Therefore, implement the ‘wedge technique’. Arrange things neatly and orderly but wedged together inside the box against the walls so items won't move around during transport.
Kitchen boxes contain the most fragile items, and those items can get heavy in numbers. The kitchen boxes are usually small or medium sized. Packing-paper is a very efficient way of protecting plates, bowls, glassware, etc etc. Wrap each item with one or many sheets of packing paper. The excess paper around the item after wrapping it works as cushion inside the box. Stack plates vertically in the box.
Protect from spillage by putting liquid-y items such as bathroom products, cooking oils, cleaning supplies, etc etc in plastic grocery bags or Ziploc bags.
In general, you can leave clothes inside dresser drawers. Clothes don't make a dresser heavy. Please remove any jewelry or loose items from dresser drawers. Please empty any drawers full of paper or books.
- Label those boxes -
Scratch out any pre-existing labels
Label each box with room name and a summary of items.
You can also use color tape or markers for this.
- Misc -
Disconnect any propane tanks from gas grills and empty any charcoal grills of ashes.
Movers are not allowed to transport flammable objects like gas or fuel.
Please take all valuables separately with you. Variables include jewelry, guns, small expensive things, etc etc
