Best Packing and Moving Tips: How to Make Relocating Less Stressful
Do you want to know how to pack and move fast? Are you interested in ways you can make moving easier and less stressful? If that’s the case, some of these moving tips might alter the way you approach moving for the better.
Take some time out to familiarize yourself with these clever moving tricks, hacks and organization ideas that can set the tone for your move.
PREPARING FOR A MOVE
- Create a moving checklist and budget.
First, draft a moving checklist that includes a timeline. Everyone’s timeline will look different depending on how much notice is given before the move. Some people will have two months and others might have two weeks. Next, include a realistic moving budget.
By visually organizing your move, you can keep a handle on events as they unfold. Not sure where to start? Print out our comprehensive moving checklist and put it inside a designated moving binder.
- Weigh the pros and cons of hiring professional movers.
If you don’t have access to willing family and friends or you are moving to another state, it might make sense to hire professional movers. The amount of work they take off your plate during this stressful time might be well worth the added cost.
Hiring professional movers can be a great experience—if you hire the right company. Don’t be afraid to ask questions before signing a contract. This due diligence will give you peace of mind as moving day approaches.
- Send out notices before you’re stressed.
Make a list of who you need to notify when you move. There are a lot of loose ends to tie up before you move to a new area. You should determine when and how you will accomplish these tasks in your moving checklist. When the time comes, either visit offices locally or be prepared to make some phone calls. By making this list in advance and setting the task for yourself in your calendar, you’re less likely to forget anyone.
Moving Packing Tip And Tricks – The Ultimate List
Purchase all Your Moving Supplies Before You Start Packing
Unless you’re hiring a full-service moving company who will do everything for you, you’ll need:
- Various size boxes (don’t forget small boxes – you can’t put everything in big ones!)
- Sturdy packing tape
- Markers
- Rubber bands
- Packing materials such as newspaper, bubble wrap, tissue, or packing peanuts
- Optional: plastic wrap (great for wrapping large dresser drawers shut for transport)
Stock up on Cardboard Boxes with Handles
These are much easier to lift. If you don’t already have pack boxes without handles, it’s easy to make them yourself. See below for a DIY packing tip:
Just draw two rectangles, about four inches long by two inches high, on opposite sides of each box.
Cut out the rectangles with a box cutter, and voila – instant handles.
Place your handles wherever feels most comfortable to you but take care not to cut too close to the top of the box, as that will risk tearing the cardboard when you lift the box.
Get Free Boxes for Packing
- Check out networks like Freecycle or Craigslist for free boxes.
- Social media can be helpful too – if your neighborhood has a Facebook group, start by posting there.
- You can also ask whether extra boxes are available at businesses like grocery stores, offices, liquor stores – their boxes are clean and perfectly sized for packing glassware – or even at your local recycling center.
- Let your friends, neighbors, and others in your community know you’re about to start packing – someone in your circle might be waiting for a chance to dispose of a stash of supplies from their own recent move.
- Check apartment buildings or dorms during the prime moving season, usually summer.
- If convenience is more of a priority than price, you can buy boxes at office supply stores, home stores, retail shipping locations, or online.
Packing Tip: Don’t use boxes that are torn, damp, or otherwise weakened. Check out the seams, where boxes tend to wear out first. Don’t worry about existing labels or writing on the boxes; these can easily be covered with your own labels when you are labeling each box.
Use Moving Boxes
While many people opt to hunt through local grocery and liquor stores for free boxes, that decision has cost a few of them a lot more than they bargained for. Weak cardboard and glue, high moisture levels and damaged corners of scavenged boxes can all lead to box failure. Using actual moving boxes is a much safer and more economical choice in the long run.
Proper moving boxes are sturdy and designed to hold up to the heavy loads and stresses involved in moving your belongings. They are also uniform in size, which helps greatly when loading the van. Having standard small, medium, large and extra-large box sizes allows for easy grouping and a minimum of wasted space.
Pack One Room at a Time
Start in one room of your house and pack everything from that room. In general, it’s best to resist the temptation to mix the contents of your boxes with items from different parts of your home. Even if the items are similar in use, size or weight, unpacking is much easier when everything in any given box belongs in the same destination room. The exception to this rule is putting your towels and old tee shirts to use as padding; see Tip #6 below!
Pack Heavier Items in Smaller Boxes
It may be tempting to put several large or heavy items into your larger boxes. However, as anyone who has ever lifted a large box of books can tell you, smaller is better with heavy items. Things like dishes, books and tools are better packed in small and medium-sized boxes. They are easier to handle and less likely to become damaged.
Put the Heavy Items on the Bottom
Speaking of heavier items, be sure to place them in the bottom of your boxes. This increases the box’s stability by lowering the center of gravity. This tip also protects other items in the box from being crushed.
Create a separate packing checklist for your valuables
Only you can properly understand the real value of your items. Make a list of all your valuables, where they’re located, and if they require any specialized packing. Valuables can be anything from jewelry, paintings, and ornaments, to financial documents, passports, professional files, titles, car keys, and prescriptions.
You should pack valuables like jewelry and special ornaments in their original packaging. However, you can still find the appropriate packaging from specialty stores.
Carry important documents with you to avoid the headache of having to look for them later when you’re unpacking.
Make a special pack for all your medications, which you will always carry with you. Plan the necessary preparations if they require controlled temperatures or any other special conditions.
Label boxes to identify unpacking priority
When you number boxes while making your packing inventory, identify the priority for unpacking them. You could write an “A” on very important boxes that contain items you’ll need in the first couple of days (ones containing your sheets, for example), “B” on boxes you’ll need within the first week (like extra socks) and “C” for ones that don’t need to be unpacked on any schedule. You could also use red, yellow or green stickers to identify priority.
