Welcome back to the moving and packing ecourse from GoMovers.com. This course is full of information that will help you and your family make a smooth move, but you can get even more tips, tricks, hints and advice in our ebook, available at GoMovers.com.
Now, on with the course.
Packing is probably the most stressful part of moving, and it certainly is the most time-consuming part. The longer you've lived in the same place (and the more family members you have) the more "stuff" you will have accumulated. Of course not all of it is worth keeping, but it's difficult to decide what you can part with.
This is a very personal and sometimes emotional process. It's hard to let go of things that hold memories, but it may be a necessity to pare down if you are moving to a smaller house. It is certainly a must if you are moving overseas, because of the expense of moving and the need to replace electronics (we'll talk all about moving overseas in another lesson).
Once you get through the issues of what to keep and what to toss, donate or sell, there's the matter of how to pack your precious items. Most people do their own packing for all but the heaviest items because it is cheaper. That's fine, but make sure you use good-quality boxes or the mover may reject your boxes and repack using their own boxes, which will cost you more money.
Also, make sure you label fragile boxes and properly protect the things inside. Don't pack hazardous materials such as paint in a box, and don't put any firearms you may have in a box.
Here are some other good packing tips based on our years of experience working with moving companies all across the country:
Have all supplies, such as quality packing tape, bubble wrap, packing paper and markers, lined up next to your boxes when packing.
Avoid printed newspaper for wrapping items. Use blank paper instead. The ink from the printed newspaper rubs off easily and can be very difficult to remove from certain items, such as china. Crumpled printed newspapers can be used for filling voids in boxes, as long as the print doesn't come in direct contact with anything you don't want to have to clean later.
Purchase strong tape. Use the plastic and strapping tape that movers use. A good quality packing tape dispenser makes the job of taping up your moving boxes much simpler and faster.
Make sure tops and sides of boxes do not bulge or sag. Under-packed boxes may collapse and over-packed boxes may rupture.
Bubble wrap your fragile items. Small bubble is recommended for smaller, lighter weight items. Large bubble (more air in bubbles) is recommended for larger, heavier weight items. For added protection, line your box with bubble before packing.
Pack one room at a time, marking each box with a description of its contents and destination room(i.e. kitchen, master bath). Mark each box with the name of the room in which it will be placed and write the box's important contents on the outside.
That's all for now. Next time we'll talk about what you need to know about choosing a time to move. Stay tuned!
