10 Packing Tips for Residential Moving
If you’re getting ready for a residential relocation, it’s more than likely that you’re dreading a commonly disliked task: packing.
How to Pack for a Move
Although packing is an essential part of every move, it can, unfortunately, feel like a difficult task to tackle. After all, packing an entire home can be extremely time-consuming and overwhelming.
However, it doesn’t need to be a total nightmare. With the right know-how, you can transform your packing experience to be simple and stress-free. Interested in finding out how? Keep reading for our top 10 packing tips!
- Create a Game Plan
The first step of packing should always be to create a plan. Before you place a single item into a box, you should start by forming a plan of attack.
Choose the order in which you will pack each room. Typically, it’s best to start with the areas of your house that get the least amount of use or have the smallest number of essential items.
It’s always best to complete packing one room before moving to the next, but in case you have essentials that need to wait until the end, be sure to pack as much as you can before you move along to the next room in your plan. Remember to keep items from different rooms in separate boxes as you pack your belongings.
- Declutter Your Space
Another preliminary step before you start packing up is to declutter your space. A thorough declutter involves sorting through your belongings and eliminating items you no longer want or need in your home.
Items that have been long since forgotten or no longer get the use they once did are the perfect candidates for being decluttered. Having trouble deciding which belongings to get rid of? Try employing the 90-90 rule. If you haven’t used an item in 90 days and don’t plan on using it in the next 90 days, it’s probably time to declutter.
What should you do with your decluttered belongings? That’s up to your discretion. Divide your items into different categories — donate, sell, and throw away.
If your belongings are still in good condition, donating or selling will be the least wasteful option. Local thrift stores will happily accept these donations, or if you opt to sell, a garage sale is a great way to offload a lot of items at once.
- Get Plenty of Boxes (and Other Supplies)
Of course, when it comes to packing, boxes are a necessity. Be sure to obtain a sufficient amount of sturdy cardboard boxes. Many grocery stores will gladly give their extra boxes to you upon request, which offers an excellent opportunity to get supplies for free.
When possible, try to acquire large, consistently sized boxes for the bulk of your belongings, and then get a few other sizes for smaller items. This will allow you to thoroughly organize your items.
Aside from boxes, you will need other important materials to carefully pack your items. Be sure to acquire packing tape, bubble wrap, packing paper, plastic bags, permanent markers, and moving blankets for the best results during your relocation. These supplies will help you to stay organized and properly protect your items.
- Play Packing Tetris
As you fill your boxes, try to approach the process like a game of Tetris. You will want to minimize movement in transit as much as possible, so arranging your items carefully will yield the best results.
Arrange your belongings to fit snugly, essentially reinforcing each other within the box. The more you’re able to fill the empty space within your boxes, the better your chances are of avoiding any damage during transportation. Plus, making full use of your boxes will save space.
- Use Soft Items for Reinforcement
While you want your items to fully fill the box, you also want to avoid making your box too heavy. If your box is becoming too heavy but you still have room left, fill the empty space with bubble wrap or packing paper.
Alternatively, you can opt to use blankets or towels — either option can fill the space while still being light, which accomplishes the task of supporting your belongings while only adding minimal weight.
Using soft materials allows you to pack items you would need to pack anyway while also giving them the purpose of offering protection.
- Use Suitcases for Convenience
Suitcases can be a great option for packing your belongings carefully and conveniently. Your luggage, especially the options with wheels, are the perfect way to safely transport plenty of items in your home.
You can use them for everything from clothes and shoes to books to kitchen items. Be sure to use bubble wrap and other forms of padding where necessary, just as you would in your boxes.
Wheeled suitcases are perfect for heavy items, since they eliminate the amount of heavy lifting that needs to get done.
- Organize and Label
As you pack your home, one of the most important things to do is stay organized. How can you accomplish this goal? Be sure to label your boxes consistently.
This may seem like a simple step, but being thorough in labeling can actually make a world of difference. Write labels in big, bold letters on more than one side of each box, and include as much detail as possible.
It may take some extra time to include lots of detail, but it will save time in the long run as you will be able to easily find your items when you unpack in your new home.
- Pack Smarter with Clothing
When packing your clothing, be sure to work smarter, not harder. There are plenty of ways to prioritize efficiency and make the most of your space as you transport your clothing to your new home.
One option is to transport clothes from your closet while still on the hangers. This can be done by using trash bags to hold the clothes together. Alternatively, you can get special wardrobe boxes that have a pole inside to hang your clothes on.
For clothes in drawers, rather than taking all the clothes out, simply remove the drawers and wrap them in plastic wrap. This saves plenty of time so you don’t need to pack and unpack these clothes.
- Take Care with Kitchen Items
The kitchen usually has the largest volume of fragile items in the entire house. Your dishes and glasses, among countless other kitchen items, are among the riskiest to move, as they could sustain damage in transit.
Be sure to use the proper amount of protective materials to decrease the chances of damage. For glasses, take care to use boxes with cardboard dividers, as well as bubble wrap.
- Utilize Original Boxes
Whenever possible, use any original boxes you still have. For electronics, these are the most effective way to pack, as these boxes are specifically made for the items in question, and they provide the most protection and support.
If you’ve been holding onto these boxes, you’re in luck because they’ll be extremely handy during your relocation!
Expert Packing in 10 Simple Steps!
With these 10 steps, packing doesn’t need to feel like a challenge. Instead, it can be a simple, organized process.
Looking to work with a dependable moving company to make your relocation even easier? Trust Oneida Movers with your upcoming move. For over 20 years, we have provided the highest quality moving services to our valued customers.
Request a free quote online, and discover our solutions at affordable prices!
