Now that you’ve decided to move and found an ideal home to move to, all there is to do is to move all of your stuff to the new location. However, that might just be the most stressful and complicated part of the whole move, especially with the pandemic still raging all around us.
But fear not, we consulted moving and packing experts at Move Central of San Diego to give us some tips and tricks how to best pack for a move with as little stress as possible. With their decades-long experience, we’re confident they have some nuggets of wisdom to share.
Finding a Moving Company
Moving all of your things on your own can probably save you some money, but when you account for renting a moving truck, the fuel and the additional stress, you will quickly see that it is simply not worth it.
Finding a suitable moving company can be rather simple – go online and see which moving companies have plenty of positive reviews. Call them up and arrange the move. A good moving company will ask you questions about the amount of things, the distance and other relevant factors and then recommend the best options.
It is advisable to do this a few weeks ahead of the move because the good moving companies tend to be fairly busy, and won’t take short-notice requests, especially in the spring and summer.
Making a Plan
Do you know what you’re bringing with you to the new place? That would be an excellent place to start planning your move and packing. If there are things you won’t be bringing with you, make sure to have a plan for them (yard sale, donations, or even throwing them out).
The items you do plan to bring with you will need to be further organized. The best way to do with is by use frequency. There are certain things you will likely want to bring with you to your new home, but don’t use all that often, or you aren’t using in this season (think winter clothes, skis, etc.)
Those items can be packed right now, as you won’t really need them. Other items, which you use daily will likely have to wait until the last day to be packed, but there certainly are some items that fall in between (as for me, I packed my printer several days ahead of the move).
The last thing you want to pack is personal hygiene items and the contents of your fridge/freezer if you’re bringing those items with you.
Organizing Your Boxes
In order to make your unpacking easier, you should probably group your things according to the room where they will go (or the person who will be using it and hopefully unpacking it). That way, you avoid the awkward rummaging through the boxes, looking for everyday items once you get to your new home.
Some people use color coding or elaborate explanations on the boxes, which is a great way to ensure everything is in its place; if you have the time and the knack. However, simple instructions such as ‘kitchenware: fragile’ or ‘mom: clothes’ should be enough for the movers to know how to handle different boxes.
Keeping Your Items Secure
Now that you’ve set up the packing plan, you really ought to think about the security of your items during transportation. Most people think packing peanuts are enough to protect just about anything, but that might not be enough for really sensitive items like dishes or electronics.
Bubble wrap is widely available to purchase and provides an extra layer of security, especially for your sensitive electronics.
Moving to a new home can be quite a stressful process, but packing doesn’t have to be if you start on time and follow a somewhat organized plan.
