Moving

Moving is one of the biggest and most stressful home duties there is. Though the thought of starting fresh seems like an exciting concept, it comes with its responsibilities. It requires significant time, work, and money to start a new phase of your life. To help you get started, we’ve compiled some tips in this article.

Scheduling Utilities

Once the dates are set, get in touch with your utility companies to arrange for service at your new residence. After a long road, you don’t want to arrive and find that the heat, water, or electricity aren’t working. Once you’ve established who your utility providers are, get in touch with them to let them know when you plan to move in and arrange for service to begin at your new residence one day beforehand. You allow your utility providers plenty of time to install the necessary hardware in your new residence by doing this. You must be sure of your move-in date because many service providers require one before they can assist you on time.

Get Rid Of Unnecessary Things

It can be difficult to fit all of your belongings into boxes, suitcases, and other spaces. Reduce clutter as much as you can to make your life a little bit easier. Get rid of any useless or unneeded items before you pack your boxes. This way, there will be less for you to pack, move, and unpack. You can also make use of storage units if you have any belongings that you aren’t ready to throw away yet but don’t need immediately, either. For example, if you are moving to Shreveport, Louisiana, you can keep such items in the best storage units shreveport has to offer.

Packers and Movers

Cutting corners on packers and movers while moving to a new house is a big mistake. You must compare the price of a professional and trustworthy mover’s services to the expense of replacing all the things a cheap packer and mover may break or damage. Get four or five of your friends to come and submit a thorough survey after asking them for recommendations on a reliable packer and mover.

You may estimate prices and the time it will take to pack, move, and unpack at the other end by conducting a survey. Also, keep in mind that you should show them 15% more items to move than you anticipate you’ll need to, rather than trying to convey the sense that there are fewer items to move. This saves you from having to bargain with them on the day of the move over extra boxes since you will probably end up taking more than you anticipated. 

Preparing Your New House Before Moving In 

There are some things you must do without a doubt before moving into your new house, including comprehensive estate planning. Examine the new home to determine the arrangement of the rooms, the locations of lighting and appliances, and whether more light points or extension boards are needed. Verify the load that the electricity meter and board are intended to support. In order for you to notify the landlord if any repairs need to be made, check all door and window frames and the plumbing in your home. Prior to being given to you, a house should ideally have been painted, the floors polished, thoroughly cleaned, and pest controlled.

Label Boxes

You should label each box with a description of its items and the room it is intended for. Knowing where each box goes in your new home will be easier for you, and your moving company will advantage from this as it will make things easier. An excellent technique to keep track of what you’ve packed and make sure you have everything when you unpack is to number each box and keep an inventory list in a tiny notebook.

Packing The Kitchen

There are several different items to consider when packing the kitchen. Each dish should first be wrapped in packing paper, and then several dishes should be bundled together. Always store plates on their sides; never flat. Also, use a lot of paper that has been scrunched up as padding above and below. Paper can be placed in between cups and bowls as they are stacked one inside the other to create a bundle of three or four. In dish barrel boxes, place them all.

When packing glasses for a move, use a box with cardboard dividers to preserve the glasses and wrap them in multiple layers of paper to protect them.

Packing Your Wardrobe

Folded clothing can be packed for a move in bags, cardboard boxes, or even a dresser, provided that the extra weight wouldn’t be a hinderance during transport. Use a dedicated wardrobe box so you may hang your things inside of it for hanging.

You must protect shoes from one another when putting them in a moving box. Separately cover each pair of shoes to protect them from buckles and sharp heels. and prevent dirt from one pair of shoes from dirtying the rest of your footwear. To help shoes maintain their shape, you can stuff socks inside of them. 

Packing Your TV

TVs can be moved like any other piece of furnishings by certain movers who wrap them in quilted furniture pads. However, because they can be damaged if you lay them flat, plasma TVs must be transported in special cargo containers if you don’t have the cardboard original box. Put your TV in two boxes if you’re doing your own packing by putting it inside of another box that has been foam-padded.

Conclusion

Moving into a new home, unpacking and rearranging everything might cause havoc with your daily routine. Now, you can either let the stress get to you or use these tips to make the process easier. In the end, all the effort and labor you went through will be more than worthwhile once your new home is ready for you to move in, preparing you for a new part of your life.

Moving is a necessary evil. Just like going to the doctor’s or doing your errands, we don’t like to do it but we have to do it eventually. Moving is almost never fun, often exhausting and sometimes straight unpleasant, but it’s quite rewarding—you can finally live comfortably in your new space! If you need to move and want to make this endeavor as smooth and stress-free as possible, here are a few moving tips to follow: 

Declutter

One of the best things you can do to make your move easier is to examine all your belongings and select things you don’t want anymore. Take a few boxes or bin bags and start sorting things into toss, recycle and donate piles. This is much smarter than taking them to your new location just to realize you don’t have any place for them. Start from your closet and donate everything that doesn’t fit you in size or style and give it to someone in need. A great decluttering tactic is to ask yourself a question: “Would I buy this again?” If the answer is no, it means it doesn’t serve a purpose in your life and it can stay in the past. 

Start early

Most moves don’t come too suddenly and you’ll know about them weeks or even months before the big day. In that case, start packing as soon as you can. Start with seasonal items and items you know you won’t need any time soon. For instance, during a winter move, you can pack your bathing suits, shorts and sundresses and let them wait for the day of the move. 

Collect all necessary information

Grab a folder and start stacking it with new addresses, rental documents, purchase papers, contracts and utility information. If you need any of these during the moving process, you’ll know exactly where to look and manage to avoid a lot of stress. 

Stock up on supplies

A week before your move, visit your local DIY center or any similar store and buy plenty of boxes, bags, tape, stickers and packing paper and peanuts. When you’re in the middle of packing, you certainly won’t have time to jump to the store and get more tape! Other things you might also need are box cutters, markers, as well as larger moving equipment you can rent (if you’re planning to move everything on your own). If you hire movers, they will probably have dollies for moving furniture, pads and covers and rope for tying everything down. 

Book movers and storage

Hiring professionals is always a good idea, especially if you don’t have any type of vehicle at your disposal (and people in big cities like New York often don’t). Luckily, if you find experienced people who offer moving and storage services, you don’t have to worry about transport or heavy lifting. Just make sure to book in advance as much as you can, because you’ll end up with better prices and better timing. If you have some items you don’t want to throw away but also can’t move to your new place yet, renting a storage space is a great and cost-effective idea.

Label your boxes

Once everything is more or less ready for the move, it’s time to pack absolutely everything. Go room by room and label every box with a room sticker and a brief summary of the items inside (ex. Kitchen—plates, bowls, cutlery). If you have a labeling system like this one, your movers will know how to pack everything in the truck and where to place your boxes after you arrive. If you go from one room to the next one without mixing items, your packing and unpacking will be a breeze. 

Take care of your precious items

If you have any special items like paintings or sculptures, or even large plants, make sure to read about packing them properly. When moving paintings, use special paper that won’t stick. When moving mirrors, tape an ex over the glass to prevent breaking. Sculptures should go into the box with packing peanuts, etc. 

Pack an overnight box

You’re probably not going to start unpacking right after you arrive, so it’s a good idea to have an overnight box with necessities like bedding, pajamas, hygiene products, chargers and other things that will get you through the night, as well as important documents (keep this box with you). Also if something happens to your things, at least you have your essentials. 

With these tips, you will avoid a lot of anxiety, stress and even back pain when moving. And you’ll see that moving can be a pleasant experience with a very rewarding end.