The idea of starting a life at a new home is an exciting one. But the process of moving home often inspires dread and dismay. The thought of packing, unpacking, and coordinating the logistics of moving can be daunting to say the least. We want to make that process easier for you. Here are 10 packing tips from the pros to help your moving experience better.
1. Start well in advance
When you know that you’re going to be moving home around a certain date, start packing very early. Usually people know that they will be moving at least a few months ahead of time if not more. If you know you’ll be moving during mid-November, start packing in late September. Getting things started ahead of time will leave you with much less to do at the last moment. You will save yourself a lot of stress and be thankful for the foresight. Start with the items you know you’ll need least frequently. Start with the less frequently used items around the house. Those should be packed up around a month before your moving date. Then items you need once a month, then once a fortnight and so on. Essentially, only things you need daily should be left for packing last. This way, when moving week comes, you will have a lot less hassle to deal with.
2. Lose the clutter
When you start packing, ask yourself – do you REALLY need everything you have? This is especially true for those moving home after many years. Over time, you tend to build up a collection of arguably useless knick-knacks. Packing is hard enough as it is. And you'll have to unpack everything too at the new home. Is everything you have right now really worth the hassle? As you go through your belongings, set aside everything that’s unnecessary. If you've had something for years but have almost never used it – get rid of it. You can sell it off or even donate it to a charity. Obviously, you can make exceptions for something that has exceptional sentimental value. But as a general rule, declutter as you pack. You’ll only make things harder for you if you keep a bunch of useless items.
3. Pack room by room
Pack according to room and not by category. Some people say that it’s better to pack by category such as packing all the books into one box. However, we recommend packing room by room instead. Packing the books you keep in the living room with the ones that are in your bedroom will just cause confusion down the road. The same could be said about any other sort of item. Instead, pack by room and label your boxes accordingly. You could even just write “bedroom” or “guest room” on the boxes with a marker.
4. Keep track of your boxes
As you pack and label your boxes, create a system for keeping track of everything. It could be as simple as a written list – or as polished as a neat Excel file. How you go about it is up to you. But, at least have a basic system in place to keep track of all of your boxes. Moving home can get quite hectic, and sometimes things get lost in the process. We recommend at least adding numbers to the labels on your boxes – be they printed or written with a marker. Maintain a list that tells you how many boxes you have and what that box contains. For example, items on the list could be something like “Box 14 – living room – lamps” or “Box 20 – bedroom – bedsheets.” Trust us, this will save you a lot of hassle when done right after you’ve moved into your new home and start unpacking.
5. On packing clothes
Ask any frequent traveller what the best way to pack clothes is – they won’t recommend folding. Rolling your clothes is a great way to get the most out of packing them. Rolled clothes take up less space, and also leave fewer wrinkles if done right. When packing clothes you have in your drawers, this is the way to go.
For clothes on hangers like suits and jackets, don’t take them off the hangers. Instead, consider getting a wardrobe box and storing them with the hangers. These can be had for pretty cheap. They are a worthwhile investment for keeping your expensive clothes safe when moving home.
6. How to pack kitchen utensils
When packing your kitchen, stack your pots and pans to make the most out of each box. Stack smaller pots on larger ones with layers of packing paper between them. You can also put small things like spoons and containers of spices inside your pots and sealable containers. When packing knives, roll each of them in a full sheet of packing paper and then wrap with a dishcloth. Finally, secure the whole thing in a rubber band. When putting the wrapped knives in boxes, put them on their side and not vertically.
7. Pack a separate essentials box
After you’re done moving home, you’ll probably be quite tired. Trying to dig through piles of other boxes for necessities like your phone charger or toothbrush will be exceedingly frustrating. As such, you should pack a separate box of bags with just your essentials to get you through the first night and the next morning. Toiletries, medication, and anything else you need close at hand should be packed separately for immediate access. It’s also a good idea to prep a first aid kid with band-aids and disinfectants. Small injuries are not uncommon when moving home, so it’s best to be prepared.
8. Put spillable items in plastic bags
When packing liquids like shampoos, lotions, and detergents, it’s best practice to wrap everything in plastic bags. This is to avoid risks of something accidentally spilling while moving home. You also want to put the bags in particularly sturdy boxes to reduces chances of something bursting from an accidental drop. You also should wrap each liquid in its own little bag and put different types of liquids in different boxes. Don’t put cooking oil and detergent in the same box – you do not want that kind of cross contamination.
9. Don’t pack boxes too heavy
A common mistake is to pack boxes until they’re too heavy. People buy boxes that are too big, and then over-fill them in trying to maximise space savings. We don’t recommend doing this. Boxes that are too heavy can cause lifting injuries. The boxes themselves can also fall apart if there’s too much weight. To avoid this, use different sized boxes and try to keep the weight of each under 15KGs. You can put light items together in larger boxes and use smaller ones for the heavier stuff. Moving home is stressful enough on its own, don’t put yourself at risk of injury on top of that.
10. Use tape and wool to secure boxes
Make sure to secure your boxes with appropriate amounts of tape. Put tape specifically on the top and bottom seams, as well as on edges where there might be extra stress. You can also wrap tape all the way around the boxes a few times. This will make the boxes much stronger than they are on their own. You can also make some tabs with wool string and put them underneath the tape. Make sure to not cover the ends. These tabs can be used to quickly open the boxes once you’re done moving home and need to unpack.
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