Moving out isn’t particularly rocket science, but there’s no denying that it’s a stressful process. However, if you have a plan in place and use a lot of ingenuity, you can get a lot of work done in little time, and a lot of stuff safely packed in little space. Read on to learn some of the best moving hacks!
Planning The Move
To ensure a smooth and hassle-free move, you need to start planning well in advance. Eight weeks should give you enough time to plan and pack without getting stressed out. Here’s what you need to do:
Getting A Moving Checklist
We can’t stress enough the importance of having a moving checklist. Having this would help you make a plan and stay organized. The process of moving out can be frustrating and chaotic, and in all this chaos, you might even forget to get something really important done. Imagine the inconvenience you’ll face if you didn’t inform your utility providers about moving and now you have unnecessary unpaid bills. Or when you move into your new house, you realize that you haven’t forwarded your mail.
Budgeting Your Move
Moving out can be pretty expensive and if you don’t plan it, you’ll burn a hole in your pocket. So a good idea would be to budget your move. Keep about $5000 aside exclusively for moving out. Consider what you’ll need while packing and moving, and figure out how best to keep it down – giving stuff away and getting creative will take you a long way here.
Hiring A Packing And Moving Company
Doing this well in advance means that you’ll have enough time to research and decide between a number of packing and moving companies. You can compare prices and hire the one that offers the best value for money. Putting this off can affect your budget and you may be compelled to hire a company with a dubious reputation.
See also: Best Moving Companies
Getting Down To Packing
Now that you’ve done all the necessary preparations (all the while sticking to your checklist, we hope), it’s time to start packing your belongings before you move out. Here are some packing hacks that’ll save you money and space both.
Giving Stuff Away
When we said ‘start packing your belongings’, we meant only the stuff that you’d really need for your new house. So what you need to do first is to make an inventory of stuff that you need and what you can give away. Organize a yard sale to sell off things you don’t need, give it to your neighbors or someone who can make better use of them.
Once you’ve sold your old stuff, you’ll have earned a considerable amount of money. Also, you have a lot less stuff to pack and carry. So you’ll save money on that too. It’s a big win!
See also: Charities that Offer Free Donation Pick Up
Materials For Packing
You will also need to prepare a list of materials that will be needed for packing. The most important among them are packing boxes, packing paper, bubble wrap, markers and tape. Depending on the belongings you have, you may require even more materials. It’s a good idea to get more packing materials than you think it’s required to be on the safer side.
Packing Hacks
You don’t necessarily need to stick with materials mentioned above for your packing needs. It’s time to get creative! Blankets, old clothes and empty plastic containers are just some of the materials you can to replace traditional packing materials. You could use these for padding or for packing. The possibilities are endless.
Also Read: How To Pack A Suitcase For A Move
Organizing Hacks
With all the chaos and confusion that comes with packing, you may be tempted to wing it. Trust us, it’s not worth it. Being more organized from the get-go will save you a whole lot of headaches later.
You want to start off by properly labeling the boxes. You can either use color codes, numbers or name the boxes and label them with their contents. It’s best to label them on their sides so that even when you stack your boxes, you know what’s in the box. Also, don’t label the boxes with anything permanent so that you can re-label them if you’re moving again.
If you have kids, you can get them to help you as well. Just don’t let them pack anything heavy or dangerous.
Hacks For Packing Material
While you can purchase moving boxes, you can just as easily get them for free. Just look for them online or around your neighborhood. All you have to do is ensure that they’re sturdy enough to carry your belongings safely. Keep in mind that bigger isn’t always better. You may find it difficult to carry extremely big boxes.
Instead of packing boxes, you can use baskets, suitcases, hampers or briefcases. You’ll definitely have them in your house and they’re durable too! The suitcases with wheels will help you pack and move a lot of stuff around easily.
Bubble wraps or packing paper will help keep your fragile belongings safe during transit. But you can use your old clothes, some bedsheets or even pillows as padding for them and they’ll work just as well.
Hacks For Packing Clothes
Folding and neatly packing all your clothes from the closet into a box is going to be really time consuming. What you can do instead is use a rubber band to fasten a bunch of your clothes hangers together and cover them up with a plastic bag. This way, all your clothes will stay in your closet and won’t even get dirty during transportation.
Also, you don’t need to empty out your drawers while moving. Just cover them with a plastic wrap to save yourself the effort of unpacking them. You can also roll your clothes instead of folding them to save a lot of space.
Socks keep going missing, we know that. Why don’t you roll and stuff them up in your shoes so that you don’t have to keep looking for them?
Hacks For Packing Electronics
Electronic appliances have a lot of fragile and small components, so you need to take extra care while packing them.
Remove all the wires and pack them neatly into toilet paper rolls so that they don’t get tangled. You can also use bread ties to keep them in place, but don’t forget to label them!
For your computer, remember to create a backup of your files and keep it with you. If you have a printer, remove its toner and ink cartridges as they’re likely to spill or burst during transit. Pack them in sturdy boxes and don’t forget to provide them with enough padding. Take a picture of the wiring setups and the back of your gadgets so that you know how to set it up in your new house.
See also: Tips for Moving and Packing Electronics
Hacks For Packing Kitchenware
Before you move out, clean your refrigerator out and defrost it. As it’s not practical to carry all the food while moving, try to eat up as much as possible in the days prior to the move. You can also donate unopened food to the local food bank. Don’t force yourself to eat everything like Joey!
If you can, stuff the larger utensils with smaller ones (like the Russian nesting dolls) to save a lot of space. However, for the fragile plates, wrap them individually and place them sideways in the moving box instead of stacking them. The knives, on the other hand, can be stuffed inside oven mitts and tied with rubber bands so that you don’t risk getting injured. Your glasses and mugs can be stuffed inside socks and packed in the wine boxes with separate compartments.
Hacks For Packing Toiletries And Cosmetics
Most toiletries and cosmetics are fragile or come in fragile containers, so you’ll need to take care while packing them. It’ll be impossible to pack everything because you’ll need some even on the day you’re moving.
The bottles containing liquid must have a bit of plastic wrap between the lid and the opening so that they don’t leak. The fragile bathroom items must also be in boxes that are well padded.
Before packing your makeup kit, place a wad of cotton in it so that the palette doesn’t crumble.
Considering how much trouble packing and moving toiletries and cosmetics are, we recommend that you use up most of it before the move. Or you can leave them behind or give them away.
Also Read: How To Pack Liquids For Moving
Hacks For Packing Fragile And Expensive Objects
You’ll need to start packing them a good 2 weeks before moving because they require time and patience. If they’re particularly difficult to pack, like chandeliers for example, you’ll require professional help.
Bulbs are the basic fragile items in your house. It’s best that you buy new ones after moving out. But if you must, wrap them carefully and store them in one box marked ‘fragile’. It’s best if you have a box like the Christmas gift boxes with compartments. Lamps and lampshades also require special care, and their shapes make them tricky to pack. You’ll require lots of padding and adequately-sized boxes.
For your picture frames, you can use foam insulation on their borders. You may stack them in a box, but leave some space on the top for extra padding.
As far as possible, try to keep the expensive items with you. If not, it’s best to label the box with a number or a color code so it doesn’t attract any undue attention.
Read Also: How To Pack Glasses For Moving
Moving Out
You’re all set with the packing now and thanks to you being organized and using the hacks, you got done faster and more efficiently. Now the day of moving has come. How to do it best?
It’s by being prepared. You’ve heard this enough times now, but this point has to be emphasized. You have to be completely prepared and ready for the move at least a day before D-Day. This would ensure minimum delays, and all you’ll have to do now is wait for the movers or get the rental truck.
Also, you’ll need to have a bag filled with essential items separately and on you during the move. This bag would include clothes, easy-to-prepare food items and toiletries that you may require while moving and the first day in your new house.
If you have toddlers, you’ll want a bag for them as well. The older kids can also have their own bags with their toys and snacks to keep them entertained during the trip. All your packing and moving hacks won’t do you any good if your bored kids keep asking “Are we there yet?” every now and then! For pets, you’ll need to make arrangements for their safety and contentment too!
Unpacking And Settling In
At long last, you’ve reached your new house. However, this doesn’t mean that your work is over yet. The prospect of unpacking and setting things back may feel daunting and exhausting. But we’re here to help you out!
Preparing A Schedule
Considering that you can finish unpacking as and when you please, you might find yourself very unmotivated when you see heaps of unopened boxes lying about the house. Don’t let lethargy get the better of you! You need to pull yourself together. This can be done if you have a schedule and stick to it.
Have a daily plan: which rooms to be worked upon, how much to be done and by what time and so on. This will help you have a routine and get work done. Treat yourself to a little reward if you accomplish your goals. This doesn’t mean that you’ve to be a workhorse, though. If you strike a balance between unpacking and relaxing, you won’t get burned out.
Prioritizing What To Set Up
The kitchen has a lot of components and appliances that you’ve had to move from your old house. It’s best that you set the kitchen up first so that you can get the most difficult task out of the way first. This will be a huge motivator for you to keep working on the unpacking.
If you have kids, you’ll have to set up their bedrooms first because the process of moving out really stresses them out. If you set up their rooms in the same way as their old rooms, your kids will feel more comfortable and will be able to take this transition better. The same goes for your pets too.
Celebrating Your New Home
Okay, this isn’t exactly a moving hack, but this is something we think you deserve after all the hard work you put in. Once you’ve completely set up your house, you should organize a housewarming party and invite all your neighbors and if you have kids, their friends and family too. This will give you a great opportunity to get to know everyone around you better, and having good friends in a new place would help you settle in your new home as well.
Conclusion
Now you’ve seen that moving out can be challenging, but it can be made a little easier with moving hacks. All you need is to do for a hassle-free move is to be equal parts organized and creative. Of course, you also have to make sure you stay calm and composed throughout. A frantic mind won’t really help you stay organized!
