Top 13 Care Tips for Your Belongings When Moving Houses

Moving homes can be a daunting experience, specially if it’s your first time. There are endless tasks to check off your to-do list at moving time, so the experience can get understandably overwhelming. The trickiest part of moving to tackle is packing.

For a first-timer, it can get difficult to ensure your belongings are safely packed while still being convenient enough to travel and deliver to your home. More importantly, you must pack in a way that’s easy to unpack once you settle in your new home. Here are 13 care tips to help protect your belongings when moving houses.

Top 13 Care Tips for Your Belongings When Moving Houses

1) Dress Safely

Safety always comes first, so you must ensure that you’re dressed safely for moving. The process can be more dangerous than it seems, resulting in unexpected injuries. For example, closed-row shoes can prevent fractures or similar injuries if a heavy object falls on your feet while packing. If you’re removing wallpaper from your old home, eye goggles and full-length clothes can protect your skin and eyes from dust and residue. 

2) Use a Moving Dolly

Furniture can be pretty hard to move due to its weight, so you must invest in a moving dolly to expedite the process. You may rent a moving dolly to load the furniture from your old house onto the transport vehicle. Then, you can utilize the moving dolly to unload the furniture to your new home. 

3) Store Your Vehicles

If you’re not using your vehicles for transportation in between homes, it’s best to store them at a vehicle storage unit to prevent parking tickets. Finding a vehicle storage unit near you won’t be hard as long as you specify your search. For example, if you live in Salida, Colorado, you can search for the best vehicle storage Salida can offer in order to keep your vehicles safe.

4) Consider Recycling

Instead of throwing away the items you won’t be taking to your new home, you might want to consider recycling. Besides giving your belongings to recycling facilities, you can also give them to charities for reuse. Finding a charity looking for donations won't be hard, but you must discuss what donations they’re willing to accept.

5) Remember to Double Tape

In a worst-case scenario, you pack your fragile belongings, lift the box, and they fall out of the bottom. To prevent such a mistake, you must remember to double-tape all your box bottoms. Use heavy-duty tapes such as duct tape, specially if you’re packing heavy or breakable items.

6) Follow Lifting Protocols

This may seem like an obvious tip, but people often make the common mistake of lifting heavy objects incorrectly. Then, they suffer from back pain for a long time. To prevent such an incident, you must align your spine to remain neutral, specially while lifting heavy boxes. If you’re already suffering from back pain, it’s best to be safe than sorry and hire movers to get the job done.

7) Declutter

It may seem natural to take every single one of your belongings to your next home. Of course, you can think of a purpose for every trinket in your bedside drawer, but they’re not crucial most of the time. Starting afresh in your new home can help maintain cleanliness and progress towards a minimalist lifestyle. That’s why it’s best to declutter before you pack your belongings. Donate clothes you never wear, throw away expired items, and let go of broken belongings you can’t fix in 20 minutes. 

8) Invest in Supplies

Investing in supplies is a step your future self will thank you for. You don’t want to have to make a run to the store at the last minute when you have no more boxes to put your belongings in. A week before the move, head to the store and stock up on boxes, tape, permanent markers, adhesive bandages, box cutters, paper towels, garbage packs, bubble wrap, and packing peanuts. 

9) Opt for Trucks With Ramps

There’s no doubt that moving homes can be a workout, specially if you’re repeatedly stepping in and out of the moving truck. Moving trucks with loading ramps make it easier to load heavy boxes and furniture, so we’d recommend them above other options, even if they’re cheaper. Not only will this expedite your moving process, but you’ll also thank yourself later when you have no sore muscles.

10) Pack in Advance

We can’t stress enough the importance of packing your belongings far in advance. Starting a few days before moving day may make sense, but last-minute packing can cause unnecessary panic and small mistakes with significant effects. 

Pack in advance to avoid such stress, starting with items you won’t miss while you’re still in your old home. For example, if you’re packing in the winter, you can pack your summer clothes first.

11) Label Responsibly

You don’t want to end up at your new home, unpacking five different boxes just to find your toothbrush. You can prevent this by labeling each box for its destination and content. Labeling is specially helpful if you’re working with movers so that they know where to put each box. If you don’t want to write detailed labels on the box for reuse, you can simply number them and keep an inventory list in a small notebook.

12) Protect Your Appliances

Packing electronics like your microwave, TV and coffee maker can be tricky. For example, plasma TVs require special wooden crates to protect them in transit. Working with a professional mover can help you pack each appliance with extra precaution.

13) Utilize Packing Tips

Finally, you must remember certain packing tips throughout the moving process. For example, use the right-sized boxes and layer your items in the box according to their weight. More importantly, don’t leave empty spaces in boxes; fill those spaces with plastic, newspaper, towels, or packing peanuts to prevent breakage in transit.

It’s also important not to mix items from different rooms in one box, even if they’re similar sizes and shapes. Lastly, take special care while packing up your kitchen for moving, as it has the most fragile items in the house. 

Conclusion

Moving comes with endless challenges, specially when it’s time to pack your belongings. Considering the fragility and odd shapes of certain items in a home, packing can seem daunting, confusing, and time-consuming. By remembering the tips mentioned above, you can make packing much simpler and easier.