Moving house sounds like a great idea over a glass of wine, but it can be a very stressful experience. It’s never too early to take action though... here are our top tips for a smooth, stress free house moving day!
1. Declutter, declutter, declutter
One of the first rules of moving houses is: if you don’t need it, don’t move it! Start sorting everything from clothes, to unwanted presents. Gift, recycle, car boot sale and throw away anything you haven’t used in the past year. Start as soon as you are given an exchange date and don’t leave it too late.
2. Pack one room at the time
It seems obvious, but packing one room at the time will help you stay organised. Besides, you can let your removals company know what boxes are to be moved to the same place. It also makes sense to keep all your packing supplies together.
3. Pack tight
Use newspaper and bubble wrap to fill any gaps in your boxes. Loose contents are more likely to break during transit.
4. Keep it clear
More urgent items like kitchenware, linens, towels and bathroom items, are best packed in clear stacker boxes. That way, you can quickly spot them and unpack when you get to your new house. No excuses not to make the removal professionals a cuppa!
5. You don’t always need a box
A good hack is to take individual drawers out and just wrap them with packing film. That way, individual drawers can be moved, unwrapped and fitted into the chest of drawers again.
6. Don’t break your back!
Be sure to keep to a max of 10Kg when packing boxes. Anything heavier will end up causing a back injury.
7. Does what it says on the tin
Once packed, label your boxes clearly with a list of contents. Label all boxes to the side (not the top!), so that the contents are visible, even when the boxes are stacked. Also, clearly label boxes with breakables.
8. Break the code
Use marker pens and stickers to codify your boxes: Label with numbers to let your removal professional know where to leave your boxes by assigning a number to each room in your new house. You could also use colored marker pens to this effect. Let young children decorate their boxes so that they are easy to spot on the other side.
It can be helpful to create a packing list with a number and description of every box. That way you can be sure that all your boxes made it.
9. Start with the items you last need
Another obvious one, but packing away seasonal items like coats and Christmas decorations is a good place to start.
10. VIP (Stands for Very Important Paperwork)
Very important paperwork, such as marriage certificates and passports should be kept together in a safe place during transit. Be sure to find a place for your important documents as soon as you arrive at your destination.
11. Keep calm and carry-on
Of course the key of all this is to keep calm. You are bound to encounter some last minute changes, but sticking to a plan should make all the difference!