moving

[janny108]

Any suggestions to make a move go smoothly? It's not one of my favorite things to do and our apt is upstairs. We are moving into a house.

 

[Autumnleaf]

Set it up so you have to work that day and make sure plenty of people are coming over to help. Move the stuff you care deeply about and don't want to get lost yourself.

 

[GloryBe!]

I've moved many times. I start in plenty of time, and I don't get too tedious... Ie: no time to reminisce, over organize boxes, or worry about neat and tidy spices in the kitchen box. Always pack the mattress in the truck LAST!!!! it may be the first and only thing you want when you get to your new place. (Learned that the hard way moving across state lines... 3am arrival, sleeping on two towels on the carpet. NOT FUN! )

Glory be!

 

[Angelfrog]

Keep a box aside that you take in the car with you as opposed to a removal lorry (if you use one), into which you put the kettle, tea, coffee, milk, lightbulbs, loo roll, snacks, personal medication needed and any of those little but vital things you may need on hand but don't want to go searching through boxes for. (Things like toothbrush and paste and a change of underwear and clothing for the next day may be useful, too, if you end up not wanting or being able to unpack clothing that day or hunt through bathroom things to brush your teeth. Also some eating utensils. We decided, on the day of a move years ago, to get a Chinese takeaway meal. No cooking that evening. Clever, huh? No- not when you've got all the knives, forks, spoons etc packed away somewhere in the kitchen along with plates. We should have ordered pizza- no utensils needed!!!!)

Obvious one- clearly label each box with the room it's going to go into in the new house. A friend of mine allocated a number to each room in the new house and labelled each box with the number of the room it was going in. She then went in first and stuck a piece of paper up on each doorway with that room's number. that way, everyone knew exactly where the box they were carrying would go without having to keep asking where or saying 'which room is Jane's again?'.
That might be a bit 'much' for some- but it worked a treat. Even the kids who were helping with little boxes got them into the right place. You could colour code them, if the mood takes you!

Oh yeah- kids. Babysitter for any young ones, Definitely.

Make sure you've arranged for things like electricity, gas, phone lines etc to be connected just before or early on the day of your move.

Keep an eye on the weight of your moving vehicle if you're hiring one to do it yourself. Two weeks ago we helped a friend of mine move, using a large hire-van. They didn't remind her that the tail lift counted as contents weight and she got stopped by the Motorway police, taken to a weigh bridge and fined £60. If the load had been .4 of a kilo more, it would have been £200!!!!!!!
Obviously this is in England and your rules may be completely different- but it may be worth thinking about.

Think about parking at the new house beforehand. If there's a large driveway that may take care of the issue- but you may need to get someone to park in spaces at the front to 'reserve' it- especially if you've more than one vehicle carrying items (particularly heavy ones). Also check about parking at your current location. You may need to park carefully in advance to ensure that cars can be moved for the removal vehicle to get in.

Sort out mail redirection in advance.

I expect those are obvious things, really but I hope something might be useful. Hope it all goes smoothly for you.

 

[GloryBe!]

I second the motion for a easy access collection of necessities. I always packed a suitcase enough for that day and at least that night...And kept it with me close by.

Glory be!

 

[mikemack]

Ya I have about 30 moves myself and I agree with the other poster.

So many people overthink moves. Just keep a steady pace and keep at it. Don't worry about making sure everything is packed perfectly, especially if you're doing multiple short trips. Save anything that can't break/ is soft to shove into cracks of everything else. It really eases the worry of anything breaking.

And make sure you keep snacks around nothing sucks like being exhausted with all the food packed!

 

[Biscuithands]

Moving? ... Ahhhhhhg.

 

[tturt]

Good suggestions already. I would add when labeling make it clear what's in the box. The refrigerated and frozen items can be unpacked first. Another example - box #1 beverage and box #2 pans - that way you can have the cups unpacked for a cup of coffee prior to other items that aren't used everyday. Keep your important personal papers with you in your vehicle. And if something is in sections, number them as they're taken apart so it's easier to reassemble. Mark boxes with fragile items with a different colored marker so your helpers don't have to take the time to read each box. Have those heavy duty hand trucks available.

 

[janny108]

God showed me how to manage this and I'm thankful. We're only moving across town. We are having some folks help us with the big stuff since it is down a flight of stairs. Thanks for all the feedback.

 

[janny108]

also we are giving ourselves a margin of time, it's not like we have to get everything done ASAP