5 Tips for Planning Your Move
Planning can be the difference between chaos and clarity when you’re getting ready to move. An ideal California move is one where every item is packed correctly, and every box unfolds into your new home in the easiest way possible. As for an unplanned move, most people have experienced this kind of chaos at least once. So if you’re looking to make your upcoming move a smooth one, Robb & Messer Moving and Storage can share more than a few tips on how to best prepare for an enjoyable home transition.
- Give Yourself Time
- Pack One Room at a Time
- Label Everything Clearly
- Enlist Help
- Work with Professional Movers
If you need help planning a move, don’t worry. We’re about to help you fill in the rest. If you start with these five tips, your entire moving plan will come together seamlessly.
How to Sort Your Stuff and Decide What to Pack and Move
What Not To Pack
- Aerosol cans regardless of content
- Heating agents, such as Sterno
- Nail polish/remover
- Fire extinguishers
- Any type of gas in bottles or tanks, including propane or oxygen
- Paints, varnishes, solvents, thinners and oils
- Ammonia, bleach and other household cleaning agents
- Chlorine granules or powders
- Muriatic acid (also called hydrochloric acid)
- Auto batteries
- Charcoal/lighter fluid
- Matches and lighters
- Ammunition
- Any other combustible product
Packing Yourself?
- A sharpie marker: Label your boxes with the room you want them unloaded into, and the contents of the box (the room should be visible on the side of the box)
- Pack each box completely full: This will prevent the box from crushing and items in it from damaging.
- Fragile items should be packed in thicker cardboard boxes: Dish packs, mirror packs, and tv cartons.
Hire Us To Pack For You!
Hiring our professional packing crew to pack your belongings has several advantages:
- We will save you time and effort so you can focus on the many other tasks you need to complete in order to make your transition smooth.
- We pack fragile items on a daily basis (mirrors, paintings, dishware, fine china, stemware, flatscreen TVs… just to name a few!)
- Each company packed box will be labeled with the room it needs to be unloaded into, as well as the contents packed in the box.
Packing Supplies You Will Need to Pack Your House
Packing supplies matters, but you don’t have to follow commercial supply lists. For a standard 2-3 bedroom home, you will want a few dozen small “book” boxes (books, technology, electronics), one or two dozen medium boxes (clothes and small light appliances), and two to five extra-large boxes (for bedding and stuffed animals only).
As for the padding, use all your spare towels, sheets, and t-shirts before investing in packing paper or bubble wrap to save on money and disposable waste.
Maintain a Safe Zone
Maintain a “safe zone” so your most important necessities do not get loaded, packed, or misplaced. A closet, counter space, or a master bathroom is a great place to keep keys, purses, laptops, phones, phone chargers, medication, and all other important documents.
Take Care of Address Change Details First
While planning a move, be sure to register your California address change with the post office – and any delivery services you will keep using after the move. The post office will charge you a small fee, usually less than $5, for at least a year of mail forwarding. This is also a good time to change your address on all your online (and offline) accounts to avoid chaos later on.
While you’re at it, make sure that you have the utilities turned on and the keys waiting for you when you arrive at the new house. No one wants to show up to a home with no power or water available on the first day after the move.
Make a Master List of Moving Tasks
As the move starts to solidify in your mind, make your moving plan master list. List everything you need to pack, all your to-do items in wrapping up your job, hobbies, memberships, etc., in the neighborhood, and everything you need to set up for the new house.
Having a checklist can be very useful. Depending on how you like to handle your to-do lists, write it all down on a whiteboard or load it into an app on your phone to check and check off constantly.
Plan New Rooms as You Pack the Old
When packing, pack one room at a time while planning for the new rooms you will unpack into. Clearly label each box with details about what’s inside (pro tip: label every side of the box), so you can quickly find what you need upon arrival. Pack each bedroom separately and the entertainment center all at once, pack the dishes and dining items together, and so on. Then use color-coded tape as a bonus to help you quickly get all the boxes into the right rooms for unpacking.
This simple process can save you months of headache and hassle at your new home, making it easy to quickly transform your boxes into complete and usable rooms.
Line Up Professional Movers
Schedule your movers as soon as you start planning a move. Movers often get booked up for weekends year-round, especially during warm-weather seasons. The earlier you book, the more likely you will get your desired moving dates.
Professional movers can also help you complete your moving tasks and help with specialized challenges – like furniture disassembly temporary storage vaults, and help with logistics. Great movers will make your final stages of moving feel like a breeze and can even help you reassemble furniture in your new California home.
Have Rugs, Drapes, and Slipcovers Cleaned
Lastly, make sure that any fabrics coming with you are cleaned before and after the move. This can help prevent tracking old dirt into the house and ensure your new place feels fresh and clean when you hang the drapes or place the couch.