Packing boxes is more complicated than you think, especially for first time movers. Getting it right can save you hours and hundreds of points whilst getting it wrong can cost your thousands of pounds in labour and replacing your possessions.
Luckily we’ve compiled our decades of moving experience into a simple box packing guide.
The five steps to packing boxes when moving house are:
- Using the right boxes
- Use the same size box
- Allocate boxes to rooms
- Wrap delicate items
- Stack carefully
1. Using the right boxes
Selecting and using the right kind of boxes throughout your move is essential, especially when it comes to packing fragile items.
In fact, using the right boxes is so important that we provide boxes to every customer we move house for – and in truth any good removals business will. This is because it’s in their interest as well as yours to ensure everything moves safely, securely and efficiently to your new house.
What box should I be using?
For any house move, tripled walled cardboard boxes will do the trick. Incredibly durable, lightweight and come in a range of sizes so you can pick the perfect size for the amount of possessions you are moving. They’re also very affordable.
2. Use the same size boxes
A good house removal team will be experts in box stacking, and whilst they will have the ability to stack any size box, committing to a size of box for all your possessions will speed up the stacking process and save you money.
Avoid using different sized boxes – it saves you time and money.
Should I use a specific size box?
Not necessarily – but the general idea is to keep them large. This is simply because it takes longer to move and stack more small sized boxes than it does to stack one large box. You will also save time taping and labelling, so everyone wins.
What about fragile items like glass and china?
Great question, because you will be tempted to pack those items into smaller more compact boxes. However the best method is the ‘half and half’ method. This means packing some china and glass with bedding, towels, mats and more softer items. Those soft items will provide a wrapping and buffer when the boxes are stacked.
3. Allocate Boxes to Rooms
All you need is one big pen and some good organisation. The goal here is to pack your boxes room by room and label them so your removals team know exactly where to place the boxes in your new home. This will save for you and the removals team thus saving you money.
Allocation saves time
When your box packing is complete, you should have stacks of labelled boxes in the centre of each room of the house. They will then be ready to be allocated to the rooms in your new house.
4. Wrap Delicate Items
There are plenty of ways you can wrap delicate items when packing them into boxes for your house move.
And the best part is, every method is highly effective and incredibly affordable.
You can wrap delicate items using:
- Newspaper – a less common material found in the modern household but still works an absolute treat when wrapped around china and bunched into gaps within your boxes to prevent items from moving around.
- Bubble wrap – a slightly more expensive and less sustainable option but for a standard house move you shouldn’t have to spend more than £30.00 on enough bubble wrap. Also bubble wrap can often be handy later in life, so be sure to save and reuse later.
- Towels & Bedding – probably the most efficient option. Most delicate china and ornaments are in the bedroom, kitchen and living room. All of which contain cushions, pillows, towels and bedding. Combine them in boxes for a stress free, secure and efficient way to move.
5. Stack Carefully
Not a concern at all if you have hired a highly reviewed and reliable removals team. But if you have chosen to move yourself, stacking properly can make the difference between a happy move and losing thousands of pounds in damaged goods.
Start with the heaviest boxes at the bottom and work up. If you do have large soft items like curtains or large cushions, use these to fill any small gaps you have in your car or van to save the items sliding around.
What should I avoid when stacking boxes for moving?
The advice is simple and easy to remember:
- Don’t leave any large gaps where boxes could move around.
- Avoid any potential sliding or moving – using bungees is a great way to avoid this.
- Stacking china and delicates at the top – if a box is going to move or fall, you want it to be full of clothes or bedding instead of plates and glasses.
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Finally, for any more moving advice feel free to contact us or visit our removals blog.
For a removals company you can trust visit this page to learn more and get a quote.
Tags: Packing, Removals