If you decide to pack yourself, plan on at least six weeks to pack and get ready for your move. Lindsay Group offers the following packing suggestions:
- Before you start packing, determine the items you want to throw away, give away or sell.
- Moving is a good time to get rid of items you no longer need. You will save money and have less to pack and unpack. Give yourself enough time to make these decisions.
- Don’t just start packing — plan how you will pack. Pack items you seldom use first. Pack items of similar size and weight together. Don’t make any carton too heavy to easily lift.
- Always use proper packing cartons and wrapping materials. Use professional packing tape, which is a wide, strong, clear or brown tape. Masking tape is not strong enough to support the weight of a fully packed carton. Tape all cartons closed on the top and bottom — don’t just fold the end flaps closed. Use crumpled, unprinted newspaper to pack items in boxes.
- Label the contents on the outside of all boxes, along with the rooms to which they should be delivered in your new home. When packing fragile items, clearly mark “fragile” on the outside of the box, with arrows on the sides to indicate the correct upright position.
- Indicate boxes holding essential items, such as cooking utensils, bedding, linens and toiletries that need to be opened first by writing “open first” on the box and making sure these are the last boxes to be loaded onto the moving van.
Special Care Tips
TRIP KIT
Lindsay Group recommends putting aside essential articles in what Lindsay Group calls a “Trip Kit.” The kit, usually made of a moving box small enough for a family to take with them to their new home, acts as a collection point for important papers and necessary items that should not be boxed up during the busy sorting and packing process.
CHANGE OF ADDRESS
The U.S. Post Office has provided information to help you notify all of the necessary parties of your move. Click Here to visit the post office.
