Moving is a big deal…Thankfully You Hired Professional Movers

but in your choice to pay for professional movers, you have already taken a huge step to making the process as painless as humanly possible. Perhaps this is your first time using professional movers, or maybe youre an experienced veteran when it comes to moving- either way these ten tips should cut a huge amount of time, money and hassle out of your already stressful situation! Here’s our list of 10 tips that anyone can use!

We are going to go ahead and skip over the obvious ones like “purge and declutter your house”. We should all be aware that lack of clutter and lack of excess material things will make the process of moving happen for more smoothly.

 1.) Remove All Batteries from Remotes and Other Appliances

If you don’t remove the batteries from your remotes, etc; the movers will.

Label batteries by taping them together with masking tape, and using a sharpee. Make a designated zip-lock baggy for parts and screws. That way, when you arrive at your new destination-you will be ready to go, with little to no fumbling for batteries!

 

2.) Create a House Inventory

You should be using these anyway- they are absolutely fantastic for insurance purposes, as well as being a great way to document all of the items in your house (so you can make sure they arrive, and in the same condition they left.

Here are some examples of what you should include in your house inventory:

• Jewelry
• Antiques
• Collectibles
• Artwork/paintings
• Silverware/china/crystal/silver serving pieces
• Furniture
• Carpets/rugs
• Electronics (TVs, DVD players, stereos, video game systems, computers and other office equipment)
• Appliances
• Tools
• Lamps and accessories
• Window treatments and wall hangings
• Kitchen equipment (pots, pans, etc.)
• Sports/exercise equipment
• Toys
• Books, movies, games
• Clothing
• Linens
• Everything!

Also make sure to include:

• Name of item
• Manufacturer
• Model number (where applicable)
• Serial number (where applicable)
• Date of purchase
• Purchase price
• Estimated value of item (in the case of antiques, collectibles, etc.)
• Image of item (photograph or video)

3.) Measure Doors and Prepare Furniture

Plan an appropriate escape route out of your home in case of emergencies – measure the doors and see if your larger furniture will fit through them and along narrow corridors, sharp turns, and steep staircases. When you have found the easiest way to take your stuff out, make sure the path is clear of any obstacles and as safe as possible. You can even disassemble bulky furniture pieces that may cause a problem (keep the detached parts and the small hardware elements together with the piece they belong to) and wrap them in blankets or plastic warp for extra protection. If you are not up to the task, at least you will be able to direct your movers as to what pieces should be dismantled beforehand and how to squeeze them out as easy as possible.

4.) Designate Roles to Family Members Before-Hand

If you’re moving with your family, it is important to let everyone know what their specific roles (if any) will be when the professional movers arrive. This will help avoid confusion in what is already a pretty chaotic situation, and will help to make sure no one is in the way of anyone else. This also means planning to put pets away, and communicating with children where they need to be or what they need to be doing during the time of the move.

It is recommended to leave your children and pets with a relative or a close friend until all the moving is done. If this is not possible, find a babysitter to look after your young ones in a separate room where they will not be disturbed and place pets in a kennel or cage, or in a fenced area for the day.

5.) Cover Walkways, Walls, Door Frames, Doors etc. to Prevent Damage

No one is perfect- and after a long few hours of packing your thngs, even the most experienced movers suffer from fatigue, and regardless of how careful they are, its common for furniture to make contact with walls and other hard surfaces. To make sure you get as much of your deposit back as possible, Covering the path which the movers will take, covering walls, corners and everything else in the path of the movers will prevent accidental dents, dings, scuffs and deep scratches in your home.

6.) Thaw Out Your Refrigerator the Night Before

Believe me, this will save you a ton of frustration. Especially when it comes to international moves, your fridge may be sitting closed for a long period of time, trapping in any remaining moisture. This moisture eventually turns to mildew and before you know it, you no longer have a fridge. If you unplug your appliance the night before, that will allow any ice to melt and will allow you to wipe away any remaining moisture by the morning time.

7.) Disassemble As Much Furniture As You Can

Disassembling furniture can be a huge drain on time and resources for professional movers – they often have a specific order in which they pack their trucks, and generally speaking, larger furniture goes into the truck first. If movers have to stop and take time to disassemble your chic ikea couch with 200 screws and directions in swedish- it can slow down the entire operation, costing you time and money.

8.) Be Considerate to Professional Movers by Providing Snacks,  Cold Water, and having Cash on Hand to Tip.

Happy people who feel appreciated work faster, and work better, Moving is exhausting, hot work which usually requires multiple trips up and down multiple flights of stairs with incredibly heavy objects. A simple, kind gesture of providing refreshing snacks and cold water to workers will only benefit you. I’d venture to gamble that workers who feel as though they are given special consideration and feel as if they are taken care of (i.e. provided snacks and water) will, in turn, want to offer up the same consideration by going above and beyond their usual delicate handling of your items. Beyond any of that- it is just the nice thing to do.

9.) Pre-Pack the Small Stuff

Ladies- this is especially pertinent to drawers which contain perfumes, make up, or small jewelry items. It also relates to desk drawers with small knick knacks like paper clips and pencils. A professional mover’s  approach to drawers which still contain items is to simply wrap the drawer and its contents in plastic wrap and then put that into the moving pile in whichever way it best fits… which may be on its side or upside down.  Then when you arrive at your next location, you get to experience the joy of cleaning up a hundred paper clips from the bottom of a box. Save yourself the time and hassle and pack these small items into baggies and put those baggies into another small box- like a shoe box or plastic container.

***A special tip for packing small containers with liquids (such as perfumes, lotions, face creams, and even toothpaste): remove the lid from said item and tightly stretch cling wrap over the opening. secure with tiny rubber band if possible, then replace the cap. The cling wrap makes it way more difficult for the lid to come off, and adds an extra layer of protection against spilling in the event that a cap does come loose.

10.) Pack an “Essentials” Bag Separately

Chances are- you will arrive at your destination before your belongings do. Pack a completely separate bag with toiletries, phone and computer chargers, a few changes of clothes, and anything else you consider essential. Have that bag packed and in your personal vehicle before the movers arrive so that it doesn’t get mixed into the chaos and packed away without you noticing.

 

Professional Movers are a Great Solution!

And using these 10 easy tips, you can help the process along even faster, and reduce at least a little bit of the stress, tension and anxiety that so often goes hand-in-hand with moving.