Did you know moving house is among the top three most stressful events you can have in your life? However, being prepared for what is about to happen goes a long way in reducing how stressful it can be. Parkers Removals know all about this.
Get into the right mindset. Be prepared for chaos, organised chaos, that is. Moving is an upheaval, so be ready to put your everyday life on hold for a while. Once you realise, life will be a bit frenetic for a time. Then, the whole process gets a bit easier. So don’t fight chaos, organise it!
It is important to make arrangements for any pet you have. Moving days can be very stressful for them. Maybe you can arrange for them to stay with family or friends or book them into a kennel for the day.
Make A Plan
A plan helps you keep an eye on how you are progressing. There is a lot to think about, and without a plan, you can quickly feel like you are going around in circles. Once you have made your plan, start the preparation process as soon as possible before the removal date.
At this point, your plan can include a complete removal package, where professionals come into your home and pack everything for you. Then, on the arranged date, all will be loaded onto transport, taken to your new home and unloaded into the indicated rooms.
If this is the route you choose, start looking for the firm that fits your needs early. Even if you book a professional packing service, there are some things you still need to do for yourself.
Start Early
Whatever size your house is, it can feel overwhelming to start packing it up. It is better to break things down following the plan you have worked out.
- Start with paperwork, old manuals, documents, statements, bills, etc., as these tend to accumulate. Set time aside to sort and shred unwanted documents.
- To avoid getting in a muddle – plan to pack up one room at a time, starting with the least-used rooms.
- Separate your things into piles, those to keep, discard, bin or sell. Be firm with yourself. The less there is to pack, the better. Take this time to declutter.
- Kitchens are often the last room to be packed up. But, it is a good idea to have a ‘daily box’ ready for that room, with your favourite drinks, cups, cutlery, salt & pepper – the essentials to your daily life. Decluttering a kitchen can be a big job, so do a cupboard at a time – taking out what you don’t want to keep, but not packing the kitchen up until the day before the move.
- Emptying or not filling your freezer before your moving date also needs to be planned so it can be defrosted and ready to move.
Doing The Packing Yourself
Make sure you have all the essentials for packing before you start packing. It is so frustrating if you run out of these items as you are packing.
- Packing tape
- Bubble wrap & styrofoam
- Old newspapers
- Stretch wrap for furniture
- Marker pens
- Plastic bags
- Labels
- Scissors
- String
- Zip ties
- Have enough boxes to pack in, look for different sizes
- Small, medium and large boxes
- Heavy-duty boxes
- Wardrobe boxes – you can make your own by adding a metal rail into a tall box
- Telescopic cardboard boxes for packing mirrors and artwork
- Use Plastic bags for spillable items. You can remove the caps from bottles and jars, cover them with plastic or clingfilm and put the lid back on. Pack all detergents, cleaning fluids, bottles of cooking oil in a sturdy box with the right way up clearly indicated.
- Rolling your clothes up reduces the amount of space they take up, so you get more into one box. Plus, rolling does lessen the wrinkles, so no need to iron them when you unpack them.
- Pack wires into toilet roll tubes to keep them from tangling.
Working full-time and trying to pack up your home can be difficult, which is why the best plan is to start preparation as early as you can, doing a little at a time. Then booking a week off before your moving date to concentrate solely on the move will be less stressful than trying to fit it all in around your job.
