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GUIDE
TO MOVING WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS
Once you have closed on your new home,
now comes the fun part - moving. Yeah right! Whether you are moving
two streets over or one side of town to the other side, or to some other
state, you have two options for moving - using professional movers or
doing it yourself.
There are pros and cons whichever you
decide, so first sit down and decide how much you can afford to spend,
and what option you feel works best for you. Let's look at what those
differences are:
Professional
Movers
There
are many types of Professional movers. There are those on the less expensive
side of the system, consisting of two to four people with a truck, all
the way up to the executive level of packing and using a large semi-truck
to delivery your belongings. Usually, what you pay for will determine
the level of service you get.
•
Most moving companies will provide boxes. The cost of these boxes will
usually be included in the amount quoted for the move.
• Professional movers will also use padded blankets to protect
your items. These blankets are secured with rope or bungee cords to
ensure no damage occurs from shifting of items.
• If you decide to do the packing, make sure you carefully lebel
each box, specifically pointing out to the movers the boxes that contain
fragile items.
When working with professional movers, one semi-truck may contain several
households so your belongings may not be the first on their route. Speak
to the movers and determine when they are targeting arrival at your
new home. Keep in mind that traffic, construction, weather, can all
be factors in delay. Because of this, it's
important to have phone numbers and e-mail addresses for not only the
movers but also the main office should your belongings not arrive on
time. In addition, make sure they have your phone numbers where you
can be reached as well. If the schedule shows arrival for 5:00 p.m.,
have someone at the house an hour early from 4:00p.m. until the truck
arrives.
Self-Moving
• By visiting
your local grocery or business dumpster, you should be able to find
all the boxes you need. Many businesses throw out boxes of all sizes,
which are also industrial strength. Cost - nothing.
• You can use your own old blankets, pillows,
or towels, or, some rental companies will rent padded blankets to you
for a very small fee. Just make sure that you wrap breakable items carefully
and don't stack boxes of breakables on top of each other.
•Label all boxes carefully. Separate your
fragile items and you might consider moving those in your car instead
of loading them into trucks with your other items.
• When packing your boxes, keep the weight of the box within reason.
If you can't lift it, obviously it's too heavy.
Basic Guidelines
• Before moving, you might want to have
a garage or yard sale. This is a god opportunity for cleaning out the
old and eliminating all those unwanted items from being packed and moved
• Carefully label the boxes containing towels,
toiletries, sheets, etc., so you can unpack those firsthand at least
be able to make your bed and take a shower.
• Other boxes that you want to get into
as soon as you arrive at your new home can simply be labelled with"
Open me first." This might include coffee, eating utensils, or
clothing that you've packed separately to cover a few days.
• If you have children, you could let them
help in writing out the labels. This will free you up to do other things
and, it will help them get used to their new address.
• Especially if you have cats or other small
curious animals, you might want to keep them closed off from packing
as well as the moving day activity. Pets can easily get into boxes without
anyone knowing or, they can quickly run out a door.
• It is a good idea to allow anything electrical to return to
room temperature before plugging it in. For example, if it's extremely
cold outside, condensation could develop. Then, when you go to plug
them in, you could get shocked.
• Be sure to take phone books with you and notify old neighbors
and friends of your new address and phone number, if you already have
the number.
• Try not to pack food that could spoil. Refrigerator items such
as mayonnaise, butter, milk, etc. should be placed on ice in a cooler
and then moved or you could give them away. If moving across the country
where boxes will take days to arrive, so it is not adviseable to pack
any perishable foods at all.
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