Sos Roofline Systems

The first vitally important thing is to choose your packing supplies carefully. It is definitely worth the small expense to buy boxes specifically designed for moving – they are stronger and are designed to absorb the impact of the knocks and bumps when moving. Top quality tape is a must – you may save a dollar on cheaper tape but that saving is blown away when the tape breaks and the contents of the box crash to the floor.

Make sure you have a range of box sizes: small, medium and large. It is better to use the smaller boxes for heavy items like books as they are easier to handle and the size limits the weight. Avoid using newspaper to wrap with as the newsprint ink can rub-off on your finer things and mark your clothes. It is better to use a packing paper, which you can purchase from removal companies. Leave the newspaper as filler/cushioning in your boxes.

Take the opportunity whilst packing to throw away, donate to charity, items you no longer need. You don’t need to waste time packing and unpacking things you no longer use. You’ll start off in your new place with just the things you want and will not waste your valuable storage space.

Pack up one room at a time, label your boxes and make sure you keep a list of what each box contains. Packing one room at a time keeps its contents together – much easier to unpack later. You will also be less likely to miss anything and avoid the race around on move day. If you colour-code each room’s boxes, with different coloured tape, this will improve your move efficiency – you will know what room the boxes belong to in your new home. If you have a list of each box’s contents, unpacking will be a breeze. If you use a unique labelling system (numbers, letters etc.) then it will be much easier to identify each box and then cross reference it against your list of contents – no problems finding items later.

To minimise breakage pack your box with the heavier items on the bottom graduating to the lighter items on the top. This will reduce damage to lighter items being crushed by heavier ones. Cushion each layer of packing with a layer of scrunched up paper to stop them bumping against each other during transportation. Always mark any boxes with “Fragile” for safe handling of fine and valuable items. Avoid putting all heavy items into the same box – they will be extremely difficult to move and you may end up injuring yourself in the process.

Allow yourself lots of time for packing. The more time you have to pack, the more careful and planned your packing will be and the easier the move. The amount of time to pack up a home is often vastly underestimated. If you do not allow enough time to pack, you will create more stress and may find yourself still frantically packing on your move day. Moving in itself is stressful, why add to this stress.