Did you know that the average person in the United States will make a total of 11.7 moves in their lives? Moving out is a relatively common thing for most people, but it can certainly be a pain every time. After all, you have to go through the process of packing everything away.
Not only can this take a lot of time but it can also take up a lot of boxes. Learning how to pack for a move in the proper way can save you a lot of time and effort. But where should you start?
Keep reading and learn more about where to start with these packing tips.
First Pack the Items You Don’t Often Use
Some people are in the habit of packing away whatever they see first, but this is almost always a bad idea. This is because if you do that, you will likely end up packing away items that you will need to use at some point in your trip. If that happens, you will have to start rummaging through all the boxes you neatly packed away until you find what you need.
This, of course, is more annoying than anything and it can waste a lot of your time and patience. One of the first things you should do when you pack for a move is to create a packing checklist. This list is exactly what it sounds like: it involves the most important items that you need to pack and that you want to make sure that you don’t forget.
But this list also gives you the opportunity to separate items that you don’t want to pack or at least not right away. For example, suppose that you own a nice TV. You obviously won’t be able to use that TV at any point during your moving process.
The Details
So, this should be one of the first things you should put away. This is the same case with other objects that you won’t need to move during your move such as exercise equipment, certain items of clothing, and so on. This will help you separate a lot of different objects so you won’t have to waste your time going through those boxes in a hurry because you accidentally packed away something that you need.
You might even consider getting rid of a few items and decluttering if you find some objects that you rarely ever use. This, of course, will make the packing process even easier.
Pack Similar Items in the Same Boxes
A good tip to keep yourself from getting confused during your move is to pack similar items in the same boxes. For example, suppose you’re dealing with a lot of kitchen supplies like forks, spoons, and plates. Scattering all of these items throughout different boxes won’t be a big help to anyone.
If anything, it will make unboxing those objects in your new home a real pain. This is because you’ll have to match up a bunch of objects that you put in several different boxes. You might even end up losing some objects by accident through this messy process.
A much simpler way to go about it is to put similar items in the same box. This is especially easy if you pack by the room. That way, you can get everything that is similar in that room and throw it into a box. That way, it will be very easy to categorize those boxes and find your items later on when you move into your new home.
What You Need to Know
It gets even easier if you label the boxes with stickers or by writing down what’s inside on the outside of the box. That way, you’ll know that your dishes are in one box, your silverware is in another, your electronics are in another, and so on. It will save you a lot of time both before, during, and after the moving process if you plan out your packing strategy this way.
Whether you’re moving to California from NY or anywhere else, packing your items in this fashion will make sure that none of your items end up getting lost or broken during the move.
Give Yourself Plenty of Time to Pack
A lot of people think that they can pack away their entire house in just a day or two, but this is rarely the case unless you own only very few items. Most people own many different things, so it will take them a long time to pack them all away. More often than not, the packing process will take far longer than you think.
It might take as long as a week in some cases, especially if you don’t have anyone to help you. For that reason, you should always think ahead and give yourself plenty of time to pack. If you overestimate how fast you can pack, you likely won’t have enough time to get all your stuff together before it’s time to leave for your new home.
If you give yourself an extra few days or even a week to get everything together, you won’t have to be as stressed as you pack.
How to Pack for a Move
Learning how to pack for a move doesn’t have to be hard, but there are certain things you should consider. For example, packing similar items in the same boxes can help you quite a lot. Giving yourself a lot of time to pack and packing the items you don’t need first will also be helpful.
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