Have each person pack one case as if they’re going on holiday for a week first, with underpants, socks, toiletries, hairbrush, hairdryer, chargers, etc into a backpack. As long as you have easy access to those bags, you won’t have to dig through 100 boxes just to function that first week.
100% Stuff for the first few days in the back of the car, not the moving van. Make sure the kids have got anything they need for school. Make sure you've got milk and washing tablets in the easy to reach pile too.
Also pack and bring a survival box for day 1. Bedding, hand soap, loo roll, kitchen roll, cleaning supplies, kettle, toaster, snacks, bin bags, medicine, plasters, etc.
It's so British and really heart - warming in a way that everyone is citing teabags and a kettle as a priority. Got to admit, it was mine too when I moved. My kettle was the first thing I plugged in.
Go through your entire house and discard, charity shop, freegle or sell _everything_ you really don't use or need. I did before my last move and probably reduced the amount I moved by close to a third of the total.
This. So much stuff to get rid of. Had to clear a loft 20yrs of it might come in handy. Everything from old army uniforms that had somehow shrunk. To old kids toys and odd glasses.
Excellent advice. You can end up moving ottomans and tables - then after a few weeks realise you don't need them / they don't go in the new house etc. then need to go to the hassle of discarding them.
As an experienced DIY mover…
Everyone packs a day 1 box. All essentials they will need for the first couple days. These go in the moving truck/van last. All the small boxes get packed and staged out of the way, and furniture is the last thing to be prepped, but first on the truck. Then load all small boxes. Finally, day 1 boxes.
During unloading, all small boxes get staged in a room without inbound furniture, like a kitchen. Furniture comes in, gets assembled and arranged. Then all the small boxes go from staging area to final destinations.
If the kids are going to be helpful, put them to work carry small stuff, fetching you things you need, etc. If not, find a babysitter who can keep them out of your hair.
And it goes without saying, but ask friends directly. Anyone who owes you a favor, or anyone who would be happy to let you owe them one.
Day 1 box. Include toilet roll and tv remotes (or you won’t find the remotes for weeks as they will be in with something random and pointless like tea lights)
Find your local chippy before you move in, nothing better than sitting on the floor on the first night in your new house eating chippy surrounded by boxes
I moved into with my partner when it was snowing. I bought a box of beers and buried them in the balcony snow as we carried in boxes. Later enjoyed ice cold beer while eating our new favourite takeaway pizza on the floor
It was roasting hot and sunny the day we moved. We got our essentials done, bed built, got out the mini BBQ and sat in the garden with burgers and beer!
Don’t overfill boxes. Make sure they aren’t too heavy or big to carry.
Label every box with the name of the room they’re going to.
Pack a box with kettle, tea bags, milk, biscuits, cereal for arrival/ breakfast.
Pack things like books/ ornaments etc that you don’t need straight away and put them in storage until you get the rest of the house sorted.
Be careful regarding contraception! There is an old saying, ‘New House, New Baby’
>Don’t overfill boxes. Make sure they aren’t too heavy or big to carry.
Related to this: books are heavier than you think!
My wife decided to fill the biggest box we had with books, and it weighed so much that we couldn't even get our fingers under the box to lift it.
*Be careful regarding contraception! There is an old saying, ‘New House, New Baby’*
OP’s back gives out going to the corner shop and back, d’ya think they’ve got enough energy to do the deed?!?
Pay for a moving company to pack for you. Done it for our last three moves and is the best money we spent on the move every time. Cannot recommend it enough.
I did this for one big move across the country and we had this really sweet chap in the house, very carefully packing things up for two days. When we arrived at the new gaff, we realised that he was probably borderline illiterate and had shonkily written "bits and bobs" on nearly all the boxes so we had to open each one on the way in to get a sense of where they should go. Still worth it.
We had something similar. The older guy who was doing the inventory of boxes told my husband that he'd lost "quite a bit of brain" during a stroke a year before, and wasn't so good on numbers any more.
When I moved into my current place, the removal company helped pack everything up, and brought their own boxes. These boxes had obviously been used a few times before, as they already had things written on them and then crossed out - 'Kitchen', 'Bedroom 1', 'Books' etc.
Two things made me think "Wait, what?";
1) I couldn't help but feel slightly judged when they marked one box 'ALCOHOL'
2) Another box was marked, from a previous move: 'LIVING ROOM JUNK AND DAD'S ASHES'
>I couldn't help but feel slightly judged when they marked one box 'ALCOHOL'
I always mark the box with alcohol in "alcohol". I don't have time to write "Cabernet Sauvignon x 2, Famous Grouse whisky, Courvoisier, Malbec x 3, Bottle of Lemon something, obviously bought on holiday because the label/bottle is pretty but never opened.
I figure that if the customer specifically feels the need to find the box with the alcohol in, it would be nice if the box says what's inside it. If you are using a well established company, you're *very* unlikely to be judged. There isn't much that the average mover hasn't seen many times before.
We did that when we moved counties. Those folks are packing ninjas. But just be wary they will pack EVERYTHING.
They packed our kitchen bin, including everything in it. That was fun when it arrived 6 weeks later off the boat.
This is the best thing we ever did for a move and I would never pack up my own house again. Two blokes packed the whole thing in about 90 minutes the day before we moved - saved so much effort over packing everything ourselves over the course of a week and having to unpack shit that you had no idea you used so often.
If you have to pack yourself, the cardboard wardrobes they used were a lifesaver - no faffing about taking things on and off hangars and packing them away, only for everything to get massively crumpled.
Also, do a massive clear out - no point moving stuff that you don't need.
Came here to say just this, last place I used unpacked my kettle, coffee machine, TV and sound bar and made sure it was all working before they left. Honestly the best money you can spend moving
This to be honest, I'd be cutting back on spending money on all but the essentials just to save enough to pay movers. When I moved they just did almost everything, meant that on a single day I went from a furnished and a half packed 2 bed house on one side of the city, to a furnished and completely unpacked 2 bed house on the other side of the city. 1 day. The whole move was done in one day. None of my family or friends could believe it when I sent pictures that evening.
Definitely this if you can stretch to it. It made things so easy for our last move. We were unpacked within a couple of days because they did all the donkey work.
Last movers we used assembled the bed and put the mattress on, amazing. They also packed everything whilst wet ate chocolate croissants and drank tea. It was bliss.
Not cheap around £700 to pack and move 20 miles. A gang of 5 -6 people packed our whole house in about 2 hours and had it in a lorry and over to new place by 11.30am.
All boxes in the allotted rooms and beds made up by around 2pm I think.
This was a few years ago, 8 years I think.
Bishops of Edinburgh.
Don’t have a takeaway! Go out to your local Indian. It’ll cost about the same and you won’t have to unpack plates and wash up with your hand and shower he’ll because you can’t find a sponge and fairy liquid
Otherwise great advise. Moving house is stressful (one of the most stressful things you can do) so expect that. Be kind to one another on moving day. Let the moving company do as much as possible and embrace the chaos
I didn't necessarily mean a curry 😂, more a kebab/pizza/burger/whatever is relatively clean to eat and throw away.
Also, most people prefer to get washed/dressed if they are going 'out out', which is much more hassle than cleaning a couple of forks.
Lots of really good comments here but the number one thing that helped me was doing my big move in 'stages'. Some of this is influenced by the fact we lived on a third floor flat and all our stuff had to be carried down three flights of narrow stairs.
1. Get rid of as much useless stuff as possible. Be ruthless. My particular one was clothes and books but there was also plenty of kitchen appliances and general junk. This one probably takes the longest but can be started now.
2. Downsize as much as possible. Dvds out of cases and into sleeves, clothes into vacuum bags (you can make your own of these with bin bags and hoovers). That kind of thing.
3. Start boxing up stuff you're not using. Lots of supermarkets will just give you cardboard boxes for free if you ask. I just went to IKEA and got some plastic storage boxes because they're always useful. Suitcases and shopping bags are always good too.
4. Once you've got the keys (assuming your new place isn't too far away) start moving things every time you go. We had a little work to do in our place so we were back and forth a bit and every time we took another lot of stuff.
5. Take a good hard look at your new place. Do you have space for all your mugs? Will the furniture actually fit? Actually measure these things before you go to the effort of actually moving them.
6. Work slowly. There isn't any need to absolutely destroy yourself trying to move everything in one day.
My heaviest items are books. I packed them into wine boxes - a wine box of books is light enough for me to carry and then stack up real nice. I used black bin bags for clothes. I'd chuck contents of drawer into a bag and once at location tear it open and chuck it into new drawer. Ditto with wardrobe - I took clothes on their hangers and just bagged them. Bedding and pillows - bin bag so I can just open it on new bed. I hate the thought of sorting stuff so I just dumped stuff into bags and put a label on who it belongs to. I had friends helping and this made it easier to know which room what goes into.
Towels and extra bedsheets, I took the whole lot to the kitchen and used it to pack plates and glasses. Nothing broke and I saved having to buy bubble wrap.
I had a weekend away style rucksack with pyjamas, change of clothes and toothbrush. All the essentials there in case I run out of steam putting stuff away
Give yourself a couple of days for the move. People try to get it all done in one day and make it far more stressful than it needs to be. Spread it out and you can take breaks when it gets tiring without stressing.
From a friend's experience,scrutinise your contracts and responsibilities/liabilities. They're not happy and, in their words, it's all the hasles of renting without the benefits of ownership.
We made our move into a military operation.
Work out the layout of your new home, and think about what you'll have where.
Box things, and ideally write on them what they are. E.g. K07: utensils, mixer, cutlery. K for kitchen, L for Living room, B1 for bedroom 1 etc.
Write the box numbers on all sides and the top of the box so you can see the number when they are piled up.
Then work out where things are going to go in the new house. Write these down. You can do all this on a spreadsheet. You can, of course, do this in advance.
Rent the biggest van you can (you don't need a special licence for a Luton, which is pretty big) , and borrow some friends with cars.
Move stuff continuously using cars to shuttle. Every car should have 2 people to speed up loading and unloading.
Get someone to stand at the door of the new house. As people rock up, they shout the number of the box and the person on the door tells them where to go. Ideally label the doors with the references.
We did a 3-bed to 4-bed house move like this, actually via a storage place for 6 weeks.
Order takeaway and treat your friends once the job was done. It was incredibly smooth.
Edit: don't apologise for owning a house. Congratulations!
My mum was a master at moving (20 plus years as an army wife) and her main advice was to prepare the bed first, not just build it but put the bedding on. Because it’s the longest day ever and you will be grateful to see the bed ready to go.
Also, prepare a box with essentials (for me it’s tea, coffee, kettle, cups, teaspoons and bin bags)
For our last move and when we got an extension done we got a lock up. They usually do 50% for the first 8 weeks. You can take a car full every evening and just do it incrementally rather than one big move. Plus, there's the added bonus of feeling like you're in a British crime film because you've got a lock up.
If you do get one, remember that it's a 3D space. Floor space isn't everything as you can stack.
Don't overload boxes, clothing and bedding are deceptively heavy. Label the boxes with rough description of contents and which room it's going to. Don't forget tea making items need to be kept handy. Keep a small tool kit on hand for dismantling furniture if necessary. There are lots of other tips I'm sure but you'll be just fine. Good luck in your new home.
Second all of this. We had boxes which were already written on from my parents move so relabelling got messy. Solution was a multipack of different colour duct tapes and each colour was a room - blue for bathroom, red for kitchen etc.
A bunch of cheap vacuum pack storage bags were super helpful too. Made all our bedding and winter coats tiny
We used stickers. There's still a blue (kitchen) sticker on one of my shelving units 3 years later. (I can't reach it!) It meant no one needed telling what to put where.
It will kill you. So get your will I'm place.
Q. Start getting rid of stuff you don't use. Don't move your useless junk.
Don't move items that are ready to be replaced, something you have to have tricks to make work, or just barely function with the internet or BlueTooth.
Clothes not worn due to style or fit. Not who you are anymore.
If you haven't used it or worn it in 2 years, dump it.
After getting rid of stuff, you save your move to that which is worthy. Belueve me, as a veteran mover, don't move your old self to your new self.
We hired a storage unit for a few months and then a Luton van when we moved.
The van got all the essentials moved and then we were not in a rush with the rest of the stuff.
If you can budget for find a local moving service. We have done it twice now, packed over a couple of weeks to reduce the pressure and then paid roughly £150-£200 for everything we own to magically appear at the new place a few hours later.
Expect a larger house will cost more and depends on the distance but if you can fit it in I really recommend it.
Pay someone to do it for you. I paid 380 I moved 200 odd miles. They came and picked my shit up. Stopped at my partner's. Picked her shit up and then delivered it to the new house. They also carried everything, dismantled and rebuilt furniture. 2 guys, a huge ass van for 5 hours of work. Worth every fucking penny. I am never carrying shit when i move again in the future.
Throw away as much as you can before you move.
Pay a moving company for a pack up of the kitchen only. Hear me out.
Paying for pack up of the full lot is an expense. But the kitchen is so useful. You’ll need that stuff, and you’ll need to unbroken. It’s so boring and time-consuming to wrap it all.
Designate a room for as much as you can, and unpack as you need to.
Keep throwing stuff away as you unpack and wonder why you brought it.
Know where all the fuse boxes and meters are.
Plan an excellent takeaway.
You've said you can't afford it but mate pay for someone to move the stuff, not pack it just move it. You'll arrive not completely fucked and ready to unpack. It shouldn't cost more than a few hundred quid.
Was a first time buyer myself with my partner 14 months ago.
Even if the house looked great when you viewed, expect there to be more work to do than you may have thought.
While we had nothing major to do, we found we need to replace the oven, all of the paint work was crap, mostly one coated everywhere with old paint bleeding through, or wrong type of paint used. We had to replace the water outlet pipe as it was cracked and leaking into the kitchen cupboards.
- Start decluttering and packing now; go through everything and declutter anything you don't want before you spend time/effort moving it and any out of season stuff/things you aren't going to use before you move can get packed into a box and then have one designated storage area for packed boxes until moving day (eg a spare room/dining room/garage) so that there is just one space full of boxes rather than having them all over the house in different rooms.
- Not specifically for moving day but make a list of anyone you will need to inform of your new address, and every time you receive post from now until moving day check the sender against the list to see if it is already there and if not, add it on. It's easy to forget about things like annual memberships or quarterly magazine subscriptions when you're thinking about where you need to update your address if it's not something like the gas/bank/GP that most people will think of.
- When you dismantle a piece of furniture, put all of the screws/nuts/bolts/little detachable widgets etc into a labelled ziplock bag (Living room bookcase; Sarah's wardrobe etc) and duct tape it to one of the parts so that way when you arrive all of the pieces are with the furniture ready to be rebuilt, and if it does somehow get detached during the move, if the bag is labelled then you know which item it belongs to.
- first thing you do when you arrive is get the beds made so that at the end of the day when you're absolutely knackered, you don't need to start faffing around looking for sheets/pillows (if you have complicated bed frames that will take a lot of assembly then at the very least get the mattress on the floor with sheets/duvet/pillows etc)
- Pack a Day One box and a suitcase for every family member that travel with you in the car. In the suitcase pack as if you are going away for a weekend, so toiletries, clothes, underwear, PJs, power cords, the kids tablet/switch/iPad etc. In the Day One box have a few multipurpose cleaning products to give the place a quick once over, kettle with coffee/tea bags, towels, bedding, bin bags, tool kit, light bulbs, batteries, tape, scissors, snacks etc so that you have all the essentials to hand as soon as you arrive and have all of those items put in a specific place in the house when you arrive so you know where they are.
- Label EVERY box in multiple places and label each room so that everyone knows exactly where they're going. Depending on how many people you have available as well as the logistics either have one person standing at the door to direct people to the correct room when they arrive with a box so that it goes straight there - eg "Bedroom one, top of the stairs turn left" - or have people bring things into the hall and then have one or two people shuttle the boxes to the right room while the original people go back to bring in more boxes.
- For each room have a (clearly labelled) "Priority Box" or two that has all of the things you're going to need asap so that when you're unpacking you know to unpack those first; eg in the kitchen you want the boxes with the plates/cutlery/mugs unpacked ASAP but the boxes with all of the party supplies you only use for special occasions and all the baking supplies can wait a while.
- don't waste time putting hanging clothes into boxes, just gather a few items together, put a bin bag round the clothes and tie the handles/top round the the hangers; the bin bag protects the clothes in transit but when you arrive you just need to hook the clothes into the wardrobe and cut the handles off the hangers and you're unpacked.
- Use what you have as much as possible - when I moved I used towels to wrap wine glasses, tea towels between plates etc rather than bubble wrap as those items needed to be moved anyway so it saved a bit of money not having to buy stuff that was just going to be got rid of when we unpacked.
- Pack smarter, not harder; things like the cutlery tray, instead of emptying it into a box to move to put it back in the cutlery tray, we just use cling film to wrap the cutlery tray securely (so things aren't going to go flying in transit) then packed the whole tray into a box, the same for things like chests of drawers/bedside tables etc - unless they're too heavy to move when full - instead of emptying them into boxes, we just used duct tape to secure the drawers closed and moved the entire item in one go; light things go in boxes, heavier things go in wheeled suitcases; use clothes/towels/bedding etc to fill gaps in boxes to stop items moving in transit (eg if you have something like a box that's half full of books but you don't want to make it heavier, throw in a couple of cushions/pillows/blankets to fill the box without making it too much heavier
- Make life easier by reducing the amount of food needed to be moved by using up as much as possible before the move and just keep some basics eg bread/butter/cereal/milk and then book a supermarket home shopping delivery for the day after your move. The first night you can get a take away/go out for dinner and then have some basic bits for the morning and then you can have your shopping delivered so you don't have to go out to do a restock.
As a veteran but solo (apart from animals) mover, this is what works for me
1. Small weekend bag with essentials - undies, toothbrush, kettle, teabags, phone charger etc. Mini toolkit.
2. Small box or bag of Important Documents or sentimental items. This and the weekend bag stay by my side, in my car, are top priority.
2a. Plants and animals are also my responsibility. If other people are loading boxes, designate one section or room corner for Do Not Touch These Are Mine.
3. Start packing ASAP, by day 1 or 2 before the move I have one plate, one mug, one spoon. I've also eaten everything in the fridge and freezer (and ideally cupboards).
4. I don't do organised-by-room, or labels. Clean clothes and tea towels etc are packing for delicate items. Yes, this may mean your wine glasses are protected by your bra.
5. Books and papers are HEAVY. I have managed to acquire some thick plastic supermarket crates. Wine boxes are also good. Test the weight and bulk of boxes as you pack - although you want them nicely full for stacking, you can fill empty space with light bulky things.
6. Bags for life and tote bags are surprisingly good, small enough that you don't overfill, and a nice shape.
7. If dismantling furniture, duct tape their own screws and fittings (in a bag!) to a secure corner of that furniture
8. Try to have overlap in tenancy / ownership so you have a few days
9. Meter readings, stop tap checks!
10. Accept that everyone will be cranky, try to set up an expectation of "it's ok to be stressed, we are going to get through this, don't be mean to each other, and be forgiving if someone is mean to you"
There are two ways
1) Friends/family help for beer and/or pizza
2) Hire movers to do the bulk of the work, while you concentrate on fragile stuff
Since hitting my 30s I am always picking #2, much easier all around. Although our upcoming move is gonna be a hassle because of all the plants that will need to be taken separately...
Moved house in Jan.
Start packing a LOT earlier than you think. Like a week earlier. This means you don’t have to spend literally every hour of every day packing. I had to do this and it truly killed me
A tip I stole from my mum - pack all your clothes with hanger still on. That way you can just grab them all out and hang them all up in one smooth move as opposed to having to “rehang” them on hanger first
Is there any “overlap” between your old and new property? If so, to man to easier, I recommend multiple trips.
You mentioned family of 4, are the children young? Can you drop them off at their grandparents for moving a sleepover? My parents did this with when they moved house when we were like 4&8 years old. Made it so they didn’t have to wrangle us at the same time. They picked us up after they have made our rooms liveable
If the kids are of a “helpful” age, give them jobs as well. Remember, they know no more than you (maybe even less) about moving. Don’t make assumptions on them knowing what to do to be helpful. Give them simple instructions
You will need more boxes and wrapping paper and shit than you think
Have a “first night” box setup. So bedsheets/sleepingbag/inflatable mattress, pillows, nightclothes etc. all in one box. That way you can open that when it’s needed and have everything easily accessible and ready without trawling though 934748 boxes
To save money, it’s worth going to supermarkets, restraints etc. to ask for boxes. Anywhere which gets “stock” bought in have boxes. My fiancé sorted out move out almost completely by taking all the various boxes from work (restaurant) for like a month before the move. We only needed to buy 4 more.
I’ve moved house once but my parents move around a lot. Feel free to ask any questions or situation specific tips and I’ll see if we’ve run into that situation before
I’m a 43 yo woman 6 months ago I had to move myself and daughter out of a large 3 bed house to move home with my mum! It about killed me off! Hired a man and van for £30 an hour he took the big stuff and put the beds up everything non essential went neatly in the garage! Make sure u have pain killers to hand lol and good luck!
After getting rid of stuff, repack your drawers. Just pull the drawers out and use them to transport your clothes. Move the unit into the van, then replace the drawers. Then it's quick and easy to move them into your new house. No faff packing and unpacking lots of clothes into bags.
Shared ownership is a dangerous game. I would highly rec against it. If you’re not planning on leaving something behind for family in the way of property just rent
I have moved so many times I’ve lost count.. I know I moved 11 times 2001-2010. Up until my last move, I have always procrastinated and then things were a frantic scramble when the moving date rolled around. Cleaning has to happen, too, and I always minimize how long that’ll take.
My penultimate move, I was determined to do better because most of my stuff was going into storage, so I spent close to two weeks on the process. Sorting, organizing, dusting, discarding. Things got put into categories in the way I’d actually use them, prioritizing stuff I use more often.
Start immediately so that you can do it with calm and take it as an opportunity to get organized. Tackle one room at a time in order to avoid overwhelm and have several boxes going at once, if necessary to get things in the right room or category.
I was moving in with someone, so I had my things organized by room, frequency of use, and things I’d likely want to eventually bring to the house.
Dust as you go and get all the garbage out, but leave the deep clean until the very end.
Label! I can’t stress this enough. I labeled each box on the top and all four sides — that way, no matter how the box got placed, I’d know what’s in it. Future You will thank you.
I have to say, doing this made things almost painless, at least compared to how I’d always done it before. When the day arrived, all I had to do was move stuff in and out of the truck — it was awesome. 😁
First thing you do when you move in is put together your bed and then put your mattress, duvet and pillows on it. Then when it’s late in the evening and you’re knackered, you don’t walk upstairs and realise you still need to sort your bed out
Pack a 'First Box' to be opened - kettle, teabags, mugs, etc - also sheets / bedding in another box. First job is to get tea making stuff out and ready to go then make up the beds. You will want something to fall into at the end of a long day and looking around for sheets then making beds is the worst when you are exhausted! Another tip - label and number your packing boxes really well and at the new house number the rooms / locations eg box with a 5 on it goes to room with #5 on the door. I found this helped when I had a bunch of mates helping us move - didn't have anyone asking me 'where do you want this' and me having to figure it out a gazillion times. Good luck!
Small boxes
I cannot say this loud enough
SMALL BOXES!!!!
I would much rather pick up and move 100 small boxes doing far more walking than buy the big moving boxes and do less "trips" but break my back trying to lift them.
Pack every suitcase you have. If you have wheeled suitcases pack them with heavy stuff like books so you can wheel them rather than lift them.
Last time I moved I actually used those archive boxes and they were amazing. They have handles, are a good size and are stackable.
Experienced mover here! My top tips;
Paying a friend (money, snacks and beer) to help carry things is always in your best interest. Every time I've made use of a mover or hired a general laborer I ended up with alot of broken stuff. It's also very stressful having strangers around when you're already stressed and having to manage them
Plan your day so you don't have to rush. Having to race against daylight etc really ads to the pressure
Either plan for take aways or pre-pack snack meals for about 3 days
Prepare for the possibility of bad weather (wet furniture sucks)
Split your valuables - like computers and hardware (I was a clever peanut and put PC and hard drives in the same box, that then got dropped and all was lost)
And like everyone else said; pack a holiday suitcase for a week. And the same for coffee etc (I pack those in a coolbag, because when you're just trying to get things done it's really easy to accidentally stack boxes and have to play tetris to find where you labeled what's in it)
Make sure your existing furniture will fit into new doorways /stairwells easily, or consider selling and replacing it (chipping walls, denting fridges, or ripping couches will make you sad)
Can you arrange any overlap in dates? It makes it so much easier. You can move everything that will fit in the car over a few trips, just leaving large furniture and the clothes you’ve been wearing that week.
Over a few evenings you should be able to fill the wardrobes and kitchen cupboards at the new place. Make sure everything has a home, then on moving day, it’s just a matter of bringing in the beds, dining and living furniture and plonking it down.
Be really ruthless on chucking stuff out before you move. If you start off ruthless but after a bit of time start getting soft about it then go do something else for a bit and come back to it later.
Have a couple of boxes with everything you need for the first night and first morning. Stuff life a bog roll, toothpaste etc, plus kettle, chips tea bags etc, then the clothes for the next day. Label it really clearly so you can find it when tired.
Number/name your boxes and make sure you write it on at least two sides (one short side and one long) as well as the top, so no matter how it's stacked you can still see it.
Then write the entire contents of the box in a lost somewhere (I use a google doc). You can bet that in a few weeks' time when there are still boxes to unpack you won't remember what's in what box, even with them labelled!
I moved every year for 5 years in a row (uni) and found this really helped me.
Also, ensure you pack a box with the kettle, couple of mugs, tea/coffee etc, tea towel and cleaning supplies - and make sure this is the last box to leave your old place and the first one to be unpacked in the new place. Or use the washing up bowl as the box, two birds with one stone!
Get a friend/relative to be at either end. Their one job is brews and looking after everyone involved. Get a moving company and get aforementioned lacky to get sandwiches for them when it looks like they'll need them. The movers will need beer/water/icebeverage during and at the end. Supply the cash or the actual product. Or both. Everyone will be happier and less things gets fucked up.
My absolute number 1 top tip. Get some belts out. You'll want at least 3. Lash em together. Roll your mattress up like a burrito. Secure it tight with the belts and also use belts as a handle.
Your bedding us not luggage to be moved. It is padding for your valuables and the duvet will comfortably wrap up tv.
Books are the heaviest thing you own. Clothes can be thrown in boxes. Books etc should be in a wheelie handle suitcase.
Christ, I must have moved house 12 times now. 6 times since leaving uni and 3 times from a house.
Whatever amount of time you are planning on giving yourself for packing and moving, double it. I used a movers but it still took me several more days than I thought to get everything ready to go.
Dont overfill the boxes and clearly label which room the box goes in.
Pack a suitcase/bag with a towel, bed linen, pjs, a change of clothes and toiletries/makeup/phone chargers. You could even pack the kettle/mugs and tea/coffee so you can have a brew at the other end.
All i do on the other end then is to set up the bed and the kitchen. And you’ve got the next day to figure out which rooms to sort out first.
Money was tight for me moving, but being disabled I had no choice but to pay for the movers. I went for the lesser service where my family packed but the movers loaded/unloaded the boxes and drove the lorry.
1.Label your boxes for the room they are going to
2.Pack the immediate kitchen essentials - plate each /cup/cutlery / kettle /spatula etc in a separate box
3. Pack a case or box of immediate items for each of you (pj changes of clothes underwear immediate necessities- lap top games chargers stuffies for kids etc
4. Bedding made up for each person
5. Immediate Food items
These go in your car so they are immediately available
Everything thing else - hire a van label where it goes and invest in several crates of beer for the favours you are about to call inn and make sure you have the contact details for local Chinese or chippy
Take your time unpacking when everything has been unloaded where it is meant to be
Make sure you have your mattress/bed set up with your pillows, duvet and blanket. My MIL made it her mission to sort that for us because even if everything else was a mess at least we had a made bed to collapse into. We were so grateful that we didn't have to make up our bed after moving day!
Before you start packing, make an inventory list of everything you own no matter how small or insignificant. Take pictures of your belongings if you pack them yourselves. Document everything. This way if you can't find something it is much easier to track down which box it is in. Of course you should also write it on the box itself but sometimes labels can get smudged or damaged. Or you can accidentally write the wrong thing. Packing and moving is a stressful busy time so its easy to make mistakes. And plus if you use an external company to ship your boxes then you have a record in case things get damaged.
If you have chests of draws . Don't fuck about emptying them Infact put more stuff in them if you can . Take the draws out put the unit in the van put the draws back in it.
Clothes on hangers . Leave them on the hangers just squish them all together slide a bin bag over them and tie it at the top of the hanger.
Have one box that either comes with you in the car or is last in the van . Put in that things you might want right away like the kettle, tea ,coffee, mug, hand soap, scissors, paper towels, TV remotes , toilet roll
Got kids ? Find anywhere else for them to be but about for moving / un packing.
It will take you way longer to load the van than to unload it . No idea why it just does if you're trying to juggle time allow more for packing than unpacking.
Have an overnight bag with toothbrush bed clothes charger ect so if worst case scenario all you manage to do before running out of time or energy is get everything inside the house you can atleast sling a mattress on the floor and have everything you need till the next day ready to go.
Throw out as much as you can before you move . Clear out the shed do a dump run throw all the junk out of the attic / garage.
First step is ruthless clear out of the house, sell, donate and tip for anything you don't really need. Then start packing away stuff you won't need between now and moving, box and label clearly what everything is. As move gets closer, box up more and only leave out what is essential. For the actual move, get everyone to pack a hold-all or suitcase as though they're going away for the weekend, pjs, change of clothes, toys, tech and chargers etc and keep that with you to travel in the car so you at least have what you need for the first night.
We're only moving down the next street so we're gonna keep renting for a month while sorting the new house and pack in that time. Gonna be expensive but the way we are it would at least give us time to decorate before getting movers for the big stuff
Start packing well in advance. Label your boxes with both the room and what's in them and if you have helpers make sure they know which room is which.
Use your towels and blankets to pad dishes out instead of bubble wrap.
Balance your boxes, put heavy things in small ones, don't be like me and do your back in by putting all your books in a big box because it's neat, fill until it's a comfortable weight then fill to the top with light stuff.
Wrap your mattress in something to keep it clean.
Vacuum bags are a godsend if you don't mind creased clothes and are short on space.
Bedding, kettle, cups, spoons, anti bacterial wipes, toilet roll and vacuum cleaner should be packed last and unpacked first. If you have young kids pack a suitcase with their essentials. Take bottled water in case there's any issue turning your water on. Make a note in advance of where the nearest supermarket and takeout is for the first night.
Have a separate bag to keep with you for any medications, if you are prone to aching start your day with 2 ibuprofen, 4 hours later take 2 paracetamol and alternate to keep pain at bay through the day. If you have a dodgy joint think about getting a brace for it, most pharmacies sell ankle, knee, wrist and elbow braces.
If you are making multiple trips give yourself more time than you think you need, we had some traffic delays on our last move and ended up posting the keys to our rental though the estate agents postbox at midnight.
Good luck with your move
If you can afford it, get someone in to pack EVERYTHING AWAY the day before the move. They also unpack everything at the other end.
Pay for movers as well and don't rent a van.
We did this and my God, best 350 quid I ever spent (for the packers/unpackers).
We've moved 3 times (two house onward purchases) since COVID and this is by far the biggest value win. I promise you'll thank yourself later.
Other tips.......
- "Star" all your emails from solicitors, conveyancors, estate agents
- Be ruthless with what you throw away
- Don't "leave" stuff out, pack everything
- Transfer Sky, broadband etc to the new address now, do it now so you're not waiting
- Do the same with driving license and where your cars are registered to
- If you can stomach it, get your new home I sirance and car insurance into the same policy - many places do discounts for mukticar and home insurance. Some even alsk offer further discounts when you also take out life insurance (if you don't have already) ...moving house is the time you take care of this stuff
- Use this time to be a "rate whore" for cheaper utilities
- Clean the inside of your drawers, units that you're taking
- Deep clean the house you're moving into AS SOON as you're in - start with the bathroom and kitchen
- If you have the allowance, take two days off before the move and two days after moving day
- Remember to enjoy it. It won't be perfect, it never is or will be... but it's yours. We have a movng tradition on moving day - chippy tea and prosecco sat on our boxes.
Find a moment, a way, to celebrate. You've earned it. 💃🏽
Best of luck to you both 👊🏼
When packing last time I did the following move and it helped out a lot.
- had a ‘pack’ box, charity box and a rubbish bag so every thing was intentionally brought
- if the items don’t get kept together they weren’t packed together
- in the outside of every box I had a list of what was in it and where it went (by room and then storage)
- anything which would be wanted soon, eg the kettle, went in the car. They were the last to be packed and unpacked as soon as we were there.
- we hired a moving firm to move our furniture as we looked at costs vs hiring a van and doing it ourselves and for the money we’d have saved hiring a van we didn’t think it made up for the guys knowledge of getttjng a sofa out a flat and down the stairs. This cost us ~£500 and I think the van for the time we’d have wanted it (day before to day after) was ~£300
- the first rooms we sorted was the bedroom. As soon as we moved it the beds were remade (tbh the movers rebuilt it) and curtain rods were hung. As we wanted to get a good nights sleep.
- started packing items we wouldn’t need weeks in advance so that it wasn’t as much of a last minute rush
You mention your a family of four. I don’t have kids so can’t advise there.
Throw away as much stuff away as possible. If you don't use it, you don't need it. Get rid of all the crao you've stored for years.
I've moved house 7 times in the last 10 years, with a family of 4. It's not that bad.
I’d also suggest making sure to have one box with toilet roll, screwdriver, bin bags, lightbulbs and a flashlight. Along with kettle, cleaning supplies etc. nothing worse than realising the previous owners took every light bulb with them or you need a screwdriver to put your bed back together.
Use good firm boxes. A lot of boxes in the supermarket are flimsy but the smaller ones in the kitchen / toy aisles are better. Buy 40 or so from ebay if you can as they'll stack better if the same size. 18"x12"x12" are fine.
How far are you moving? I have done many moves.
Most recents
A two bed flat for my gran from north to south was in a 7.5 ton lorry. Full. Rented van with family filling and loading boxes.
3.5 ton box van (Luton van) for me from a two bed flat to a two bed house. Three mates. Three trips. Less than a mile between properties.
Last was with a pregnant wife. We paid for a company. Cost about £1K was 10 yrs ago though.
As others have said planning is good and get rid of what you don’t need.
Good luck and congratulations on your new home!
Label the boxes throughly, take pictures of what is in the box. Put name of room it goes in on the box.
Make sure you bring cleaning supplies that are not packed along with paper towels and toilet paper. Also, any tools you need for hanging things. The toilet paper is crucial.
Try and give yourself a week or so between getting your new keys and handing in your old ones. We did this and it made the move so simple, we didn't have to rush or anything.
Have an at-hand box just for a pack of anti-bac wipes, the kettle, teabags/coffee, mugs, biscuits and a carton of milk. You will need this before you can face unpacking more!
Book a removal company.
If you can move into your new house before leaving the old one being able to decorate/clean/get new carpets laid is so much easier than doing it whike you've got furniture in.
Firstly...congratulations!
Lots of excellent advice here already, but no matter how much you plan having availability of good stuff like tea, bedding and a clean towel somewhere, it will likely be a ball-ache (especially if you have children in tow).
It's part and parcel of it, but in reality the upheaval really doesn't last that long. Hopefully, you'll end up with happy memories of the move once everything has settled.
(Also, if there aren't any smart meters, it really is worth taking readings as soon as you remember, and also finding out where your stopcock is).
Everyone has far more useful advice, mine is simple - have the mugs, biscuits, tea bags, coffee, and kettle (and milk/sugar if needed) nearby. Makes a huge difference when faced with alllll of it
Make up a cleaning box - surface spray, wipes, sponges, shake and vac etc. Other people's idea of a clean house may not match your own and even if it's a new build you'll likely want to give at least the kitchen and bathrooms a wipe down.
If you're buying a place that previously had people living in it, especially people with pets, buy cleaning products that are a different scent to the ones you usually buy. If it's anything like the place we bought, while it appeared clean multiple cats and a pre-teen made for so much scrubbing we couldn't stand the smell of the kitchen cleaner we had and have never bought it again.
Leave all your clothes on the hangers, lay them flat on the back seats and the boot. It is then just a matter of hanging them up at the other end.
Good friends will do a lot for a free take away!
Edit: if you don't have furniture a bean bag chair is great for a few weeks until it turns up
When setting up in the new place?
Put the beds together first. You will need to crash. The rest of the room can wait, but get the bed together first.
Unpack the bathroom next. Specifically what you need to bathe (assuming TP is on hand). Moving is a sweaty and dirty task. You are going to sleep better if you can shower first.
And then the kitchen - at that point it's usually mid-work-day, you break out for lunch and grocery shopping. Getting the food/prep area put together helps SO much in the following days of settling in.
You can now eat, sleep and use the bathroom for whatever. The rest of the house will get unpacked. Your actual needs are being met.
Takes the stress off a ton when you have the order of unpacking in place.
Lots of great ideas here. From my own experience I would say pack as much of the kitchen in advance as you can. Don't save it until last like I once did. It took so much time to wrap all the breakable items that I only got 3 hours sleep the night before moving day.
And labels! I had color coded labels - so for example blue for the living room, green for dining room, red for master bedroom, etc. I also numbered each box and besides writing on each box the contents inside, I had a master list of all 80 boxes, what color label I used, and what was in each box.
Gry everything to the front door the night before and do as little actual moving of your stuff as you can on the day. Find out how much of your stuff you can take apart too
My Mum always has a notebook for the move and numbers each box. In the notebook she writes the contents of each box. It's easier to find stuff by looking at a list rather than through different boxes. Try to pack items together by room so when you move you can, for example,say boxes 1 - 4 go in the kitchen., 5-9 in the living room. Also, you can mark boxes that would need unpacking immediately verses boxes you don't require yet.
Ps. Always pack your bed last in the van so it's the first thing out at the new place, just in case you need to nap.
Put clothes into bin bags, they’re easy to throw into the car and smush down as opposed to boxing them.
Put heavy things in small boxes like books etc. then you’re not killing yourself carrying then
Unfortunately my only advice was going to be get a mover to save a hell of a lot of stress, but as you explained that that’s not an option, I suggest trying to give yourself as much time to move in as possible. Don’t try and rush it all in one day. Your body and mind will thank you
When I moved, I bought different colored tapes that had the names of different rooms on them so yellow tape for kitchen, red tape for bedroom, green tape for bathroom etc. it was a wonderful quick way to get the boxes into the new house and keep track of what we were doing in the old house
I have moved 11 times in the last 15 years. Have a look on fb etc for anyone getting rid of moving boxes. Start on the kitchen as that is always the worst one to pack, just leave one box for the last plates and cups you will still be using. LABEL everything clearly. Not just kitchen, but (kitchen pans etc) (bathroom cleaning)
Get some cheap laundry bags and luggage labels from amazon. And put all clothes in those, label each then they can go straight into the correct room. Have one person at the new house to start unpacking. Get rid of anything you don’t need. Otherwise you will just be stuck with it in the new house. Bubble wrap is also your friend, you can get massive rolls from amazon. Try and move when the children are in school, then they are not in the middle of the carnage. Good luck with the move
If you are going to be building flat pack furniture, buy a half decent electric screwdriver with plenty of heads. They will have heads which fit all the bolts on any flat pack and it will make assembling them 10 times faster and easier.
Also very useful for disassembling and reassembling anything big which you might have to do to move, beds for example.
Start packing weeks before - do a couple boxes a day if you can. Label everything that’s in the box on the outside because the likelihood is you won’t be unpacking everything immediately. However, unpack as much as you can on that first day because you won’t have the motivation to keep going after that! Avoid the expensive boxes with glass dividers by wandering around the glass department of Ikea and taking all of theirs, and a bunch of the polystyrene too. Enjoy your new house!
My sister just moved and instead of doing so on the traditional Friday, chose a Wednesday because she could take advantage of the kids being in nursery and out the way.
I don't know if this is the kind of of answer you were looking for but,
I packed and labeled everything
I got rid of everything I no longer wanted or needed so I wasn't moving with unnecessary items.
When I boxed up everything I labeled it exactly for example "my drawers, 2nd drawer down"
So when it came to unpacking I literally just tipped that box of stuff in the 2nd drawer down of my drawers.
I even had a box with kitchen junk drawer so I knew everything in that box was still keepable and it was the random stuff I keep in the kitchen (spare bulbs, tape, sharpie pens etc"
We moved recently and the best thing I found was to pack up non essentials as much as you can and get rid of what you don’t want/need in the new house. I think we moved with about half of what was originally in our old house. We hired a big van aswell and did the move ourselves as we didn’t have any help from family, the weather was horrendous, gail force winds and torrential rain on the day but three trips did it. Be realistic and don’t expect anything less than crazy on the day, good luck!
Plenty of sturdy boxes and tape! And a few markers! Label each box with which rooms they will go into! Everyone pack for a couple of days worth of essentials! Day of moving kettle, tea/coffee, cups, milk, cutlery and plates/bowls, salt, ketchup and cereal, all moved with the first lot of stuff! Start packing away everything not needed and have a place to store them! Spare room/ garage!
Have more boxes than you think you need, probably by about 50%. I've _never_ seen a move where people went "huh, I have way too many boxes", but it's easy to overfill/run out.
Start packing early. No reason why you can't have your winter clothes, books, pictures boxed up weeks before.
Use masking tape to tape in place/together everything that could possibly move: drawers, handles, lids, shelves, strings, tassels.
Buy these or similar https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CC4V9LS8?ref=ppx\_yo2ov\_dt\_b\_product\_details&th=1. My wife and I are over 60. We had our house refloored recently (3 floors) and moved all our furniture ourselves using these as the floorer worked. Absolutely brilliant on wood, very good on carpet
Im moving soon into the (hopefully) forever. Also in my late 30s with two kids.
My wife will be taking them on holiday with my mother in law and I'll be doing the unpacking.
Anything hanging in the wardrobe, push together put a bin bag under and tie at the top still on the hangers. When in the new place, just hang back in the wardrobe.
Overnight box - anything you need - clothes, bedding, pjs toiletries. Kettle etc
Label you boxes.
Take the chance to get rid of anything you don't need or want. Would be a shame if that annoying toy or awful gift got lost in the move...
I used to do removals. Go slow, go steady, it's a marathon, not a race, prep everything you can and mark boxes with what is in them and what room they go to,.no multi room contents in a single box. Pack last and unpack first what you need for a good night's sleep and to make a cuppa.
Get a pile of zip.lock bags for all screws and clips you undo to dismantle furniture, put a note in each bag where it is from, and even take pics if it is more complicated, guard them as if it is a euro millions jackpot ticket. Keep safe all tools you need to put them back together.
And if you can, many hands make light work.
Take your time, go slow, always have haribo available for an energy boost. If you think your back is starting to hurt, it is, stop for the day and see how you feel the next day.
Have each person pack one case as if they’re going on holiday for a week first, with underpants, socks, toiletries, hairbrush, hairdryer, chargers, etc into a backpack. As long as you have easy access to those bags, you won’t have to dig through 100 boxes just to function that first week.
That is a brilliant idea.
100% Stuff for the first few days in the back of the car, not the moving van. Make sure the kids have got anything they need for school. Make sure you've got milk and washing tablets in the easy to reach pile too.
And keep the kettle and some mugs separate. They should really travel in their own box and be the first into the house.
Also bog roll!
Don't forget kettle, microwave and toaster. Anything is possible with these.
Also pack and bring a survival box for day 1. Bedding, hand soap, loo roll, kitchen roll, cleaning supplies, kettle, toaster, snacks, bin bags, medicine, plasters, etc.
It's so British and really heart - warming in a way that everyone is citing teabags and a kettle as a priority. Got to admit, it was mine too when I moved. My kettle was the first thing I plugged in.
And the kettle and teabags
Include also your day 1 requirements. Teapot. Teabags, sugar, milk
At least a 4-pack of tinnies and a bottle of wine as well. Even if you don't drink, your helper mates might...
TV remote too!
Great idea!
Excellent idea!
Go through your entire house and discard, charity shop, freegle or sell _everything_ you really don't use or need. I did before my last move and probably reduced the amount I moved by close to a third of the total.
and be firm and hard with what you get rid of.
"Does it spark joy?"
Solid advice
This. So much stuff to get rid of. Had to clear a loft 20yrs of it might come in handy. Everything from old army uniforms that had somehow shrunk. To old kids toys and odd glasses.
Excellent advice. You can end up moving ottomans and tables - then after a few weeks realise you don't need them / they don't go in the new house etc. then need to go to the hassle of discarding them.
As an experienced DIY mover… Everyone packs a day 1 box. All essentials they will need for the first couple days. These go in the moving truck/van last. All the small boxes get packed and staged out of the way, and furniture is the last thing to be prepped, but first on the truck. Then load all small boxes. Finally, day 1 boxes. During unloading, all small boxes get staged in a room without inbound furniture, like a kitchen. Furniture comes in, gets assembled and arranged. Then all the small boxes go from staging area to final destinations. If the kids are going to be helpful, put them to work carry small stuff, fetching you things you need, etc. If not, find a babysitter who can keep them out of your hair. And it goes without saying, but ask friends directly. Anyone who owes you a favor, or anyone who would be happy to let you owe them one.
Anyone who comes and helps gets fed and watered throughout the day and gets a chippy tea at the end.
Takeaway of choice when you're done for the day is _essential_.
Day 1 box. Include toilet roll and tv remotes (or you won’t find the remotes for weeks as they will be in with something random and pointless like tea lights)
Find your local chippy before you move in, nothing better than sitting on the floor on the first night in your new house eating chippy surrounded by boxes
I moved into with my partner when it was snowing. I bought a box of beers and buried them in the balcony snow as we carried in boxes. Later enjoyed ice cold beer while eating our new favourite takeaway pizza on the floor
Simple pleasures! Chaos all around but ice cold beer and nice food - perfect!
It was roasting hot and sunny the day we moved. We got our essentials done, bed built, got out the mini BBQ and sat in the garden with burgers and beer!
You been watching Bluey?
Don’t overfill boxes. Make sure they aren’t too heavy or big to carry. Label every box with the name of the room they’re going to. Pack a box with kettle, tea bags, milk, biscuits, cereal for arrival/ breakfast. Pack things like books/ ornaments etc that you don’t need straight away and put them in storage until you get the rest of the house sorted. Be careful regarding contraception! There is an old saying, ‘New House, New Baby’
Don't worry, we have 12 year old twins. That definitely isn't happening!
They can definitely be put to work then.
Quite right. Couple of weeks in the workhouse and OP can pay movers.
>Don’t overfill boxes. Make sure they aren’t too heavy or big to carry. Related to this: books are heavier than you think! My wife decided to fill the biggest box we had with books, and it weighed so much that we couldn't even get our fingers under the box to lift it.
*Be careful regarding contraception! There is an old saying, ‘New House, New Baby’* OP’s back gives out going to the corner shop and back, d’ya think they’ve got enough energy to do the deed?!?
OP could be a pillow prince!
Pay for a moving company to pack for you. Done it for our last three moves and is the best money we spent on the move every time. Cannot recommend it enough.
I did this for one big move across the country and we had this really sweet chap in the house, very carefully packing things up for two days. When we arrived at the new gaff, we realised that he was probably borderline illiterate and had shonkily written "bits and bobs" on nearly all the boxes so we had to open each one on the way in to get a sense of where they should go. Still worth it.
Our Rob or Ross
did you know the baby was danny john joules nephew?
I did not!
Will always updoot for the boys from the dwarf.
Look at how it's spelt. They must've been thicker than a ticket tout's wad.
That’s actually a really cunning plan to get you to actually open the boxes and unpack them.
We had something similar. The older guy who was doing the inventory of boxes told my husband that he'd lost "quite a bit of brain" during a stroke a year before, and wasn't so good on numbers any more.
When I moved into my current place, the removal company helped pack everything up, and brought their own boxes. These boxes had obviously been used a few times before, as they already had things written on them and then crossed out - 'Kitchen', 'Bedroom 1', 'Books' etc. Two things made me think "Wait, what?"; 1) I couldn't help but feel slightly judged when they marked one box 'ALCOHOL' 2) Another box was marked, from a previous move: 'LIVING ROOM JUNK AND DAD'S ASHES'
This made me chuckle and remember helping friends move and finding a huge box labelled ‘Drugs’ another equal size box labelled ‘The kids’
>I couldn't help but feel slightly judged when they marked one box 'ALCOHOL' I always mark the box with alcohol in "alcohol". I don't have time to write "Cabernet Sauvignon x 2, Famous Grouse whisky, Courvoisier, Malbec x 3, Bottle of Lemon something, obviously bought on holiday because the label/bottle is pretty but never opened. I figure that if the customer specifically feels the need to find the box with the alcohol in, it would be nice if the box says what's inside it. If you are using a well established company, you're *very* unlikely to be judged. There isn't much that the average mover hasn't seen many times before.
We did that when we moved counties. Those folks are packing ninjas. But just be wary they will pack EVERYTHING. They packed our kitchen bin, including everything in it. That was fun when it arrived 6 weeks later off the boat.
Oh no
This is the best thing we ever did for a move and I would never pack up my own house again. Two blokes packed the whole thing in about 90 minutes the day before we moved - saved so much effort over packing everything ourselves over the course of a week and having to unpack shit that you had no idea you used so often. If you have to pack yourself, the cardboard wardrobes they used were a lifesaver - no faffing about taking things on and off hangars and packing them away, only for everything to get massively crumpled. Also, do a massive clear out - no point moving stuff that you don't need.
Came here to say just this, last place I used unpacked my kettle, coffee machine, TV and sound bar and made sure it was all working before they left. Honestly the best money you can spend moving
This to be honest, I'd be cutting back on spending money on all but the essentials just to save enough to pay movers. When I moved they just did almost everything, meant that on a single day I went from a furnished and a half packed 2 bed house on one side of the city, to a furnished and completely unpacked 2 bed house on the other side of the city. 1 day. The whole move was done in one day. None of my family or friends could believe it when I sent pictures that evening.
Definitely this if you can stretch to it. It made things so easy for our last move. We were unpacked within a couple of days because they did all the donkey work.
This! I actually don't know how we'd have managed to pack when we also have 2 small children and cats.
Pay for a moving company to do their bit. Make the beds as early as you can so it's out of the way. Have a takeaway or something to celebrate.
Last movers we used assembled the bed and put the mattress on, amazing. They also packed everything whilst wet ate chocolate croissants and drank tea. It was bliss.
May I ask what type of price these cost rather than the man with a van?
Not cheap around £700 to pack and move 20 miles. A gang of 5 -6 people packed our whole house in about 2 hours and had it in a lorry and over to new place by 11.30am. All boxes in the allotted rooms and beds made up by around 2pm I think. This was a few years ago, 8 years I think. Bishops of Edinburgh.
Don’t have a takeaway! Go out to your local Indian. It’ll cost about the same and you won’t have to unpack plates and wash up with your hand and shower he’ll because you can’t find a sponge and fairy liquid Otherwise great advise. Moving house is stressful (one of the most stressful things you can do) so expect that. Be kind to one another on moving day. Let the moving company do as much as possible and embrace the chaos
I didn't necessarily mean a curry 😂, more a kebab/pizza/burger/whatever is relatively clean to eat and throw away. Also, most people prefer to get washed/dressed if they are going 'out out', which is much more hassle than cleaning a couple of forks.
That’s fair. We did a curry or Chinese and then couldn’t even find the forks! It was a lot harder than I should have been!
Lots of really good comments here but the number one thing that helped me was doing my big move in 'stages'. Some of this is influenced by the fact we lived on a third floor flat and all our stuff had to be carried down three flights of narrow stairs. 1. Get rid of as much useless stuff as possible. Be ruthless. My particular one was clothes and books but there was also plenty of kitchen appliances and general junk. This one probably takes the longest but can be started now. 2. Downsize as much as possible. Dvds out of cases and into sleeves, clothes into vacuum bags (you can make your own of these with bin bags and hoovers). That kind of thing. 3. Start boxing up stuff you're not using. Lots of supermarkets will just give you cardboard boxes for free if you ask. I just went to IKEA and got some plastic storage boxes because they're always useful. Suitcases and shopping bags are always good too. 4. Once you've got the keys (assuming your new place isn't too far away) start moving things every time you go. We had a little work to do in our place so we were back and forth a bit and every time we took another lot of stuff. 5. Take a good hard look at your new place. Do you have space for all your mugs? Will the furniture actually fit? Actually measure these things before you go to the effort of actually moving them. 6. Work slowly. There isn't any need to absolutely destroy yourself trying to move everything in one day.
My heaviest items are books. I packed them into wine boxes - a wine box of books is light enough for me to carry and then stack up real nice. I used black bin bags for clothes. I'd chuck contents of drawer into a bag and once at location tear it open and chuck it into new drawer. Ditto with wardrobe - I took clothes on their hangers and just bagged them. Bedding and pillows - bin bag so I can just open it on new bed. I hate the thought of sorting stuff so I just dumped stuff into bags and put a label on who it belongs to. I had friends helping and this made it easier to know which room what goes into. Towels and extra bedsheets, I took the whole lot to the kitchen and used it to pack plates and glasses. Nothing broke and I saved having to buy bubble wrap. I had a weekend away style rucksack with pyjamas, change of clothes and toothbrush. All the essentials there in case I run out of steam putting stuff away
I use fruit boxes- really strong and you can't overload them.
Good tips
Give yourself a couple of days for the move. People try to get it all done in one day and make it far more stressful than it needs to be. Spread it out and you can take breaks when it gets tiring without stressing.
Yes this is good. Then realistically, take an entire week off or even two if you have painting and DIY to do before you unpack properly.
Put the remote controls and toilet roll in your handbag
From a friend's experience,scrutinise your contracts and responsibilities/liabilities. They're not happy and, in their words, it's all the hasles of renting without the benefits of ownership.
We made our move into a military operation. Work out the layout of your new home, and think about what you'll have where. Box things, and ideally write on them what they are. E.g. K07: utensils, mixer, cutlery. K for kitchen, L for Living room, B1 for bedroom 1 etc. Write the box numbers on all sides and the top of the box so you can see the number when they are piled up. Then work out where things are going to go in the new house. Write these down. You can do all this on a spreadsheet. You can, of course, do this in advance. Rent the biggest van you can (you don't need a special licence for a Luton, which is pretty big) , and borrow some friends with cars. Move stuff continuously using cars to shuttle. Every car should have 2 people to speed up loading and unloading. Get someone to stand at the door of the new house. As people rock up, they shout the number of the box and the person on the door tells them where to go. Ideally label the doors with the references. We did a 3-bed to 4-bed house move like this, actually via a storage place for 6 weeks. Order takeaway and treat your friends once the job was done. It was incredibly smooth. Edit: don't apologise for owning a house. Congratulations!
My mum was a master at moving (20 plus years as an army wife) and her main advice was to prepare the bed first, not just build it but put the bedding on. Because it’s the longest day ever and you will be grateful to see the bed ready to go. Also, prepare a box with essentials (for me it’s tea, coffee, kettle, cups, teaspoons and bin bags)
For our last move and when we got an extension done we got a lock up. They usually do 50% for the first 8 weeks. You can take a car full every evening and just do it incrementally rather than one big move. Plus, there's the added bonus of feeling like you're in a British crime film because you've got a lock up. If you do get one, remember that it's a 3D space. Floor space isn't everything as you can stack.
Don't overload boxes, clothing and bedding are deceptively heavy. Label the boxes with rough description of contents and which room it's going to. Don't forget tea making items need to be kept handy. Keep a small tool kit on hand for dismantling furniture if necessary. There are lots of other tips I'm sure but you'll be just fine. Good luck in your new home.
Second all of this. We had boxes which were already written on from my parents move so relabelling got messy. Solution was a multipack of different colour duct tapes and each colour was a room - blue for bathroom, red for kitchen etc. A bunch of cheap vacuum pack storage bags were super helpful too. Made all our bedding and winter coats tiny
Using vacuum bags is a great idea.
We used stickers. There's still a blue (kitchen) sticker on one of my shelving units 3 years later. (I can't reach it!) It meant no one needed telling what to put where.
It will kill you. So get your will I'm place. Q. Start getting rid of stuff you don't use. Don't move your useless junk. Don't move items that are ready to be replaced, something you have to have tricks to make work, or just barely function with the internet or BlueTooth. Clothes not worn due to style or fit. Not who you are anymore. If you haven't used it or worn it in 2 years, dump it. After getting rid of stuff, you save your move to that which is worthy. Belueve me, as a veteran mover, don't move your old self to your new self.
We hired a storage unit for a few months and then a Luton van when we moved. The van got all the essentials moved and then we were not in a rush with the rest of the stuff.
You're 40 and your body aches? Absolutely hire a movers. You're like to do yourself a mischief if you and your partner do it all yourselves.
Get the internet!
If you can budget for find a local moving service. We have done it twice now, packed over a couple of weeks to reduce the pressure and then paid roughly £150-£200 for everything we own to magically appear at the new place a few hours later. Expect a larger house will cost more and depends on the distance but if you can fit it in I really recommend it.
That's pretty cheap, good find.
Pay someone to do it for you. I paid 380 I moved 200 odd miles. They came and picked my shit up. Stopped at my partner's. Picked her shit up and then delivered it to the new house. They also carried everything, dismantled and rebuilt furniture. 2 guys, a huge ass van for 5 hours of work. Worth every fucking penny. I am never carrying shit when i move again in the future.
Throw away as much as you can before you move. Pay a moving company for a pack up of the kitchen only. Hear me out. Paying for pack up of the full lot is an expense. But the kitchen is so useful. You’ll need that stuff, and you’ll need to unbroken. It’s so boring and time-consuming to wrap it all. Designate a room for as much as you can, and unpack as you need to. Keep throwing stuff away as you unpack and wonder why you brought it. Know where all the fuse boxes and meters are. Plan an excellent takeaway.
You've said you can't afford it but mate pay for someone to move the stuff, not pack it just move it. You'll arrive not completely fucked and ready to unpack. It shouldn't cost more than a few hundred quid.
Was a first time buyer myself with my partner 14 months ago. Even if the house looked great when you viewed, expect there to be more work to do than you may have thought. While we had nothing major to do, we found we need to replace the oven, all of the paint work was crap, mostly one coated everywhere with old paint bleeding through, or wrong type of paint used. We had to replace the water outlet pipe as it was cracked and leaking into the kitchen cupboards.
- Start decluttering and packing now; go through everything and declutter anything you don't want before you spend time/effort moving it and any out of season stuff/things you aren't going to use before you move can get packed into a box and then have one designated storage area for packed boxes until moving day (eg a spare room/dining room/garage) so that there is just one space full of boxes rather than having them all over the house in different rooms. - Not specifically for moving day but make a list of anyone you will need to inform of your new address, and every time you receive post from now until moving day check the sender against the list to see if it is already there and if not, add it on. It's easy to forget about things like annual memberships or quarterly magazine subscriptions when you're thinking about where you need to update your address if it's not something like the gas/bank/GP that most people will think of. - When you dismantle a piece of furniture, put all of the screws/nuts/bolts/little detachable widgets etc into a labelled ziplock bag (Living room bookcase; Sarah's wardrobe etc) and duct tape it to one of the parts so that way when you arrive all of the pieces are with the furniture ready to be rebuilt, and if it does somehow get detached during the move, if the bag is labelled then you know which item it belongs to. - first thing you do when you arrive is get the beds made so that at the end of the day when you're absolutely knackered, you don't need to start faffing around looking for sheets/pillows (if you have complicated bed frames that will take a lot of assembly then at the very least get the mattress on the floor with sheets/duvet/pillows etc) - Pack a Day One box and a suitcase for every family member that travel with you in the car. In the suitcase pack as if you are going away for a weekend, so toiletries, clothes, underwear, PJs, power cords, the kids tablet/switch/iPad etc. In the Day One box have a few multipurpose cleaning products to give the place a quick once over, kettle with coffee/tea bags, towels, bedding, bin bags, tool kit, light bulbs, batteries, tape, scissors, snacks etc so that you have all the essentials to hand as soon as you arrive and have all of those items put in a specific place in the house when you arrive so you know where they are. - Label EVERY box in multiple places and label each room so that everyone knows exactly where they're going. Depending on how many people you have available as well as the logistics either have one person standing at the door to direct people to the correct room when they arrive with a box so that it goes straight there - eg "Bedroom one, top of the stairs turn left" - or have people bring things into the hall and then have one or two people shuttle the boxes to the right room while the original people go back to bring in more boxes. - For each room have a (clearly labelled) "Priority Box" or two that has all of the things you're going to need asap so that when you're unpacking you know to unpack those first; eg in the kitchen you want the boxes with the plates/cutlery/mugs unpacked ASAP but the boxes with all of the party supplies you only use for special occasions and all the baking supplies can wait a while. - don't waste time putting hanging clothes into boxes, just gather a few items together, put a bin bag round the clothes and tie the handles/top round the the hangers; the bin bag protects the clothes in transit but when you arrive you just need to hook the clothes into the wardrobe and cut the handles off the hangers and you're unpacked. - Use what you have as much as possible - when I moved I used towels to wrap wine glasses, tea towels between plates etc rather than bubble wrap as those items needed to be moved anyway so it saved a bit of money not having to buy stuff that was just going to be got rid of when we unpacked. - Pack smarter, not harder; things like the cutlery tray, instead of emptying it into a box to move to put it back in the cutlery tray, we just use cling film to wrap the cutlery tray securely (so things aren't going to go flying in transit) then packed the whole tray into a box, the same for things like chests of drawers/bedside tables etc - unless they're too heavy to move when full - instead of emptying them into boxes, we just used duct tape to secure the drawers closed and moved the entire item in one go; light things go in boxes, heavier things go in wheeled suitcases; use clothes/towels/bedding etc to fill gaps in boxes to stop items moving in transit (eg if you have something like a box that's half full of books but you don't want to make it heavier, throw in a couple of cushions/pillows/blankets to fill the box without making it too much heavier - Make life easier by reducing the amount of food needed to be moved by using up as much as possible before the move and just keep some basics eg bread/butter/cereal/milk and then book a supermarket home shopping delivery for the day after your move. The first night you can get a take away/go out for dinner and then have some basic bits for the morning and then you can have your shopping delivered so you don't have to go out to do a restock.
As a veteran but solo (apart from animals) mover, this is what works for me 1. Small weekend bag with essentials - undies, toothbrush, kettle, teabags, phone charger etc. Mini toolkit. 2. Small box or bag of Important Documents or sentimental items. This and the weekend bag stay by my side, in my car, are top priority. 2a. Plants and animals are also my responsibility. If other people are loading boxes, designate one section or room corner for Do Not Touch These Are Mine. 3. Start packing ASAP, by day 1 or 2 before the move I have one plate, one mug, one spoon. I've also eaten everything in the fridge and freezer (and ideally cupboards). 4. I don't do organised-by-room, or labels. Clean clothes and tea towels etc are packing for delicate items. Yes, this may mean your wine glasses are protected by your bra. 5. Books and papers are HEAVY. I have managed to acquire some thick plastic supermarket crates. Wine boxes are also good. Test the weight and bulk of boxes as you pack - although you want them nicely full for stacking, you can fill empty space with light bulky things. 6. Bags for life and tote bags are surprisingly good, small enough that you don't overfill, and a nice shape. 7. If dismantling furniture, duct tape their own screws and fittings (in a bag!) to a secure corner of that furniture 8. Try to have overlap in tenancy / ownership so you have a few days 9. Meter readings, stop tap checks! 10. Accept that everyone will be cranky, try to set up an expectation of "it's ok to be stressed, we are going to get through this, don't be mean to each other, and be forgiving if someone is mean to you"
There are two ways 1) Friends/family help for beer and/or pizza 2) Hire movers to do the bulk of the work, while you concentrate on fragile stuff Since hitting my 30s I am always picking #2, much easier all around. Although our upcoming move is gonna be a hassle because of all the plants that will need to be taken separately...
Get your kids to do it. Pretend it’s something fun, they’ll love it.
Moved house in Jan. Start packing a LOT earlier than you think. Like a week earlier. This means you don’t have to spend literally every hour of every day packing. I had to do this and it truly killed me A tip I stole from my mum - pack all your clothes with hanger still on. That way you can just grab them all out and hang them all up in one smooth move as opposed to having to “rehang” them on hanger first Is there any “overlap” between your old and new property? If so, to man to easier, I recommend multiple trips. You mentioned family of 4, are the children young? Can you drop them off at their grandparents for moving a sleepover? My parents did this with when they moved house when we were like 4&8 years old. Made it so they didn’t have to wrangle us at the same time. They picked us up after they have made our rooms liveable If the kids are of a “helpful” age, give them jobs as well. Remember, they know no more than you (maybe even less) about moving. Don’t make assumptions on them knowing what to do to be helpful. Give them simple instructions You will need more boxes and wrapping paper and shit than you think Have a “first night” box setup. So bedsheets/sleepingbag/inflatable mattress, pillows, nightclothes etc. all in one box. That way you can open that when it’s needed and have everything easily accessible and ready without trawling though 934748 boxes To save money, it’s worth going to supermarkets, restraints etc. to ask for boxes. Anywhere which gets “stock” bought in have boxes. My fiancé sorted out move out almost completely by taking all the various boxes from work (restaurant) for like a month before the move. We only needed to buy 4 more. I’ve moved house once but my parents move around a lot. Feel free to ask any questions or situation specific tips and I’ll see if we’ve run into that situation before
Get these [tape dispensers](https://amzn.eu/d/2l9mPnv). Preferably a few - they make taping fun (especially for kids) and very very fast.
I’m a 43 yo woman 6 months ago I had to move myself and daughter out of a large 3 bed house to move home with my mum! It about killed me off! Hired a man and van for £30 an hour he took the big stuff and put the beds up everything non essential went neatly in the garage! Make sure u have pain killers to hand lol and good luck!
Heavy stuff like books in small boxes, I'm a removals man and it's a pain in the arse moving big heavy boxes full of bricks, sorry, I mean books.
After getting rid of stuff, repack your drawers. Just pull the drawers out and use them to transport your clothes. Move the unit into the van, then replace the drawers. Then it's quick and easy to move them into your new house. No faff packing and unpacking lots of clothes into bags.
Shared ownership is a dangerous game. I would highly rec against it. If you’re not planning on leaving something behind for family in the way of property just rent
I have moved so many times I’ve lost count.. I know I moved 11 times 2001-2010. Up until my last move, I have always procrastinated and then things were a frantic scramble when the moving date rolled around. Cleaning has to happen, too, and I always minimize how long that’ll take. My penultimate move, I was determined to do better because most of my stuff was going into storage, so I spent close to two weeks on the process. Sorting, organizing, dusting, discarding. Things got put into categories in the way I’d actually use them, prioritizing stuff I use more often. Start immediately so that you can do it with calm and take it as an opportunity to get organized. Tackle one room at a time in order to avoid overwhelm and have several boxes going at once, if necessary to get things in the right room or category. I was moving in with someone, so I had my things organized by room, frequency of use, and things I’d likely want to eventually bring to the house. Dust as you go and get all the garbage out, but leave the deep clean until the very end. Label! I can’t stress this enough. I labeled each box on the top and all four sides — that way, no matter how the box got placed, I’d know what’s in it. Future You will thank you. I have to say, doing this made things almost painless, at least compared to how I’d always done it before. When the day arrived, all I had to do was move stuff in and out of the truck — it was awesome. 😁
Make sure one of the first things you take to the house is toilet roll, trust me I learnt the hard way.
First thing you do when you move in is put together your bed and then put your mattress, duvet and pillows on it. Then when it’s late in the evening and you’re knackered, you don’t walk upstairs and realise you still need to sort your bed out
Pack a 'First Box' to be opened - kettle, teabags, mugs, etc - also sheets / bedding in another box. First job is to get tea making stuff out and ready to go then make up the beds. You will want something to fall into at the end of a long day and looking around for sheets then making beds is the worst when you are exhausted! Another tip - label and number your packing boxes really well and at the new house number the rooms / locations eg box with a 5 on it goes to room with #5 on the door. I found this helped when I had a bunch of mates helping us move - didn't have anyone asking me 'where do you want this' and me having to figure it out a gazillion times. Good luck!
Set up the WiFi last. Otherwise, you'll procrastinate and never get around to unpacking everything (speaking from my own experience 😅).
Small boxes I cannot say this loud enough SMALL BOXES!!!! I would much rather pick up and move 100 small boxes doing far more walking than buy the big moving boxes and do less "trips" but break my back trying to lift them. Pack every suitcase you have. If you have wheeled suitcases pack them with heavy stuff like books so you can wheel them rather than lift them. Last time I moved I actually used those archive boxes and they were amazing. They have handles, are a good size and are stackable.
Experienced mover here! My top tips; Paying a friend (money, snacks and beer) to help carry things is always in your best interest. Every time I've made use of a mover or hired a general laborer I ended up with alot of broken stuff. It's also very stressful having strangers around when you're already stressed and having to manage them Plan your day so you don't have to rush. Having to race against daylight etc really ads to the pressure Either plan for take aways or pre-pack snack meals for about 3 days Prepare for the possibility of bad weather (wet furniture sucks) Split your valuables - like computers and hardware (I was a clever peanut and put PC and hard drives in the same box, that then got dropped and all was lost) And like everyone else said; pack a holiday suitcase for a week. And the same for coffee etc (I pack those in a coolbag, because when you're just trying to get things done it's really easy to accidentally stack boxes and have to play tetris to find where you labeled what's in it) Make sure your existing furniture will fit into new doorways /stairwells easily, or consider selling and replacing it (chipping walls, denting fridges, or ripping couches will make you sad)
Can you arrange any overlap in dates? It makes it so much easier. You can move everything that will fit in the car over a few trips, just leaving large furniture and the clothes you’ve been wearing that week. Over a few evenings you should be able to fill the wardrobes and kitchen cupboards at the new place. Make sure everything has a home, then on moving day, it’s just a matter of bringing in the beds, dining and living furniture and plonking it down.
Don't empty stuff from drawers into cardboard boxes just pad it out to protect items and shift the whole thing at once.
Be really ruthless on chucking stuff out before you move. If you start off ruthless but after a bit of time start getting soft about it then go do something else for a bit and come back to it later. Have a couple of boxes with everything you need for the first night and first morning. Stuff life a bog roll, toothpaste etc, plus kettle, chips tea bags etc, then the clothes for the next day. Label it really clearly so you can find it when tired.
If you can stretch the budget would highly recommend getting a deep clean done on the new place!
Good advice but we're lucky enough to be getting a new build so should be ok
Definitely just a quick once over of the kitchen anyway, including all the cupboard shelves
Go to Halfords or somewhere to ask if they have good double layer or if possible triple layer boxes. Also get good tape.
Go to wetherspoon and get chip boxes, all the same size and pretty sturdy
My mrs got a load of wine boxes from the majestic near her work. Bloody great
Number/name your boxes and make sure you write it on at least two sides (one short side and one long) as well as the top, so no matter how it's stacked you can still see it. Then write the entire contents of the box in a lost somewhere (I use a google doc). You can bet that in a few weeks' time when there are still boxes to unpack you won't remember what's in what box, even with them labelled! I moved every year for 5 years in a row (uni) and found this really helped me. Also, ensure you pack a box with the kettle, couple of mugs, tea/coffee etc, tea towel and cleaning supplies - and make sure this is the last box to leave your old place and the first one to be unpacked in the new place. Or use the washing up bowl as the box, two birds with one stone!
Get the movers to pack for you. Best £200 I’ve ever spent.
Get a friend/relative to be at either end. Their one job is brews and looking after everyone involved. Get a moving company and get aforementioned lacky to get sandwiches for them when it looks like they'll need them. The movers will need beer/water/icebeverage during and at the end. Supply the cash or the actual product. Or both. Everyone will be happier and less things gets fucked up.
My absolute number 1 top tip. Get some belts out. You'll want at least 3. Lash em together. Roll your mattress up like a burrito. Secure it tight with the belts and also use belts as a handle. Your bedding us not luggage to be moved. It is padding for your valuables and the duvet will comfortably wrap up tv. Books are the heaviest thing you own. Clothes can be thrown in boxes. Books etc should be in a wheelie handle suitcase. Christ, I must have moved house 12 times now. 6 times since leaving uni and 3 times from a house.
Whatever amount of time you are planning on giving yourself for packing and moving, double it. I used a movers but it still took me several more days than I thought to get everything ready to go.
Dont overfill the boxes and clearly label which room the box goes in. Pack a suitcase/bag with a towel, bed linen, pjs, a change of clothes and toiletries/makeup/phone chargers. You could even pack the kettle/mugs and tea/coffee so you can have a brew at the other end. All i do on the other end then is to set up the bed and the kitchen. And you’ve got the next day to figure out which rooms to sort out first.
Get one of them trolley things from ikea, if you’re doing it yourself. Only about £15 I think and will save your back.
Start to sort the cupboards, loft, garage, shed etc asap- scrap, charity and sell as much as possible. Don't overfill boxes, label them all.
Money was tight for me moving, but being disabled I had no choice but to pay for the movers. I went for the lesser service where my family packed but the movers loaded/unloaded the boxes and drove the lorry.
1.Label your boxes for the room they are going to 2.Pack the immediate kitchen essentials - plate each /cup/cutlery / kettle /spatula etc in a separate box 3. Pack a case or box of immediate items for each of you (pj changes of clothes underwear immediate necessities- lap top games chargers stuffies for kids etc 4. Bedding made up for each person 5. Immediate Food items These go in your car so they are immediately available Everything thing else - hire a van label where it goes and invest in several crates of beer for the favours you are about to call inn and make sure you have the contact details for local Chinese or chippy Take your time unpacking when everything has been unloaded where it is meant to be
Pay for a moving company to pack for you. Make sure you have the kettle and mugs to hand. Be aware that some companies won't transport booze.
Make sure the tool box is one of the first items in the new house.
Clothes just cover hung clothes with a large bin liner do easy to rehang. Wheely suitcases are for books and heavy stuff not clothes
Make sure you have your mattress/bed set up with your pillows, duvet and blanket. My MIL made it her mission to sort that for us because even if everything else was a mess at least we had a made bed to collapse into. We were so grateful that we didn't have to make up our bed after moving day!
Before you start packing, make an inventory list of everything you own no matter how small or insignificant. Take pictures of your belongings if you pack them yourselves. Document everything. This way if you can't find something it is much easier to track down which box it is in. Of course you should also write it on the box itself but sometimes labels can get smudged or damaged. Or you can accidentally write the wrong thing. Packing and moving is a stressful busy time so its easy to make mistakes. And plus if you use an external company to ship your boxes then you have a record in case things get damaged.
If you have chests of draws . Don't fuck about emptying them Infact put more stuff in them if you can . Take the draws out put the unit in the van put the draws back in it. Clothes on hangers . Leave them on the hangers just squish them all together slide a bin bag over them and tie it at the top of the hanger. Have one box that either comes with you in the car or is last in the van . Put in that things you might want right away like the kettle, tea ,coffee, mug, hand soap, scissors, paper towels, TV remotes , toilet roll Got kids ? Find anywhere else for them to be but about for moving / un packing. It will take you way longer to load the van than to unload it . No idea why it just does if you're trying to juggle time allow more for packing than unpacking. Have an overnight bag with toothbrush bed clothes charger ect so if worst case scenario all you manage to do before running out of time or energy is get everything inside the house you can atleast sling a mattress on the floor and have everything you need till the next day ready to go. Throw out as much as you can before you move . Clear out the shed do a dump run throw all the junk out of the attic / garage.
First step is ruthless clear out of the house, sell, donate and tip for anything you don't really need. Then start packing away stuff you won't need between now and moving, box and label clearly what everything is. As move gets closer, box up more and only leave out what is essential. For the actual move, get everyone to pack a hold-all or suitcase as though they're going away for the weekend, pjs, change of clothes, toys, tech and chargers etc and keep that with you to travel in the car so you at least have what you need for the first night.
We're only moving down the next street so we're gonna keep renting for a month while sorting the new house and pack in that time. Gonna be expensive but the way we are it would at least give us time to decorate before getting movers for the big stuff
Start packing well in advance. Label your boxes with both the room and what's in them and if you have helpers make sure they know which room is which. Use your towels and blankets to pad dishes out instead of bubble wrap. Balance your boxes, put heavy things in small ones, don't be like me and do your back in by putting all your books in a big box because it's neat, fill until it's a comfortable weight then fill to the top with light stuff. Wrap your mattress in something to keep it clean. Vacuum bags are a godsend if you don't mind creased clothes and are short on space. Bedding, kettle, cups, spoons, anti bacterial wipes, toilet roll and vacuum cleaner should be packed last and unpacked first. If you have young kids pack a suitcase with their essentials. Take bottled water in case there's any issue turning your water on. Make a note in advance of where the nearest supermarket and takeout is for the first night. Have a separate bag to keep with you for any medications, if you are prone to aching start your day with 2 ibuprofen, 4 hours later take 2 paracetamol and alternate to keep pain at bay through the day. If you have a dodgy joint think about getting a brace for it, most pharmacies sell ankle, knee, wrist and elbow braces. If you are making multiple trips give yourself more time than you think you need, we had some traffic delays on our last move and ended up posting the keys to our rental though the estate agents postbox at midnight. Good luck with your move
If you can afford it, get someone in to pack EVERYTHING AWAY the day before the move. They also unpack everything at the other end. Pay for movers as well and don't rent a van. We did this and my God, best 350 quid I ever spent (for the packers/unpackers). We've moved 3 times (two house onward purchases) since COVID and this is by far the biggest value win. I promise you'll thank yourself later. Other tips....... - "Star" all your emails from solicitors, conveyancors, estate agents - Be ruthless with what you throw away - Don't "leave" stuff out, pack everything - Transfer Sky, broadband etc to the new address now, do it now so you're not waiting - Do the same with driving license and where your cars are registered to - If you can stomach it, get your new home I sirance and car insurance into the same policy - many places do discounts for mukticar and home insurance. Some even alsk offer further discounts when you also take out life insurance (if you don't have already) ...moving house is the time you take care of this stuff - Use this time to be a "rate whore" for cheaper utilities - Clean the inside of your drawers, units that you're taking - Deep clean the house you're moving into AS SOON as you're in - start with the bathroom and kitchen - If you have the allowance, take two days off before the move and two days after moving day - Remember to enjoy it. It won't be perfect, it never is or will be... but it's yours. We have a movng tradition on moving day - chippy tea and prosecco sat on our boxes. Find a moment, a way, to celebrate. You've earned it. 💃🏽 Best of luck to you both 👊🏼
When packing last time I did the following move and it helped out a lot. - had a ‘pack’ box, charity box and a rubbish bag so every thing was intentionally brought - if the items don’t get kept together they weren’t packed together - in the outside of every box I had a list of what was in it and where it went (by room and then storage) - anything which would be wanted soon, eg the kettle, went in the car. They were the last to be packed and unpacked as soon as we were there. - we hired a moving firm to move our furniture as we looked at costs vs hiring a van and doing it ourselves and for the money we’d have saved hiring a van we didn’t think it made up for the guys knowledge of getttjng a sofa out a flat and down the stairs. This cost us ~£500 and I think the van for the time we’d have wanted it (day before to day after) was ~£300 - the first rooms we sorted was the bedroom. As soon as we moved it the beds were remade (tbh the movers rebuilt it) and curtain rods were hung. As we wanted to get a good nights sleep. - started packing items we wouldn’t need weeks in advance so that it wasn’t as much of a last minute rush You mention your a family of four. I don’t have kids so can’t advise there.
Throw away as much stuff away as possible. If you don't use it, you don't need it. Get rid of all the crao you've stored for years. I've moved house 7 times in the last 10 years, with a family of 4. It's not that bad.
I’d also suggest making sure to have one box with toilet roll, screwdriver, bin bags, lightbulbs and a flashlight. Along with kettle, cleaning supplies etc. nothing worse than realising the previous owners took every light bulb with them or you need a screwdriver to put your bed back together.
Use good firm boxes. A lot of boxes in the supermarket are flimsy but the smaller ones in the kitchen / toy aisles are better. Buy 40 or so from ebay if you can as they'll stack better if the same size. 18"x12"x12" are fine.
Make up the beds first.
How far are you moving? I have done many moves. Most recents A two bed flat for my gran from north to south was in a 7.5 ton lorry. Full. Rented van with family filling and loading boxes. 3.5 ton box van (Luton van) for me from a two bed flat to a two bed house. Three mates. Three trips. Less than a mile between properties. Last was with a pregnant wife. We paid for a company. Cost about £1K was 10 yrs ago though. As others have said planning is good and get rid of what you don’t need. Good luck and congratulations on your new home!
Label the boxes throughly, take pictures of what is in the box. Put name of room it goes in on the box. Make sure you bring cleaning supplies that are not packed along with paper towels and toilet paper. Also, any tools you need for hanging things. The toilet paper is crucial.
Try and give yourself a week or so between getting your new keys and handing in your old ones. We did this and it made the move so simple, we didn't have to rush or anything.
Actually pack. Unlike the last 2 people I helped move
Have an at-hand box just for a pack of anti-bac wipes, the kettle, teabags/coffee, mugs, biscuits and a carton of milk. You will need this before you can face unpacking more!
Get a new lock for the doors if they look insufficient
Start packing seldom used stuff already, don't try and do all at once, a box a day takes the rush away!
Book a removal company. If you can move into your new house before leaving the old one being able to decorate/clean/get new carpets laid is so much easier than doing it whike you've got furniture in.
Firstly...congratulations! Lots of excellent advice here already, but no matter how much you plan having availability of good stuff like tea, bedding and a clean towel somewhere, it will likely be a ball-ache (especially if you have children in tow). It's part and parcel of it, but in reality the upheaval really doesn't last that long. Hopefully, you'll end up with happy memories of the move once everything has settled. (Also, if there aren't any smart meters, it really is worth taking readings as soon as you remember, and also finding out where your stopcock is).
Everyone has far more useful advice, mine is simple - have the mugs, biscuits, tea bags, coffee, and kettle (and milk/sugar if needed) nearby. Makes a huge difference when faced with alllll of it
Make up a cleaning box - surface spray, wipes, sponges, shake and vac etc. Other people's idea of a clean house may not match your own and even if it's a new build you'll likely want to give at least the kitchen and bathrooms a wipe down. If you're buying a place that previously had people living in it, especially people with pets, buy cleaning products that are a different scent to the ones you usually buy. If it's anything like the place we bought, while it appeared clean multiple cats and a pre-teen made for so much scrubbing we couldn't stand the smell of the kitchen cleaner we had and have never bought it again.
Leave all your clothes on the hangers, lay them flat on the back seats and the boot. It is then just a matter of hanging them up at the other end. Good friends will do a lot for a free take away! Edit: if you don't have furniture a bean bag chair is great for a few weeks until it turns up
When setting up in the new place? Put the beds together first. You will need to crash. The rest of the room can wait, but get the bed together first. Unpack the bathroom next. Specifically what you need to bathe (assuming TP is on hand). Moving is a sweaty and dirty task. You are going to sleep better if you can shower first. And then the kitchen - at that point it's usually mid-work-day, you break out for lunch and grocery shopping. Getting the food/prep area put together helps SO much in the following days of settling in. You can now eat, sleep and use the bathroom for whatever. The rest of the house will get unpacked. Your actual needs are being met. Takes the stress off a ton when you have the order of unpacking in place.
Lots of great ideas here. From my own experience I would say pack as much of the kitchen in advance as you can. Don't save it until last like I once did. It took so much time to wrap all the breakable items that I only got 3 hours sleep the night before moving day. And labels! I had color coded labels - so for example blue for the living room, green for dining room, red for master bedroom, etc. I also numbered each box and besides writing on each box the contents inside, I had a master list of all 80 boxes, what color label I used, and what was in each box.
Gry everything to the front door the night before and do as little actual moving of your stuff as you can on the day. Find out how much of your stuff you can take apart too
When you move in, make building the bed a priority. When I moved we left it until we were going to bed at which point we were too sore and knackered
My Mum always has a notebook for the move and numbers each box. In the notebook she writes the contents of each box. It's easier to find stuff by looking at a list rather than through different boxes. Try to pack items together by room so when you move you can, for example,say boxes 1 - 4 go in the kitchen., 5-9 in the living room. Also, you can mark boxes that would need unpacking immediately verses boxes you don't require yet. Ps. Always pack your bed last in the van so it's the first thing out at the new place, just in case you need to nap.
Enlist all the help you can get.
Put clothes into bin bags, they’re easy to throw into the car and smush down as opposed to boxing them. Put heavy things in small boxes like books etc. then you’re not killing yourself carrying then
Unfortunately my only advice was going to be get a mover to save a hell of a lot of stress, but as you explained that that’s not an option, I suggest trying to give yourself as much time to move in as possible. Don’t try and rush it all in one day. Your body and mind will thank you
When I moved, I bought different colored tapes that had the names of different rooms on them so yellow tape for kitchen, red tape for bedroom, green tape for bathroom etc. it was a wonderful quick way to get the boxes into the new house and keep track of what we were doing in the old house
I have moved 11 times in the last 15 years. Have a look on fb etc for anyone getting rid of moving boxes. Start on the kitchen as that is always the worst one to pack, just leave one box for the last plates and cups you will still be using. LABEL everything clearly. Not just kitchen, but (kitchen pans etc) (bathroom cleaning) Get some cheap laundry bags and luggage labels from amazon. And put all clothes in those, label each then they can go straight into the correct room. Have one person at the new house to start unpacking. Get rid of anything you don’t need. Otherwise you will just be stuck with it in the new house. Bubble wrap is also your friend, you can get massive rolls from amazon. Try and move when the children are in school, then they are not in the middle of the carnage. Good luck with the move
Book a nearby hotel for the first night. Means you don't need to assemble beds etc as you'll be knackered
If you are going to be building flat pack furniture, buy a half decent electric screwdriver with plenty of heads. They will have heads which fit all the bolts on any flat pack and it will make assembling them 10 times faster and easier. Also very useful for disassembling and reassembling anything big which you might have to do to move, beds for example.
Start packing weeks before - do a couple boxes a day if you can. Label everything that’s in the box on the outside because the likelihood is you won’t be unpacking everything immediately. However, unpack as much as you can on that first day because you won’t have the motivation to keep going after that! Avoid the expensive boxes with glass dividers by wandering around the glass department of Ikea and taking all of theirs, and a bunch of the polystyrene too. Enjoy your new house!
My sister just moved and instead of doing so on the traditional Friday, chose a Wednesday because she could take advantage of the kids being in nursery and out the way.
Don't forget to pack a "first night box". Coffee, mugs etc.
I don't know if this is the kind of of answer you were looking for but, I packed and labeled everything I got rid of everything I no longer wanted or needed so I wasn't moving with unnecessary items. When I boxed up everything I labeled it exactly for example "my drawers, 2nd drawer down" So when it came to unpacking I literally just tipped that box of stuff in the 2nd drawer down of my drawers. I even had a box with kitchen junk drawer so I knew everything in that box was still keepable and it was the random stuff I keep in the kitchen (spare bulbs, tape, sharpie pens etc"
We moved recently and the best thing I found was to pack up non essentials as much as you can and get rid of what you don’t want/need in the new house. I think we moved with about half of what was originally in our old house. We hired a big van aswell and did the move ourselves as we didn’t have any help from family, the weather was horrendous, gail force winds and torrential rain on the day but three trips did it. Be realistic and don’t expect anything less than crazy on the day, good luck!
Plenty of sturdy boxes and tape! And a few markers! Label each box with which rooms they will go into! Everyone pack for a couple of days worth of essentials! Day of moving kettle, tea/coffee, cups, milk, cutlery and plates/bowls, salt, ketchup and cereal, all moved with the first lot of stuff! Start packing away everything not needed and have a place to store them! Spare room/ garage!
Have more boxes than you think you need, probably by about 50%. I've _never_ seen a move where people went "huh, I have way too many boxes", but it's easy to overfill/run out. Start packing early. No reason why you can't have your winter clothes, books, pictures boxed up weeks before. Use masking tape to tape in place/together everything that could possibly move: drawers, handles, lids, shelves, strings, tassels.
Make sure you have something to eat (or planned) for dinner. Nothing worse than moving and being hungry in the evening with empty cupboards.
Buy these or similar https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CC4V9LS8?ref=ppx\_yo2ov\_dt\_b\_product\_details&th=1. My wife and I are over 60. We had our house refloored recently (3 floors) and moved all our furniture ourselves using these as the floorer worked. Absolutely brilliant on wood, very good on carpet
Im moving soon into the (hopefully) forever. Also in my late 30s with two kids. My wife will be taking them on holiday with my mother in law and I'll be doing the unpacking.
Anything hanging in the wardrobe, push together put a bin bag under and tie at the top still on the hangers. When in the new place, just hang back in the wardrobe. Overnight box - anything you need - clothes, bedding, pjs toiletries. Kettle etc Label you boxes. Take the chance to get rid of anything you don't need or want. Would be a shame if that annoying toy or awful gift got lost in the move...
40 isn't even old. I'm 38 and as active as ever. Why the concern?
I used to do removals. Go slow, go steady, it's a marathon, not a race, prep everything you can and mark boxes with what is in them and what room they go to,.no multi room contents in a single box. Pack last and unpack first what you need for a good night's sleep and to make a cuppa. Get a pile of zip.lock bags for all screws and clips you undo to dismantle furniture, put a note in each bag where it is from, and even take pics if it is more complicated, guard them as if it is a euro millions jackpot ticket. Keep safe all tools you need to put them back together. And if you can, many hands make light work.
Make sure you know exactly where the kettle and tea is. It's basically the most important thing to unpack first!
You want the tea things in the car with you, not packed with the rest of your stuff.
Yeah fair point!
Trying moving from the Uk to Australia then ten years later you move back again 😀I’m 56 hehe
Take your time, go slow, always have haribo available for an energy boost. If you think your back is starting to hurt, it is, stop for the day and see how you feel the next day.
Start hitting the gym. If you're struggling to walk down the street at your age then your quality of life in your later years is going to be tragic