Moving Tips

Avoid leaving everything to the last minute unless you have to pack up and leave in a hurry. Chances are you have between 30 and 60 days to make a plan and to ensure that moving day runs smoothly. Creating a countdown list and itemizing everything you need to accomplish week by week can be very helpful.

When you have several boxes its is one thing, but when you get to the big, heavy items it is important to let your movers know what to expect. Communicate with your moving company and explain all of your expectations prior to booking. Your movers have to be aware of all the minor details in order to estimate your total moving time and cost, and also to have the proper equipment available. That includes informing the company about any overweight items (i.e. a piano or fridge), access restrictions (small elevator, narrow driveway) and whether you’ll need help with disassembly or assembly of furniture.

Moving is a great chance to organize your belongings and get rid of items you no longer use. If the time of year permits, hold a yard sale. Or, take the time to sort and donate gently worn clothing to some foundations or put furniture up for sale on a site like kijiji.ca or Facebook Market.

Moving day can generate a great deal of waste like cardboard, bubble wrap and newspaper. One of our moving tips for you would be: for items you’ll be storing even once you’ve moved in, opt for the reusable plastic bins you can purchase at stores like Home Depot. These can be labelled to go directly into closets until you’re ready to deal with the contents. You can avoid cardboard for the rest of your belongings, too, by renting plastic bins. You might also consider using older linens to wrap breakables.

You may still need a few cardboard boxes to round out your moving kit, which you can obtain from us. But after the move do not throw boxes out, because you can still use them to keep things such as seasonal shoes in a garage or basement. When purchasing boxes do keep in mind that smaller ones are easier to carry when facing stairs and narrow pathways if you are moving into a house that is not so big and spacious.

Keeping inventory is especially necessary if you’re hiring a moving company. Having a record of your household items is useful if something goes missing. Consider keeping a spreadsheet of the contents of each box. Then assign each box a number and write that number on each side.

Label all sides of the box but avoid labelling the top. Whoever is carrying your boxes might not make sure all labels are facing one way for your easy retrieval. Try labelling each side in a marker, so you can easily find what you need in a stack. Also, it is a good idea to label the room where it belongs to so that the Movers can work faster.