How to Pack for Moving House: A Complete Guide

March 20, 2024

The prospect of moving to a new house may seem very exciting but it also drains the energy out of you. It includes tasks like cleaning the entire living space, contacting utility companies, and packing all your belongings. Here are some useful tips on how to pack for moving house.

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Necessary Supplies You Need for Packing

You might be having several boxes lying around the house, but you would still need to buy a variety of boxes to pack and store your belongings. Many times, the purchase of boxes and other materials for packing is unavoidable. Make sure that the boxes you are getting are sturdy enough to hold the weight of the items you pack.

You can make sure of spare plastic boxes to pack fragile and valuable items. Procure the best boxes from available stores; the most common ones you would need include:

Wardrobe Boxes	Tall boxes with a hanging bar for transporting clothes on hangers, minimizing the need for folding or ironing during moves.
Small Boxes	Ideal for packing smaller, dense items like books, kitchen utensils, and toiletries, offering easy handling and stacking.
Medium Boxes	Versatile boxes for various household items, striking a balance between size and weight for manageable lifting and carrying.
Large Boxes	Suitable for packing lightweight, bulky items such as pillows, blankets, and larger kitchen appliances, reducing the number of boxes needed.
Telescopic Cardboard Box	Adjustable in height to accommodate items of different sizes, consisting of a base and lid for flexibility in packing.
Heavy-Duty Boxes	Durable boxes made from thick cardboard or corrugated material, designed to withstand the weight and pressure of heavy items like books or tools during transportation.

Moving house kits are widely available for people to buy, getting one can help you make the job easy for you. You can also make use of tasks and errands services from a professional service provider in Singapore to hire help to not only pack for moving house but also seek transport.

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How to Pack for Moving House?

Start Packing in Advance

Even though the average time needed to pack all your belongings depends greatly on the number of items you have, you should start packaging one week before the day you’ve planned to do it. For a big house, two months is a good time if you pack one box a day, and one month would be a good time for small homes.

Declutter Your Space and Donate Items

When it comes to sorting things that you do not want to take with you, giving away or donating unwanted items to charity or other people who need such items can be a good option. There are also plenty of sites that encourage selling used items such as eBay to make it easy for you. You can leverage on Facebook communities to give away or sell your items. Also, if you have friends who help you with moving house, donate items to them as well.

Create an Inventory List in Detail

Making a detailed inventory list is extremely helpful especially if you have a good collection of books, trinkets, CDs, etc. You can make use of spreadsheets on your phone for creating it.

Dispose of the Hazardous Items

Most international removal companies will not allow the transport of hazardous items. In case they haven’t provided you with information regarding the transport of such items, make sure that you ask them before you pack such items. Get to know about the certifications and qualifications, and also about the cost of your move since it would be higher when you transport such items.

Begin with Rooms and Belongings You Use Less

Cleaning and packing items in the rooms you use less often can be a good idea, to begin with. Pack the seasonal items that you won’t be needing in the coming days such as Christmas lights, gardening tools, coats, and so on.

Pack One Room at a Time

This is one of the major tips when it comes to packing for moving house, but is often neglected just to make the process all messy. Although the method of packing depends on what is easier for each individual, it is usually said that packing items by room is better. Doing this way helps us stay organised - it helps us to tell movers to keep where to keep specific boxes while unloading. You can also choose to begin unpacking and unloading in reverse than usual - from the top to bottom floor.

Do Not Pack More than Thirty Pounds in a Box

This tip is of high importance, especially if you are planning to move abroad with as many boxes as you can. Make sure that the weight of any pack never exceeds thirty pounds to avoid a back injury. The boxes might not also be able to hold the weight while moving if you pack it with too much weight. Another useful tip is to pack heavy items in small boxes and small light-weight items in large boxes - this tip alone will make the process a whole lot easier for you.

Use Plastic Bags While Packing Spillable Items

Keep in mind that it is always best to reduce the number of liquid items you wish to take with other essentials. There might be chances of spillage, especially while transporting and unloading. However, if there are any unavoidable items of such kind, make sure that you do double packaging for such bottles using plastic bags. Unscrew the caps of each bottle, and place a plastic bag over the neck of each bottle and screw the caps back on. Make sure that you can fit the whole bottle inside the plastic bag. Zip or tie the bag and secure it by using tape. This way, if at all your bottle opens accidentally while moving the items, the liquid would remain inside the plastic bag.

Roll the Clothes

Rolling the clothes and keeping them inside boxes or bags is the most practical and convenient tip to carry clothes. This is much easier than folding and keeping, and it saves a lot of space inside your bag. In addition to that, there is less chance for wrinkles to appear on your clothes if you roll and keep them. You can always store more clothes in a box when compared to storing folded clothes; you can also stay away from the worry of ironing them before you have to put them inside your new wardrobe.

Store All Your Valuables in a Single Place

This might be a tip that is needless to say, but in case you forget, we’re reminding you of its importance. Keep all your valuables in one box after preparing a detailed inventory list to do it. Renting a safe deposit box at your bank is a good option if you look forward to safekeeping them for a while.

Take All the Necessary Documents with You

While moving from a place you lived for quite some time, you would need to make sure that you had packed all the necessary documents such as birth certificate, passport, college certificates, bank account statements, and more. It would be good if you pack all of them together to reduce the chance of missing them.

Label the Boxes After Packing

Write and label the name of the room and box next to the inventory list. Also, make sure that you label the boxes on the side of each box as it makes it easier for you to recognise them. We advise you to use different colours for different rooms; ask your children to get creative and help you with this.

Hire a Packing Assistant: Movers & Packers Service on the Sendhelper App or Website

Book movers & packers service on the Sendhelper app or website to hire a packing assistant to help you pack for moving house.