Store as much as you like for as long as you like
Store as much as you like for as long as you like
Moving house is an incredibly exciting time. But it’s also complicated, chaotic and one of the most stressful life events you can go through. There’s just so much to remember, and at some point you’re bound to forget something important at a critical moment. But if you’re organised and plan a few things out in advance, you can pre-empt a lot of the most common pitfalls and even the most complicated tasks can be simple and straight forward. In particular, here are 5 things to focus on in the run up to moving day.
Without question the most important part of your move, and something we’re sure you’re already thinking about, or dreading, depending on how you feel about it! But the way you pack can make your move go smoothly, or make it more difficult, so it’s worth having a plan before you start putting things in boxes. Our best tip is to start with the room you use least and work up to those you use every day. For example, if you’re not having guests over, pack up the spare room first. If it’s the middle of winter when you’re moving and you won’t be using the garden much, then pack up the shed and garage first. This means you can space out your packing a bit and make sure you’re not left hunting through boxes for things in the run up to the move.
Moving into a new house can be chaos, but with a bit of organisation you can reduce some of that stress. When you’re packing, add some coloured sharpies to your packing kit. For each room, assign a colour, and label 3 sides of each box in the colour for that room. This is a nice, simple system that makes it easy for removals teams to know where to put your boxes when they move them in. You can also use a ‘priority’ code system, like ‘1,2,3’ or ‘H,M,L’ to remind you of which are important and need to be unpacked first. And above all, mark any boxes containing breakables with ‘fragile’, so you don’t risk them getting damaged!
If you’re using this move as an opportunity to upgrade some of your furniture (particularly bigger items), remember that delivery dates and times might not always coincide with your moving date. This means you might be left without a sofa for a few days! But not to worry. If you know about it in advance, then you can arrange temporary furniture for your new place, and storage for your old furniture while you’re organising selling or disposing of it. A self storage unit can be perfect for this awkward time, as you have ultimate flexibility and can only pay for what you need, when you need it.
Along with a lot of physical effort, moving house also includes a lot of paperwork and admin. Between switching energy suppliers, connecting internet, changing your driver’s licence, with the bank and all of the other forms you need, it’s easy for something to get lost in the shuffle. So before the big day, sit down and make a list of everything you currently pay for, and contact your providers to see if they can switch your services to your new address on moving day. And if you’re switching to a new provider and a cheaper deal, make sure you inform both parties of the move ahead of time. Make sure you let your employer, the government, your council, your bank etc of your change of address, and arrange a forwarding service with the post office so you don’t miss anything important while it’s all moving over. Doing this ahead of time will save you so much stress when moving time comes around.
Most children will be quite excited about the prospect of moving to a new home, once they’ve got their heads around leaving the old one! But they can also get quite emotional when it actually time to leave, and this can make things quite difficult on moving day. If you can, it’s often best to have someone else look after your children for moving day while you get the bulk of the moving and unpacking done, and bring them home when it’s time to unpack their rooms. The same can be said for pets – having them around when you are physically moving can be scary and dangerous for them, and many families have lost pets (particularly cats) who bolted out of the door and couldn’t find their way back. So it can be preferable to have someone else look after them for the day, or put them in a cattery/kennel for a few days while you get the new home set up and pet safe.
If you’re looking for somewhere to store your belongings during the moving process, or you need packing supplies like boxes, tape, bubble wrap or box wardrobes, we would love to help. Just get in touch with the team at Blue Box Self Storage and we would be happy to organise flexible unit rental so that you can plan perfectly around your move.