Best Practices and Packing Tips


Packing Boxes
Ikea Style (MDF/Pressboard) Furniture
Plants

Pack all Non-Furniture items in boxes except for large electronics without original box and pole lamps. If you have everything well packed in sealed, weight-size appropriate containers prior to our arrival, everything will go much faster. Uniformely sized boxes also speed up the process so we don't have to spend as much time doing expert tetris moves.

Any electronics that have original box should be packed in them.

What should be packed in each size of box?
Small Boxes (1.5 cubic feet, dimensions 12X12X16):
Heavy Stuff Including Books, DVDs, CDs, Media should only be packed in small boxes.

Medium Boxes (3.0 cubic feet, dimensions 18X18X16):
Dishes, small appliances, clothing, shoes/boots, pots and pans.

Large Boxes (4.5 cubic feet, dimensions 18X18X24):
Bedding, Pillows, Linens, Clothing- very light stuff only.

Wardrobe Boxes(15 cubic feet, dimensions 24X20X48):
These boxes come equipped with a hanging bar for hanging clothing. You can stuff them tighter than you would in the closet. You can put some very light pillows or shoes in the bottom as long as it's not too heavy.


Make sure all boxes are full to the top. If you are packing odd shaped items or dishes, kitchen items, even books, tapes, etc, use packing paper, newsprint or bubble wrap to fill unused space in the box. Closing boxes that are not full slows down the moving process signficantly because the boxes do not stack well. If you are using juggleboxes or other plastic tub variety, they tend to be pretty big, so do not fill them with books! However since you also want them to be full, we sometimes have customers who put books in the bottom, and fill the top with linens and clothing. It seems to work well.
If you are in a walkup apartment please make sure that your boxes are easy to carry. Our guys are in good shape, but running overpacked and too heavy boxes up and down stairs is also a safety hazard, and the boxes tend to fall apart under that kind of stress.

Make sure all furniture with drawers or cabinets are completely emptied of stuff. Although some dressers/cabinets may appear to be light enough to carry while loaded, the stress and strains on the joints tend to break pieces when carrying while loaded. Ikea style MDF furniture is most prone to this type of breakage.

IKEA MDF style furniture is really not meant for being moved around a lot. Especially once it is assembled. We ask that you please fully disassemble all fiberboard/pressboard furniture that is larger than a dresser. If you choose not to disassemble it, we will do our best to move it in one piece. We cannot be held responisble for broken joints or snapped connectors, as these items break frequently on these pieces. If you arrange ahead of time we would be happy to help you dis and re-assemble it. If the item is already floppy when we arrive, it is more likely that it will break during the move.

Plants should be packed snugly in boxes. If we arrive and you have plants that are not in appropriate boxes, we cannot guarantee that they will arrive safely or stay alive during the trip.

Get There Moving