As part of our series on moving tips, we thought it would be super useful to go through supplies you may need and some moving hacks you might not have thought of! Check out the lists below to make your move as seamless as possible, without having to run out again and again to buy supplies.
What you’ll need for packing:
- Moving boxes of all sizes (small, medium, large)
- Wardrobe boxes
- Packing tape
- Tape gun
- Multi-color permanent markers (not necessary to have colored, but at least black!)
- Packing paper (See moving hack below!)
- Mover’s stretch wrap
- Bubble wrap
- Mattress covers
What you’ll need for moving:
- Bungee cords and ratchet straps
- Furniture pads
- Box cutter
- Contractor trash bags
- Paper towels and cleaning supplies
- Broom and dustpan
- Door stoppers
What you’ll need for heavy lifting:
- Hand truck
- Shoulder dolly moving straps (not totally necessary, but pretty handy!)
- Mover’s dolly
- Furniture sliders
- Furniture lifter
- Back brace
- Work gloves
What you’ll need for you:
- Toilet paper
- Cooler for snacks and beverages
- Cooling towel if you’re moving in the heat
- Luggage with all your essentials you’ll need while your other items are packed up
- Toiletries bag
- Household tool kit
- Moving planner or at least a good notepad with your notes about boxes and other thoughts to remember throughout the moving process
MOVING HACKS
We know this is what you came here for and we promise these little tips and tricks will really help you with any sort of moving!
-Packing paper – call your local newspaper printing shop and see if they sell the end rolls of the newspaper print. Sometimes they will sell them for $5-$10 per roll and most families only for an average move only need 2 rolls to move their entire house. Bonus: the paper doesn’t have any printing on it so it won’t get black newspaper ink all over your dishes and stuff!
-When it comes to moving supplies like hand trucks and furniture pads, you can rent these items for a small fee compared to the cost of buying them new. Or better yet, you can borrow them from a friend or relative for free.
-Put boxes by the door when you finish packing them instead of leaving them in their individual rooms. This will save you a lot of time on moving day, and potentially a lot of cash if you’re paying an hourly moving rate.
-If you can’t find the right-sized box for a bulky or odd-shaped item, you can create one by cutting up multiple boxes and reassembling them with tape to create a custom box for anything you need to pack.
-Before you disconnect electronics at your old home, take a photograph to document where all of the plugs go. This will make it much easier to set up when you unpack.
-For free or cheap moving boxes and supplies, check out these places:CraigsList, Facebook Marketplace, Furniture Stores/Electronic Stores/ Department Stores, Ask a local moving company if they have any slightly used boxes or supplies for sale for less than brand new, OfferUp and Letgo apps, and then of course you could buy new at places like UHaul stores, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Walmart.com. Amazon is also a great option for smaller moving supplies besides boxes.
-A typical 2-bedroom home will use about 60-80 boxes with ample supplies such as protective padding for all of your fragile items.
Now, this is by no means a complete list of hacks and supplies, but it should be pretty good to get you started. We wish you happy packing and even happier moving!
