Give me your best packing and moving trips, tricks and hacks!
April 1, 2016 6:37 AM Subscribe
I'm moving from Boston(actually Somerville/Cambridge) to Bombay (Mumbai). I need to know how to pack and ship a ton of stuff, and am looking for your tried, trusted methods, checklists, tips and tricks to pack boxes and household goods.
I'll be selling most of my stuff and won't be taking any furniture except for a standing desk, and my mattress. I'm also selling my car. The bulk of the weight that I'll be shipping is the regular kitchen stuff, and other household goods that I won't find back in India. I'm also shipping a ton of books that I don't have the heart to part with, and honestly are textbooks and case packs from my MBA program (which I'll need since I'm starting a company).
I'm single and live in a 700 sq.ft. apartment. I'll be moving into my parents' place and thus won't need storage or a temporary place to stay.
Also, I'll be paying for the move on my own. Here is a link to a Google Sheet with some quotes and companies that I've contacted.
My questions are thus:
* What do you look for in a shipping company that will move household goods for you?
* How do you suggest I best plan my move?
* Do you have any trips and tricks that make packing and unpacking of household goods easy and efficient?
* What else should I be aware of?
* Do you have any recommendations for cross country, international moves?
And as a side:
* What should I take from the US that'll remind me of the time that I've spent here? I don't anticipate being back for the next 3-4 years.
I'll be selling most of my stuff and won't be taking any furniture except for a standing desk, and my mattress. I'm also selling my car. The bulk of the weight that I'll be shipping is the regular kitchen stuff, and other household goods that I won't find back in India. I'm also shipping a ton of books that I don't have the heart to part with, and honestly are textbooks and case packs from my MBA program (which I'll need since I'm starting a company).
I'm single and live in a 700 sq.ft. apartment. I'll be moving into my parents' place and thus won't need storage or a temporary place to stay.
Also, I'll be paying for the move on my own. Here is a link to a Google Sheet with some quotes and companies that I've contacted.
My questions are thus:
* What do you look for in a shipping company that will move household goods for you?
* How do you suggest I best plan my move?
* Do you have any trips and tricks that make packing and unpacking of household goods easy and efficient?
* What else should I be aware of?
* Do you have any recommendations for cross country, international moves?
And as a side:
* What should I take from the US that'll remind me of the time that I've spent here? I don't anticipate being back for the next 3-4 years.
Is there a reason to move your mattress and even your standing desk?
posted by k8t at 7:10 AM on April 1, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by k8t at 7:10 AM on April 1, 2016 [4 favorites]
Buy at least twice as much packing tape as you think you need. ONLY buy heavy duty shipping tape in multiples.
Pack a suitcase of the essentials, as though you are going on a long trip. Underwear, toiletries, work outfits, etc. Lots of things can go wrong with a move, so you want to be able to live out of it for a few weeks if needed.
Think carefully about how much you really need to keep. 90% of what you bring should be for sentimental reasons, or because it would be difficult or inconvenient to replace (you can buy a spatula anywhere). With an overseas move, you likely don't want to bring anything electrical, given that the outlets will be different.
posted by veery at 7:19 AM on April 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
Pack a suitcase of the essentials, as though you are going on a long trip. Underwear, toiletries, work outfits, etc. Lots of things can go wrong with a move, so you want to be able to live out of it for a few weeks if needed.
Think carefully about how much you really need to keep. 90% of what you bring should be for sentimental reasons, or because it would be difficult or inconvenient to replace (you can buy a spatula anywhere). With an overseas move, you likely don't want to bring anything electrical, given that the outlets will be different.
posted by veery at 7:19 AM on April 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
For what you're paying to move these things, which you won't be using, you can rebuy them, should you need to, in the future. Sell the mattress and the standing desk and donate the kitchenware. If you can't get it easily in India, that means you won't need it.
Think about purchasing digitized versions of books and donate your paper books to your local library. As for your textbooks, you THINK you'll use them, but you won't. Nothing ages faster than an MBA textbook. You have the entire Internet to use for researching things or remembering formulas or whatever it is you think you'll need from all of that heavy stuff.
These days there is nothing that is irreplaceable. I have moved cross-country and it was SO EASY to replace anything I got rid of that I needed again. The bonus was in the intervening time, when I didn't need it, it wasn't in my way and I didn't pay to store it or move it. It was cheaper that way.
If you have to ask us what to take back to remind you of the time you've spent in the US...you don't need it. You have your experiences, your friends and your education, you don't need an object to remind you.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 7:28 AM on April 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Think about purchasing digitized versions of books and donate your paper books to your local library. As for your textbooks, you THINK you'll use them, but you won't. Nothing ages faster than an MBA textbook. You have the entire Internet to use for researching things or remembering formulas or whatever it is you think you'll need from all of that heavy stuff.
These days there is nothing that is irreplaceable. I have moved cross-country and it was SO EASY to replace anything I got rid of that I needed again. The bonus was in the intervening time, when I didn't need it, it wasn't in my way and I didn't pay to store it or move it. It was cheaper that way.
If you have to ask us what to take back to remind you of the time you've spent in the US...you don't need it. You have your experiences, your friends and your education, you don't need an object to remind you.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 7:28 AM on April 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Hi, Indian here.
Please do not bother with anything electronic. The outlets are all different, and anyway it's much cheaper to get in India.
On preview, waving has great advice. Plus, books are so cheap in India, especially business books (many companies publish special low-cost editions) that it may not be worth shipping them. Check Flipkart.com or Amazon.in. That, or get electronic version. Shifting to my iPad (after two several-thousand-mile moves) was a life-changer.
posted by Tamanna at 9:38 AM on April 1, 2016 [3 favorites]
Please do not bother with anything electronic. The outlets are all different, and anyway it's much cheaper to get in India.
On preview, waving has great advice. Plus, books are so cheap in India, especially business books (many companies publish special low-cost editions) that it may not be worth shipping them. Check Flipkart.com or Amazon.in. That, or get electronic version. Shifting to my iPad (after two several-thousand-mile moves) was a life-changer.
posted by Tamanna at 9:38 AM on April 1, 2016 [3 favorites]
Have you read previous AskMe's on moving and packing? There is a ton of good advice on how to stay organized.
posted by radioamy at 10:59 AM on April 1, 2016
posted by radioamy at 10:59 AM on April 1, 2016
I would strongly reconsider moving the mattress. I recently moved to Hawaii from the east coast and we shipped our mattress along with our other household goods. It arrived in ok condition and we're still using it, but it definitely lost some of its "magic" from being in a hot humid shipping container for 9 weeks. I would say it took a good 2-3 years off its useful life. If it's a new mattress that you can't get an equivalent of in India it may be worthwhile to bring it, but it will depreciate in quality significantly.
posted by melissasaurus at 11:23 AM on April 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by melissasaurus at 11:23 AM on April 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Keep only what you truly love or is truly useful or joyful to you. Almost everything is available everywhere these days. Take as little as possible.
And on documents/manuals: I happily parted with professional training manuals and documentation from Country X right before moving to Country Z after not looking at them for the entire time I lived in Country Y. It added hundreds of dollars to my move to get them over since they were so dense and heavy and I'm never taking them again. Keep it in the cloud!
posted by mdonley at 9:55 PM on April 1, 2016
And on documents/manuals: I happily parted with professional training manuals and documentation from Country X right before moving to Country Z after not looking at them for the entire time I lived in Country Y. It added hundreds of dollars to my move to get them over since they were so dense and heavy and I'm never taking them again. Keep it in the cloud!
posted by mdonley at 9:55 PM on April 1, 2016
I'm kind of on team "sell more stuff" here with the other posters. Moving is a costly endeavor, and most of what you'll need that isn't books or personal effects will be readily available in Mumbai, and likely cheaper to purchase than the bulk cost of moving.
If you're really attached to your stuff and don't want to sell it, I might price some storage units around Boston so you can reclaim your belongings in 3-4 years when you say you'll be moving back to the US and weigh that against the cost of moving large furniture overseas and purchasing new furniture on the other side.
I'd originally written up some info on sending a household shipment ahead of time the way the military always had us do when we were getting stationed somewhere new, but then I saw you were moving in with your parents when you get there, so you probably don't need to plan for having access to pots and pans and the like.
For books, depending on how many you have, I'd look into USPS Media Mail. They have special rates for shipping heavier items like books, and that might even be a better deal than hiring a moving company to ship them, especially if you ditch the furniture.
As for reminders of the US, I like to try to find work from local artists who maybe made something fun and city-centric, like a giclee print of a Boston landmark or some kind of handmade-in-the-USA ornament or useful item. I tend not to like souvenirs for souvenirs' sake and get much more enjoyment and fulfillment out of regularly using or looking at a thing that I love and remembering why and how I came to own it. After that, it's a matter of personal taste. :)
Good luck with your big move!
posted by helloimjennsco at 12:54 PM on April 4, 2016
If you're really attached to your stuff and don't want to sell it, I might price some storage units around Boston so you can reclaim your belongings in 3-4 years when you say you'll be moving back to the US and weigh that against the cost of moving large furniture overseas and purchasing new furniture on the other side.
I'd originally written up some info on sending a household shipment ahead of time the way the military always had us do when we were getting stationed somewhere new, but then I saw you were moving in with your parents when you get there, so you probably don't need to plan for having access to pots and pans and the like.
For books, depending on how many you have, I'd look into USPS Media Mail. They have special rates for shipping heavier items like books, and that might even be a better deal than hiring a moving company to ship them, especially if you ditch the furniture.
As for reminders of the US, I like to try to find work from local artists who maybe made something fun and city-centric, like a giclee print of a Boston landmark or some kind of handmade-in-the-USA ornament or useful item. I tend not to like souvenirs for souvenirs' sake and get much more enjoyment and fulfillment out of regularly using or looking at a thing that I love and remembering why and how I came to own it. After that, it's a matter of personal taste. :)
Good luck with your big move!
posted by helloimjennsco at 12:54 PM on April 4, 2016
I am in the same situation as you, a massive move but mine is to Australia. I would recommend scoping out the ex-pat forums for shipping company recommendations and what was important and not important for those folks in retrospect.
I am going to take a look at your spreadsheet because I am searching for a company, too. One thing that maybe of huge difference is to determine if your bulky stuff is really necessary and whether you can replace. I am stuck with thousands of books because the replacement costs are astronomical in Australia and I am moving a whole household with children.
One thing to determine is whether the moving company's insurance is extensive enough and whether insurance is only valid with professional packers. and ask about storing items and the last mile delivery. So many details.
posted by jadepearl at 6:59 PM on June 19, 2016
I am going to take a look at your spreadsheet because I am searching for a company, too. One thing that maybe of huge difference is to determine if your bulky stuff is really necessary and whether you can replace. I am stuck with thousands of books because the replacement costs are astronomical in Australia and I am moving a whole household with children.
One thing to determine is whether the moving company's insurance is extensive enough and whether insurance is only valid with professional packers. and ask about storing items and the last mile delivery. So many details.
posted by jadepearl at 6:59 PM on June 19, 2016
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posted by waving at 6:43 AM on April 1, 2016 [4 favorites]