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November 18, 2024 4:48 PM Subscribe
I have to pack / discard stuff ready for the movers in 3 weeks. I don't know where to start and what to pack first, what to leave till last. Does anyone have a home-packing strategy for moves? I'm after a 'do this first, then this, then that, then 4 days out do this' kind of plan. I have the movers, cleaners and rental agent all organized. I'm the weakest link. Can you help me get my head around it?
It's a two bedroom condo, with a garage full of boxes of books and unwanted furniture (tables, hanging rack) that are useful for packing and organizing. Also unwanted is dining table, bookshelves, etc., so I need to factor when to arrange for their disposal. Otherwise, it's just the usual makings of a spinster life with cats (ie: my home is rife with witchery and strife). Please guide me.
It's a two bedroom condo, with a garage full of boxes of books and unwanted furniture (tables, hanging rack) that are useful for packing and organizing. Also unwanted is dining table, bookshelves, etc., so I need to factor when to arrange for their disposal. Otherwise, it's just the usual makings of a spinster life with cats (ie: my home is rife with witchery and strife). Please guide me.
I’m going to give you an alternative process, where you hire more help. I use a lot of help when I move.
In advance:
- arrange packers
- arrange junk removal. They come after the packers but before the movers
- arrange accommodations for the night after the packers leave
- arrange pet boarding
With this plan, all you do until the night before the packers come is declutter and remove small trash/recyclables. Do this every day. Large items are clearly tagged, so the packers won’t touch them, and junk will remove them before the movers come. There is no donate pile.
The night before the packers come, you pack your personal electronics, key documents, medications, and some clothes into an overnight bag. Pack a bag for the pets. Morning the packers come, say goodbye to your pets and let them work. The junk guys come after they finish. You then head out to your accommodation, have a nice rest, then deal with movers and cleaners the next day.
With this approach, you can pass through an area multiple times before you move and find new things to discard each time. I reduced the volume of stuff that I moved by 1/3 in my most recent move.
posted by shock muppet at 6:38 PM on November 18 [2 favorites]
In advance:
- arrange packers
- arrange junk removal. They come after the packers but before the movers
- arrange accommodations for the night after the packers leave
- arrange pet boarding
With this plan, all you do until the night before the packers come is declutter and remove small trash/recyclables. Do this every day. Large items are clearly tagged, so the packers won’t touch them, and junk will remove them before the movers come. There is no donate pile.
The night before the packers come, you pack your personal electronics, key documents, medications, and some clothes into an overnight bag. Pack a bag for the pets. Morning the packers come, say goodbye to your pets and let them work. The junk guys come after they finish. You then head out to your accommodation, have a nice rest, then deal with movers and cleaners the next day.
With this approach, you can pass through an area multiple times before you move and find new things to discard each time. I reduced the volume of stuff that I moved by 1/3 in my most recent move.
posted by shock muppet at 6:38 PM on November 18 [2 favorites]
minervous's advice is about what I did when I moved last, although I had to leave the essentials of my home office until later in the process, since I work from home. But there was lots in and around my desk that could packed earlier.
You've probably heard this, but it's worth repeating: if you're not getting into your new place until moving day, pack a roll of toilet paper, paper towels and a shower curtain and clips (if needed) with your suitcase or the box of things you'll be carrying with you. Other things that may be handy to have in that box: batteries (I arrived to a chirping smoke detector, I was going out of my mind until I could run to get a battery) and a flashlight.
posted by EvaDestruction at 6:46 PM on November 18 [1 favorite]
You've probably heard this, but it's worth repeating: if you're not getting into your new place until moving day, pack a roll of toilet paper, paper towels and a shower curtain and clips (if needed) with your suitcase or the box of things you'll be carrying with you. Other things that may be handy to have in that box: batteries (I arrived to a chirping smoke detector, I was going out of my mind until I could run to get a battery) and a flashlight.
posted by EvaDestruction at 6:46 PM on November 18 [1 favorite]
This is the time in your life where you go buy some paper plates and one sleeve of disposable plastic cups and grab that leftover takeout cutlery and use it from now until departure. Bam, now you can pack a bunch of kitchen.
posted by deludingmyself at 4:23 AM on November 19
posted by deludingmyself at 4:23 AM on November 19
Best answer: Anything that can be thrown away and is not useful for packing, throw it away now. If the book boxes are coming along, get everything else out of the garage and put more packed and ready boxes in there. If they're not coming along, donate them or pitch them now. First 3 days is all about clearing space. Schedule a charity pickup asap, if possible. You can always schedule another closer to moving day or drop things off yourself (or ask a friend if you don't have your own vehicle).
If you are throwing heavy furniture away, the movers can do that for you in theory. Just make sure things are very clearly labeled. One table is good for packing, but you don't need multiples. If someone is buying it, give them a deadline of one week before moving day to claim it and remove it.
Books get packed first. Holiday decorations, craft projects, knickknacks, anything you do not need in the next three weeks. If there is something that you will need on day one but not until then, it goes into your suitcase(s) that travel with you. Now, pick the largest room and pack it all except the things you'll need in the next 3 weeks. Now pick the next largest room and keep going until all rooms have had a once over. This should take two weeks.
If you have things to deep clean, start on that in the last week. Anything you're about to put away should be evaluated to see if it should be packed. Have a random box to put miscellaneous things into. Remember those suitcases for anything essential like medications, pet food bowls, a hairbrush, toothbrush and toothpaste. One pass through each room each day to look for more things to pack. You can keep an open box in the room until it is full, then tape it up, label it and bring in another.
Every time you leave the house, take some trash out or bring a box to the garage.
posted by soelo at 9:27 AM on November 19
If you are throwing heavy furniture away, the movers can do that for you in theory. Just make sure things are very clearly labeled. One table is good for packing, but you don't need multiples. If someone is buying it, give them a deadline of one week before moving day to claim it and remove it.
Books get packed first. Holiday decorations, craft projects, knickknacks, anything you do not need in the next three weeks. If there is something that you will need on day one but not until then, it goes into your suitcase(s) that travel with you. Now, pick the largest room and pack it all except the things you'll need in the next 3 weeks. Now pick the next largest room and keep going until all rooms have had a once over. This should take two weeks.
If you have things to deep clean, start on that in the last week. Anything you're about to put away should be evaluated to see if it should be packed. Have a random box to put miscellaneous things into. Remember those suitcases for anything essential like medications, pet food bowls, a hairbrush, toothbrush and toothpaste. One pass through each room each day to look for more things to pack. You can keep an open box in the room until it is full, then tape it up, label it and bring in another.
Every time you leave the house, take some trash out or bring a box to the garage.
posted by soelo at 9:27 AM on November 19
Best answer: If you're looking for a charity to come pick up your unwanted furniture, schedule it NOW. It's been my experience that they schedule weeks out and have limited pick ups available in the later months of the year. Everyone wants to donate stuff by the end of the calendar year.
posted by Kangaroo at 4:37 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
posted by Kangaroo at 4:37 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
https://ask.metafilter.com/153106/Please-help-us-plan-our-move#2194881
posted by Jacqueline at 8:09 AM on November 20
posted by Jacqueline at 8:09 AM on November 20
Response by poster: Thank you all for making this move a little less overwhelming.
posted by Thella at 1:39 PM on November 22
posted by Thella at 1:39 PM on November 22
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Three weeks before the move:
- ruthlessly cull and arrange disposal anything you are not taking with you that you won't need in the meantime
- make a list of items that are too valuable or fragile to entrust to movers (if any) and make arrangements to move them yourself or store them with a friend for the interim
- get clear on your condo's trash/recycling/bulk disposal system
- make your cat plan
Two weeks before the move:
- take delivery of your moving boxes and supplies (or better yet, reusable bins, if such a thing is available near you
- pack all out of season clothes and shoes, all books, all art and decor
- take a look at your fridge/freezer/pantry and make a plan to use up as much perishable food as possible
One week before the move:
- dispose of the furniture you're not taking with you
- do any remaining laundry
- pack all but one set of bed linens and towels
- pack all but your basic kitchen tools, and two sets of serving dishes/utensils
- pack your home office/papers/personal files & media
Three days before moving day:
- tackle any cleaning or small repair tasks that you're responsible for, then
- pack your cleaning supplies and tools, but don't seal the box/bin
Two days before moving day:
- pack your remaining clothes and toiletries, putting aside three or four days worth of both in a suitcase; live out of this suitcase now
Day before moving day:
- pack the rest of the kitchen, including nonperishable food you'll be taking (if any)
- one more pass for cleaning/small repairs, then pack cleaning supplies and tools in clearly labels box
Moving day:
- get up, strip the bed and pack your bed linens and towels
- deal with the cat(s)
Pro tips:
- use clothes and linens to wrap items as much as possible (instead of bubble wrap or newspaper), it saves money and cleanup
- try to keep any one box/bin from getting too heavy for *you* to move, since you'll likely have to handle it as you pack/unpack
- pack your suitcase like you're going on a long weekend trip; toiletries, a few outfits, whatever tech you need and live out of that for your first day or two in the new place as you get settled
- label your boxes and bins clearly and on at least two sides
posted by minervous at 5:58 PM on November 18 [12 favorites]