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Our family is relocating from the east coast to west coast. The company that hired my partner is moving all of our stuff and hiring movers for us. The person in charge of our relocation seems to be too busy to respond to our emails about details that I need. We are due to move around mid June. Maybe I am too much of a control freak but I really need to know what I can pack myself or prepare when the movers come. Has anyone used professional movers? I feel very strange that all I should do is sit and watch them pack my stuff. We are getting rid of lots of and while organizing I feel that I ought to start packing some stuff too.
Are you expecting that the moving company will pack 'everything'? If that is the case, then yes, you just sit back and watch.
I wouldn't...and haven't...done it that way. Here's what i did recently: I pack the little stuff....dishes, knick knacks, clothing, toiletiries, cleaning stuff, books...pretty much evreything up to table lamp sized items. The mover packs everything from table lamps up through the piano and the couch.
Have the mover drop off boxes now.....you need about 50 small; 50 medium and 50 large. Have him leave 20 'dish boxes' (taller cartons that you don't use for dishes--I don't know why) , and 25 or so wardrobes. You'll need about ten rolls of packing tape, and a pile of packing paper.
As you go through the house pack everything which you don't throw out or give away. Start with the stuff you cherish, but haven't used since your last move. Progress through more 'current' stuff until the last few days, when everything needs to be in a box. It will take you a good month to do a three bedroom/three bath house..including the basement, the attic and the garage. On moving day the mover will load your boxes and wrap furniture in cardboard, shrink wrap, and blankets before loading it on the truck. The last thing to go on will be the gas grill and lawnmower--just as they are (no gas/fuel).
I am a neat knick and would not want any mover packing my personal things. The mover wants to do it because people are generally poor packers and then the mover gets blamed for the breakage. You sound like me, so take your time, use more packing than you think is needed, label everything clearly, and use tape on all sides of the box. My mover was tops in terms of treating everything carefully, but many times contract movers who move for a corporate client can be a little aggressive because they bid the jobs on the cheap. This is one place where you don't want to go cheap.
Here is one more tip. I did a long distance move. I insisted that the same guys who loaded the truck were the ones to unload it at the destination. They were responsible from beginning to end. They rode in the truck and couldn't blame someone else (like a laborer who the mover gets from the local affiliate when you get there, and who knows nothing about you or how important careful handling of your possessions is to you. Or worse, a laborer who the mover picks up off the street) for anything that got broken. I had one broken item. The mover called it to my attention right away as they were loading the truck.
Good luck. It is your stuff. Don't let someone else anywhere near it until they prove that they care more about it than you do. Make sure the guy who 'sold' you on their servcies is there to supervise the packing and loading operation.
Otherwsie, sit back, kick your feet up, and watch as someone you don't know dismantles your house as quickly as possible and throws it on a truck for a long distance move. Unpacking will be an adventure...and a sad experience. My advice is to not go this route.
We are moving in mid June. The movers will pack all breakables, so they will be liable if there is damage. We will pack pots and pans, clothing, some electronics, photos, and other possessions. We have been doing packing for about 3 weeks now. If you guys are moving next month, you should be packing now, unless your household is small.
You do need information from the mover. You should have a relocation contact person, and I advise you to persist until you make contact.
If your move involves storage of furniture, make sure you carry with you important legal and/or tax documents you will need when you reach your destination. This means researching what you need to obtain a DL and license , how to register for voting, insurance documents, estate docs (if any). You will probably need your birth certificates and passports. You don't want them packed away in storage for weeks.
You need to have someone from the mover walk through your house and discuss how they will move you. If you can't get that to happen, then I advise taking this problem up with the pertinent department at your partner's company, because if this is so, this place isn't giving you the service for which they are being paid by the employer.
Often on employee moves everything is packed and moved. You will have to think through your own circumstances and decide what you will need immediately after arriving at your destination. You will need to do some online research about your new home.
Control freaks shouldn't be asking a forum community for professional advice about moving. Whatever your expectations are as a result of the input, you are leading yourself into a big let down on the day the packing crew and driver shows up.
Most company, international enterprise, hiring manager, and HR specialists have specific service requirements and pricing parameters built into their purchase order or contract carriage agreement with movers. Each agreement can be different for both the moving companies and employees based on the level of your partners benefit and company policy.
Ask your partner to contact the company's relocation benefit administrator and provide you both with a written copy of the general relocation policy and your specific benefit.
If the mover has been authorized to pay everything (full pack) and something is damaged because of packing that you performed, your valuation coverage might be placed in jeopardy.
I once had a picky woodworker pack his own shop. He was afraid the movers would steel his tools. While en route, a previously opened can of mahogany varnish leaked and stained the contents not only the carton stacked below it but the padded antique ice box next to it.
He paid to refinish the floor of the driver's van.
Movers will not pack anything opened - not bags of rice, not cleaning materials, not liquor.
Some movers are funny about guns and/or won't transport bullets. Remember that those trucks may get awfully hot, are not climate-controlled, and anything that is dangerous will not be shipped, especially if heat will cause a combustion. They won't transport fertilizers, etc.
They will not pack anything refrigerated. Clean out your fridge and freezer, throw out everything (anything you plan on keeping for the trip, put in a cooler), and - if you are taking your appliances or not - clean (I use 10% bleach solution) and unplug them, leaving them open to air out. This will prevent mold growth and smells.
Clean your toaster of crumbs, your oven, any appliance including your mixer and blender that is going with you. (Occasionally bugs will get into the trucks, and you don't want to feed them ANYthing.) Unplug anything electrical that is to be packed, and wrap the cords securely around the appliance. This will help prevent breakage/tripping.
It is better if you pack your own jewelry. If you have it in a jewelry armoire, they will simply tape it/wrap it shut and take it as is - and you could lose smaller pieces.
If you have 'sets' of things, like phones and cradles, etc, unplug and put them together with any cords and connections. They will not only pack better, but you will be able to find them and hook them up in your new home more efficiently. Likewise computers, TVs, VCRs - unplug them and secure all wires to them, or place them in Ziploc'ed bags next to the electronics. This way you ensure that they all are packed together. Mark the bags with notations as to what they go to, this will make hookups in your house easier. Otherwise all cords may just go into a jumbled box ( "What did THIS go to?").
Put all of your appliance books together in a well-marked bag or box so that you can reference them when you get to your new place. This way you will have them readily available for remembering what tab goes into what slot.
A box of large Ziplocs (gallon) and small Ziplocs (sandwich) are convenient for packing small items that can easily get lost. You can slide them into convenient sock drawers.
I found that the "Space bags" were convenient for transporting large quilts, coats, and other large or stuffed items, even sweaters, etc that you won't need right away, to avoid them getting tumbled about or dirty. You don't have to worry about unpacking them right away when you get to the new place, and you can see clearly what they are.
We bought our movers lunch and drinks for their breaks, and tipped them. Unfortunately we had two opened bottles of Crown that could not go in the truck, and gosh darnit no room in the cars.
If you have receipts for any items....keep them. If anything gets broken in the move, and when it comes time to tally everything after the move, the moving company will ask for receipts for proof of value. This is for items that need repair or credit.
Watch the movers! Mine packed the dried floral arrangements with my snow boots, both of which were located on 2 different levels of the home...it made no sense, plus the arrangements were damaged. Help label boxes if you can. I had several marked by the movers as "STUFF", yea, that really was helpful!
Watch what the movers are doing during their breaks, if possible. Turns out mine went outside and smoked dope.......yup hense the mispacking!
We were corporate relo clients, and I learned so much during this last move.
Regardless of who packs, You or the Moving company there are 3 categories of items that the movers will not want in the truck.
Pack no Liquids, these could leak and make a nasty mess, even if the bottle is new, it could leak, just check out the store room at your local grocery store, they have seen leaky bottles of everything from ketchup to bleach
Pack Nothing Flamable / Explosive, the movers will not pack these and you will only be sorry if you pack them and the truck catches fire or blows up because of something you packed
Pack No Chemicals, this can be everything, cleaning supplies, healthcare items to shop supplies, automotive, yard items. Chemicals that spill can mix together and cause a nasty mess or even kill someone.
Keep these 3 categories out of the truck and you should be good.
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