Two questions... (Augusta, Belfast, Penobscot: for sale, apartment, leasing) - Maine (ME) - City-Data Forum

Elcarim · 03-20-2007, 08:32 AM

What is the purpose of harvesting ice?

Also, does anyone have insight on the mechanics of moving cross-country? We have to decide if we're going to attempt driving a UHAUL truck that far or just pay a moving service. I'm not sure what the cost difference would be or if it would be worth paying the difference. I'm also thinking there may be a freight/shipping type service we may use. We're going to consolidate as much as possible, getting rid of all old furniture and stuff we will replace when we get there, so our load will be much lighter than it is now. I don't think our Italian Villa style living room/dining suit will match our New England home. Thanks!

Submariner · 03-20-2007, 09:11 AM

We have done both at different times.

When you hire a mover, they will walk in and 'BOOM' it is done. You have six guys hauling stuff. Commonly even a trash basket full of junk next to your desk, will be put in a box and shipped. It happens very fast, and there is no way, that you can 'direct' things ['A' needs to go on the sidewalk for the garbagemen, 'B' gets shipped, 'C' needs to go in the corner for John who wants it, etc] It just happens too fast.

So if you hire someone, you really need to first: sort and haul out the stuff you do not want. And when your home ahs ONLY those things that you wish to take, then schedule the movers.

In military housing, there are always big neighborhood give-aways. You dont wnat this or that, so it all goes onto the sidewalk a week before your transfer. And the neighbors get to pick through it for free.

It really depends on whether you have folks at both ends of the trip that can help you carry furniture and boxes. If you do, then driving a U-haul is fun.

Elcarim · 03-20-2007, 09:44 AM

What are the cost comparisons like between the two? We will be arriving by ourselves-too far for family to travel to help! Thanks

Submariner · 03-20-2007, 10:11 AM

We always did it through the military, who would get an estimate for a moving company, and then offer the servicemember 80% of that amount to move himself. Using the 80% cash figure we could rent the U-Haul, pay for gas, and generally come out between $200 to $500 ahead.

So as a rule of thumb I would say that doing it yourself will cost you roughly 75% of the cost of hiring a moving company.

vickilynn · 03-20-2007, 10:11 AM

We used international removers from UK back here (didn't ship anything that way)...like forest beekeeper says..they come in and everything gets put into boxes and labeled, so you really need to sort what is what before they show up (and with us, they HAD to pack everything...even underclothes and so forth

) We ended up with only one ceramic bowl broken. It was expensive though, so we didn't ship furniture or anything of that nature.

When we moved from Maine to northern CA we did take a lot of furniture/bedframes/bureaus etc and drove a big uhaul truck (husband did...I drove the mini van and 5 kids :yikes

I loved that drive...although when we came back the three oldest kids flew and I drove by myself with the twins who were about2.5 at the time. If you have never driven cross country and have a chance to, do it! So wonderful seeing the topography changes

Coaster · 03-20-2007, 10:33 AM

"What is the purpose of harvesting ice? "

Short answer: iceboxes.

Today it's more a curiosity, a living history demonstration, although I know of at least one sporting camp upcountry that harvested ice from the lake at its front door to use in the summer at least until recently.

Until the early-mid 1900s, when refrigerators came into general use, ice was harvested from rivers and lakes all over Maine and stored for use in warm weather. It was a huge and hugely profitable business. Ice from the Kennebec and Penobscot Rivers was famous and was shipped as far as India. At one time the Kennebec around and below Augusta was lined with huge ice houses, long barnlike structures that would be filled with ice and sawdust (for insulation) in the winter for sale locally or shipped south.

Chimp · 03-20-2007, 03:36 PM

Another possiblity is a freight mover. We moved from Oregon to Maine and used Broadway Express. There is another company called ABF U-pack. Both of these have web pages that will give you a quote. What happens is you pack your stuff and load the truck and they drive it for you. Then we drove our cars across country. If you are interested in Freight or full service movers check out a site called movingscams.com They have alot of great info including a black list of movers (one that have scammed people) This is a must as there are unfortunately alot of unethical people out there. If you want more information or any other questions just email me.

Terri
chimp1984a@yahoo.com

ontheroad · 03-20-2007, 07:53 PM

This site was recommended elsewhere and has some good info on what to expect and what to avoid:

http://www.movingscam.com/

And also check the Maine board where a recent thread addresses some different movers.

Elcarim · 03-21-2007, 10:33 AM

Do you think it will be difficult to find year round rental housing in Belfast? We'd really love to live right in town, but the outskirts will do if necessary. Where would be the best place to search for rentals that will have current listings? Thanks!

Acadianlion · 03-22-2007, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elcarim

Do you think it will be difficult to find year round rental housing in Belfast? We'd really love to live right in town, but the outskirts will do if necessary. Where would be the best place to search for rentals that will have current listings? Thanks!

Maybe lots of options. We are rental agents for my daughter's property in Morrill, which is ten miles outside of Belfast. That house is large, on five acres of land and is for sale or lease.

In Belfast there are relatively few really "good" rentals, but they come up from time to time. Right now the former MBNA apartment and town house housing units are on the market in the $200,000 range. They are FANTASTIC, and there are a LOT of them. I'll bet right now, a great deal can be struck for either leasing or leasing with an ooption or an outright purchase. If you look at the residential property listing for sale on the net you will see a lot of what is available in Belfast.

I also think my parents big farm house on the outskirts of Belfast is going to be for sale fairly soon as they will be moving to an independent living facility. I can give details on that if you are interested.