Once moving day arrives, getting everything out of your old property and into your removal van can be one of the most time consuming and physically demanding aspects of moving home. Removal companies and man in a van services will generally know how to pack removals vans to maximize space and minimise damage to items, but if you’re doing the move yourself with a hired van for example, you can achieve the same results – here’s how:
Organise Your Things
A simple trick to make the whole process easier is to simply make sure you are organised. Think about what you’ll need to unpack first when you arrive, and pack these into the van last. Rather than trying to carry everything out of the house and straight into the van, get everything in packing order (generally the biggest things that can be unpacked last should go in first), and transfer everything outside to the van, before starting to actually pack it. This will save you time in the long run, and some energy too! It goes without saying that labelling boxes clearly is very important too, so you know exactly what’s going where. This will help with the unpacking process, as once the van is unpacked you can transfer all your things to the relevant rooms.
Get Good Quality Packing Goods
The last thing you want is to spend the time packing your van well, only to find out that many boxes have collapsed due to wear and tear, or not being heavy duty enough to take the weight of having things stacked on top of them. You can find strong packing boxes from most removal companies, but also check online for any deals. Although it might seems a waste of money forking out for packing boxes and tape, if handled properly they can be reused if you need to move again, and overall should save you money in the long run.
Packing the Van
Professionals generally tend to pack the downstairs rooms first, with heaviest goods going at the forward of the van (towards the driver’s end). Once these are in, if you have multiple mattresses, place them on the sides of the van. It’s a good idea to keep one mattress handy to put in right at the end, to use as a buffer between your items and the van door. Most vans will have special rigging strips on the sides. Make use of these to secure your mattresses. Once you’re your downstairs heavy goods are in, place any smaller items around them to fill up space efficiently. This can also help prevent things clanging about in the back while driving, as everything will be packed tightly together. If you have any delicate items, try slotting them into secure spaces. You can make use of the mattresses again here, using them to cushion anything that might break by sliding the items that will fit between the mattress and side of the van. Any additional bedding/rugs and so on can be used to cushion the other side. Once this is done, you can start placing the downstairs items in, following the same pattern of heaviest first, then filling in the gaps with smaller items. Overall, you should have a neatly and securely stacked arrangement that will keep everything together when you start the trip.
