01 Mar Tips for Packing Boxes for Your Kamloops Move
If you’re moving, either to a new home, or planning to store some items at our storage facility, first, visit us in Kamloops for moving boxes and packing supplies. Then, we recommend these helpful packing tips to make carrying, storing, and unpacking easier on your items, and your back.
Gather Your Packing Supplies
While using old moving boxes gathered from your local supermarket may seem like a good idea, often, old fruit boxes and food boxes are not particularly strong and the boxes start to break down during the trucking process. In addition, anything packed in them will also take on a distinctly fruity or musty odour. Good moving boxes are made of rigid cardboard and can be stored and re-used several times. The same thing applies to packing supplies. While you might think that old Kamloops newspapers make great packing paper, they aren’t so great if items wrapped in them become ink stained.
Visit us at Valleyview Mini Storage in Kamloops to gather your packing supplies:
- Moving boxes
- Packing tape
- Thick black marker
- Packing paper
- Bubble wrap
- Mattress Bags
- Gloves
- And these moving box packing tips!
Sort Your Items by Room
It’s a good idea to be organized from the start. That means packing items by room and marking each box with the room name. Of all your packing tips, marking or labeling your boxes is the most important. Although this tip may seem obvious, you’d be surprised how many people forget or neglect to label their boxes. If you’re moving, you’ll be glad you did. Nothing is more frustrating at the end of long move than unpacking moving boxes at your new home, only to find out you have no idea where they should go. You’ll have to open each box and identify where it belongs. Marking each box , allows you to move the box right to its room, ready for unpacking.
Moving Box Label Tip 1
Create “Open Me First” moving boxes. These will contain the things you need easy access to for your first night and morning in your new home. The boxes might contain coffee and filters, bathroom items (tooth brushes, toothpaste, wash cloths, towels), sleeping bags (if you are too exhausted to set up the bed), sheets, pillows, medications, and other necessities. Creating a couple of “open me first” boxes will save you the frustration of madly opening boxes to find the items you need.
Choose the Right Size of Box
It’s tempting to use large boxes. You can fit more inside, right? Well, yes, but if you do, after unpacking your moving boxes in your Kamloops home, you may find yourself booking an emergency appointment with a chiropractor. Over packed boxes are often the reason for slips and falls, back spasms and broken items. Use boxes that, when packed, are still light enough and sized appropriately to carry comfortably. Using very large boxes is rarely a good idea.
Packing Fragile Items into Moving Boxes
When packing fragile items, use more boxes and pack fewer items. This will allow ample room for wrapping items in packing paper or bubble wrap, and for padding the box bottom and sides.
For plates and glassware, line the moving box bottom and sides with a cushion of bubble wrap. Wrap each plate separately using ample packing paper or bubble wrap. Stack plates flat in the box – one above the other. Don’t pack too many! Use more boxes. Fill any voids in the box with bubble wrap or crumpled packing paper.
View a slideshow that demonstrates packing plates and glassware into moving boxes.
Moving Box Label Tip 2
Fragile! Fragile! Fragile! The more sides you mark as “Fragile”, the greater the chances that a mover (or someone helping you move) will see it. Marking one small “Fragile” on the box may not get noticed. You can’t overdo marking “Fragile”. So if the items within the moving box are important to you, mark all sides and on top of the box “Fragile”. Doing so may just save your family heirloom china.
Packing Books in Moving Boxes
Depending on the monetary or sentimental value of your books, you may want to line the moving box with bubble wrap or packing paper. Pack similar sized books into the same box. Packed books just may be the heaviest boxes you’ll move, so use more boxes rather than trying cram your entire Encyclopedia Britannica set into one large box. This will make boxes easier to carry. Stand books upright in the box and alternate any binders you may have. We suggest two rows (one above the other) if the books are not too heavy. If they are heavy, use another box. If the books have value, put packing paper between books so cover materials and/or ink does not get scuffed in the move.
View this video demonstrating how to pack books.
Visit Valleyview Mini Storage in Kamloops for Moving Boxes and Packing Supplies
If you need help choosing the right moving boxes and packing supplies, visit our Kamloops storage facility. We have everything you need to pack for a move, or pack for storage. If you have questions, call us at 1-250-314-6253, or contact us through our website.