The Actual Move – Packing Day. Part 5 in a series by Matthew Forman

Time to pack up for your move to your first apartment! We are going to go with the assumption that it is semi-furnished; table, chairs, couch, bed, dresser, and the other large items, but you have to provide everything else.

First, unless you are moving a family, a key is to pack light. Service for 8 may be a standard, but it is not necessary for a single person. On the one hand, if you are buying dishes, wait until you have moved! This will save on space and potential loss due to brakeage.

If on the other hand, you will be taking dishes that have been in use, you will need the proper packing materials. Yes, a lot of people can get by with discarded boxes from the local supermarket and a lot of newspaper. There is nothing wrong with this approach. Just remember to wrap each plate, bowl, cup, and glass individually, and make sure that paper gets packed inside each glass – this will help support the glass from inside in the event things shift.

For a lot of the things you will be packing, you are better off to go to your local Lowes, Home Depot, or Wal-Mart and purchase moving boxes and tape. Also, get a large amount of bubble wrap for any frames, televisions, and other electronics that you do not have the original boxes and packaging for. You can also get special boxes for glasses and dishes, with separate sections for each glass. Pick up some of the heavy duty book boxes, and remember for hardcover books to limit them to no more than 20 per box (that’s for books the size of the Twilight Saga); more and you risk damage to yourself!

You may also need some wardrobe boxes for suits, dresses and other clothes that you do not want to fold.

So now it’s on to the actual packing. Again, if you have the original packaging for your electronics, use that! If not, wrap each thing, with the exception of speakers, in bubble wrap, and tape it securely in place. Spread a long sheet of the wrap on the floor, 5 inches wider than the largest frame that it will cover. Place that frame face down an inch from one end, and tape that. Then begin rolling the frame. As the frame appears face up, set the next frame on top, face up, and continue rolling. I recommend no more than 5 frames per bundle, with a full wrap at the end. If you are taking mirrors, they wrap separately!

If you are using a rental truck, or a van, remember heaviest boxes on bottom. These will not be the largest boxes!

Remember the 20 books per box? They will each weigh 40 pounds or more! A flat screen TV can weigh less, and so will your hanging boxes. Bulk and weight are often not equal. As you load the truck, try to remember the lay-out off your new place. Pack the things going into the room closest to the front door first, then the next closest, and so on. Generally, this means that bedroom and bathroom items will load LAST. This will save you a lot of extra work and headache as you unpack the vehicle at your new place. Try to carry a large hanging box through an apartment cluttered with stacks of boxes – not a fun time!

The one exception to this farthest room last is the ICE CHEST! You will want to keep a cooler filled with bottled water and other drinks VERY handy as you unpack!
So that takes care of the physical moving. That’s all there is to it, right? Wrong. There is a whole list of things you should have taken care of over the previous month, and we will talk about them in the next segment.