10 Tips for a Stress-free DIY Move
Stress free move with DIY (do it yourself) moving feels impossible. Before diving into how to DIY move can be stress free, let’s start with a little celebration. Congratulations on your new home! This is exciting! Purchase of a new home comes with the hard part of moving.
You have a busy life with work, family, pets, and daily chores. And now you have to move. Moving requires a lot of planning, managing, and expense. Hiring professional movers is expensive and may be out of your budget.
There are ways to have an almost stress free move while saving money. DIY move is much more cost-effective than hiring movers to pack your home. You can get some packing materials for free and pack in a way that will make things easier while unpacking. If you are moving cross country, you can hire a driver to drive the moving truck. This way, you will not have to drive a heavy truck long-distance.
We provide professional cross-country, long-distance moving drivers – get a quote to hire a truck driver.
Benefits of a DIY move
The best thing about a DIY move is that it gives you control of the process. This type of move can work on your schedule and save money.
You save money by doing the packing yourself. A lot of the packing supplies are available for free. Professional movers charge for all the supplies they use along with the time.
Challenges of a DIY Move
Savings in this type of move come with some challenges as well. It isn’t easy to manage family and work while moving. Packing is time-consuming and hard to fit into your already busy schedule. But there are things you can do to make this process stress-free and time efficient.
Let’s look at the best techniques to use during a DIY move.
Tips for Stress-Free DIY Move
1. Get packing boxes for free
Ask for free boxes at Walmart or other local businesses. They get way too many of them during shipment. Trust me; They are desperate to get rid of them. And you will end up with tons of boxes in different sizes. FOR FREE!
Just remember to go early in the morning before all the boxes are crushed or sent away
2. Start packing early
Your house looks like it doesn’t have plenty of items, right? Wrong. It seems that way because they are stored away. Packing and decluttering will take a lot of time. And life will get in the way. So follow the advice; “Work ahead, stay ahead.”
3. Declutter while packing
All of our homes have things that we no longer need. It is a good idea not to take all the clutter to the new home.
- To make decluttering easier, divide your belongings into three groups.
- Make a Keep, Donate, and Throw away box, then divide your belongings.
- Use Marie Kondo’s advice “If it doesn’t spark joy, it must leave your home.”
You can create a “Sell” box for a Yard Sale and make some extra bucks.
4. Separate boxes by room
Make things easier for your future self. Separate your belongings by the room they are going to be kept in. It will make the unpacking faster. Label every box! During unloading, you will not have to worry if a box goes in the bathroom or the kitchen.
5. Don’t leave space in the boxes
Fragile objects will break during transport if they are adequately wrapped. If there is empty space in the box, items will bang in the box and get damaged. Fill the space with foam, newspaper, or plastic. You can also use your clothes, pillows, and even plushies to protect fragile belongings.
6. Rent a moving truck
I assure you that you don’t have enough space in your car. Yes, even if you make two (or several) trips. Renting a truck will complete your move in one trip. It will save time and gas, especially if you are moving a long distance. Rent a moving truck from companies like Penske and U-Haul to save time and money.
7. Hire a driver for your moving truck
Hiring a driver will free up your time to focus on your family and belongings. Driving would be one thing less to worry about during this hectic time. Driving a truck is also a pretty different experience than driving a car. Long-distance travel is particularly taxing. A professional driver has experience driving a moving truck with safety and efficiency.
You can tow your car behind the moving truck to send it to the new home. This allows you to fly to your new home instead of taking a days-long road trip. You will have time to rest before starting unpacking. Hiring a moving truck driver makes DIY moves relatively stress free.
Our Professional Drivers have decades of experience moving trucks cross-country and long-distance – get a quote to hire a truck driver
8. Be careful when loading boxes
Weight injuries are no joke. Moving day is not the time to be a hero. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from friends and relatives. Fill your boxes up, so they are light enough to carry them up the stairs. Take your time when loading the boxes in the moving truck.
The good thing about a DIY move is everything happens on your schedule. So, you don’t need to be in a hurry when loading stuff up.
9. Wrap the feet of your furniture with newspaper
You just moved to your new home, don’t ruin the day by scratching your new floors. Wrap the feet of your furniture with several layers of newspaper and seal them with rubber bands. So, you won’t ruin your new floor if you push them in. You and I both know that furniture is one of the heaviest things in your home, that and your fluffy cat that sleeps all day. The newspaper will also make it easier to slide them in.
10. Make an essentials bag
You will be exhausted when you get to your new home. You will not have time or energy to unpack everything right away. Pack a bag of essentials for the moving day and the night.
Things to include in your essentials bag or suitcase:
- Enough clothes for a day or two.
- Toiletries, don’t forget to bring toilet paper
- Any prescription meds and first aid essentials
- Personal documents that you don’t want to lose track off
- Your kid’s favorite toy. THAT YOU DON’T WANT TO LOOSE (*cue the Toy Story theme*)
- Other precious things you want to secure. Say your aunt’s haunted heirloom or that high school yearbook you are saving for the reunion.
Hope these tips will make your next DIY move stress free and safe.
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