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Tips for Moving

Moving is no easy task. Whether you’ve moved a few times or preparing for your first move, there are a number of helpful tips you can follow to make your move more manageable. From organizing your possessions and packing them safely, to turning on utilities at your new place, there are a variety of things to keep in mind when moving. To help you stay on track, Gardner Moving has put together these tips to help make your move easier.

What to do Before Your Move

Downsize Your Stuff

Packing up all of your possessions is an overwhelming task, so to make it easier for yourself, try to go through your items and cut back on the extras and the clutter as much as you can before your move. Make sure to go through everything and get rid of any unused or unnecessary possessions to help you reduce what you have to pack and unpack. These items can be bagged up and donated to your local Salvation Army or other thrift stores to help someone in need.

Make a Moving Folder

Keeping your paperwork together while packing up your home is crucial to staying organized. Use a folder to store all of your new addresses, records of payments, agreements, moving contracts, rental or purchase papers, and more. This will provide you with a central source of information if any questions come up during your planning process or your move.

Pack as Early as Possible

In most cases, you will be aware of your move weeks or maybe months in advance. This means you can start packing early to help ease the stress as the move gets closer. You can start packing up off-season items and other items you don’t use daily. By starting early, many of your things will be packed and ready to go by the time moving day arrives. Don’t stress about packing everything at the last minute; get started as soon as you can.

Book Moving Services and others ASAP

If you plan on hiring any services to assist with your move, such as movers or if you plan to rent supplies or have cleaners or painters do work on your house, it is important to book these services early. If you wait until closer to the move, you could miss your chance to book a mover or a truck for your moving date, or you may end up paying a higher price. Booking these services early is especially important during peak moving season.

Get Your Utilities Scheduled for your New Place

After you finalized your dates for your move, you can begin contacting your utility companies and schedule services to be turned on at your new home. Making sure these services are scheduled will ensure that you have water, air conditioning/heat, electricity when you are ready to move in. When scheduling ahead of time, keep a record of the requests for service in your moving folder and be sure to request service stops for your move-out date on at your current residence.

Pack a Bag of Essentials

The night before moving day, be sure to pack a bag of everyday essentials such as:

  • Change of clothes
  • Toothbrush
  • Toys or stuffed animals for the kids
  • Paperwork
  • Medications
    This bag can be kept in your car or on the plane, so just in case the moving truck is lost or delayed for some reason, you will have some of the basics with you.

Invest in the Right Supplies

Prior to the big move, stock up on supplies. You won’t want to have to run to the store while you’re also trying to load boxes or check that everything is packed up. A few days before the big move, stock up on supplies.

You should purchase supplies such as box cutters, paper towels, adhesive bandages, permanent markers, packing tape, and garbage bags. Even if you end up with extra supplies, you can use them after the move while unpacking and cleaning up after the move is finished.

Should I Hire Movers?

Hiring professional local movers can provide you with a variety of benefits throughout your move. Moving is already a stressful experience, but with professional movers handling the major aspects of the move, you will have more time to concentrate on other important tasks, rather than trying to juggle it all yourself.

Heavy Lifting Can be Difficult and Dangerous

This is one of the worst parts of a DIY move: moving all of your heavy furniture and a bunch of boxes yourself. While you may have help from friends or family, moving your entire life from one place to another can be daunting, especially if there are a lot of steps to navigate up and down all day.

If you or those helping you don’t have much experience moving, lifting heavy furniture incorrectly could lead to injuries, and you may also end up scratching the walls or the floors moving beds or couches down the stairs. Without the right experience, you may end up damaging the property and possibly the items you are moving. With professional movers, you don’t have to worry about the heavy lifting.

Planning Can be Overwhelming

If you choose to hire a moving company, it will require a lot of planning, but trying to coordinate your move all on your own will take way more planning. Without a professional moving service, you would have to work out the logistics of getting your furniture and other items from your old place to your new one.

You will also have to plan how to properly load the moving truck, determining which ones need to go in first and which ones need to go in last. You will also need to determine the best way to arrange them so they fit correctly into the truck.

Unpleasant Surprises

If something unexpected comes up, like getting a couch stuck in the door, you’ll be on your own. Without the help of professional movers and the moving tools they have access too, you could end up in a predicament that could take you hours to fix and drag out an already stressful situation.

Benefits of Hiring Professional Movers

There are a variety of benefits to hiring professional movers:

No Heavy Lifting

When you hire a reputable Pittsburgh moving company, you won’t have to do any heavy lifting. These professional movers are trained to lift and carry your objects safely and efficiently through doorways and upstairs.

This takes the stress off of you and keeps you and anyone helping you out safe from injury. It can also help you avoid scratching up your walls or floors so you can concentrate on watching your children, tending to your pets, or just kicking back and relaxing.

Efficient and Reliable Movers

When you hire Gardner Moving, you will receive experienced, reliable service for your next move. While you have friends who may have to cancel helping out, the moving company will be under contract to assist with your move. We will arrive on time equipped with the necessary moving equipment and supplies to save you from having to gather furniture pads and dollies.

With a professional moving company, you can save yourself a lot of hours on your move and spend more time unwinding and unpacking.

Less Stress is Always Best

Generally, hiring a professional moving service can help you avoid many of the common stresses of moving day. In addition to their efficiency and time-saving abilities, they will also save you from having to drive a big moving truck that you may not be comfortable operating.

Moving trucks are known for being challenging to drive, and if you have a trailer attached, it will only make it more difficult. If driving a moving truck is a source of stress for you, your best bet will be to hire local movers for your move.

Professional Moving Services Pittsburgh

At Gardner Moving, we provide service for both residential and commercial moving throughout Pittsburgh and the surrounding area. Our team of highly trained moving specialists will help make your transition to your new home or office seamless and stress-free.

We provide services for Pittsburgh residential and commercial moves, no matter how big or small. We can even help with a long-distance move in the eastern half of the U.S. Contact us today to start planning your move!

April 6, 2020


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The movers at Gardner Moving will take care of all the details surrounding your move. If you're ready for our movers to get to work, please give us a call today. We will be happy to provide you with a free, no-obligation in-home estimate.