Packers are coming tips please!

[CucumberandLemonade]

We r moving this weekend and have Removals to help pack for us. Any helpful tips much appreciated.

Stressing!

Take the kettle, mugs, spoons with you so you can make a brew without having to wait for them to unpack.

Don't let them pack your shoes! They will pack absolutely everything that is not fixed to the property.

They will clear the entire house in what feels like seconds so - be prepared. But the stuff you'll need somewhere with a massive DO NOT PACK on it. Or even better, put it in the car. So overnight clothes, toiletries, kitchen stuff, cat food, things you'll need for day 1, cleaning stuff.

Get a sharpie and try to label boxes before they are sealed or they go on the van. Do not rely on their labelling.

They go through your house like locusts. If you don't want it packed, put it in the car. On our first move with packers we found neatly wrapped up rubbish, but at least we had shoes, unlike SIL/BIL who only had flip flops and couldn't find work/school shoes for the Monday...

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How do they pack toys? I assume throw everything into box?

There's no throwing, each toy would be wrapped in paper
Ours have had wardrobe boxes so hung up clothes go straight into those on rails, and when we moved with chest of drawers, they sealed the drawer with paper and tape so all the clothes went like that

Oh brilliant, so in theory chest of drawers don't need to be unpacked? Our toys are in a chest of drawers, ottoman box and a cupboard and have been wondering....

Pack suitcases for everyone in your family as if you were going on a week holiday. So all the clothes, socks, shoes, toiletries, medication, some books and toys for the kids. All your laptops and essential electronics. If you have your own car then take all of this stuff with you and at least you know where all the essentials are for the next few days.

Get a packing box and fill it with things you don’t need anymore so you can take them to the charity shop / dump etc

Pack a set of bedding for the first night in your suitcase. You'll need that when everyone's knackered and desperate to sink into bed.

Pack most of what you need 1st day/night in the car / a suitcase for the movers to take with you

if things will be going into different rooms in new house, then separate them into piles before movers came (eg spare room & office was 1 in my prev place, I separated for new)

Don't turn your back letting your movers pack your outfit laid out for moving day so you have to move in an old pair of leggings...

Do your clear out/chuck out in advance so you know everything you're unpacking at the new house is stuff you need/want.

We've had several lots of packers, some are better than others. Pickfords subcontracted our job and the men they used were fairly awful. Maybe things have changed with big companies subbing the work, but...

Anyway if there is anything you are in the least bit worried about being broken pack it yourself and take it in your own transport. Ditto anything you don't want to lose.

Just to reassure you, I'd never move house again without using a removals packing service. If we had enough money I'd pay to have unpacking done too! :)

Anything really precious/valuable and breakable, pack yourself ahead of time, for peace of mind.

Try to have stuff as organised as possible as they will pack things that are close together. That means you can end up with some very random boxes. So put all the recipe books together (even if it means a pile sitting somewhere), make sure toys are together, watch out for stuff lying in the hall as this tends to be a random mix. And yes - watch your shoes, we lost the toddlers and had to go and buy new ones on moving day as she had none.

Go through were stuff and get rid of anything you don't need. Be ruthless. Even with furniture or large items.

You open the boxes the other end and think why on earth did I pack this or that doesn't work in this new house

Be clear on anything not to be packed. My favourite story on here was someone whose movers carefully wrapped and packed a vase complete with flowers and water in it!!

Hope you have had a good clear out first!

Clothes for moving, comfy and set for everyone, dirty clothes in a bin bag in the car.

I always pack one suitcase and one box with essentials in, kettle, toaster, cups, cutlery etc and food for a quick breakfast the next morning.

Cleaning products go into a plastic bag along with toilet/kitchen roll, along with a dish and cloth.

Always pack any important documents wills etc and passports and put them in the car say in a backpack. Its easy to loose track of these.

Case is for change of clothes for everyone and a set of bedding and towels and toiletries for all. Essential to me and later on you will be very thankful make your beds as soon as you get them, nothing worse than when your shattered and you are not looking for bedding in the boxes at silly o clock and having to make them.

So I know whats in what bag.

Empty your bins and make sure (if you have one) the dishwasher is empty, wash all dishes.

If you can tell the movers which items (boxes)are to go into the rooms in the new house, I tend to use colours bedroom 1 red, bedroom 2 blue so on ,then I get to the new house I put post its or paper on the doors, makes it so easy.

Done this many times and packers are a godsend, but if you do have any valuables let them know, and count wine/spirit bottles, we had a large box go 'missing', only ever had one broken glass and a large rug which was ruined, but it was covered by their insurance and the cost was fully given for a new one ........sure I will think of other things

Go through your kitchen food cupboards and chuck out anything out of date prior to them packing, because when you unpack at the other end you won’t want to put cornflour from 2008 in your new pantry! (Says this from experience )

How much do packers charge?

Depends on the size of the house and how much there is to pack, they will come and asses then give a price.

Definitely clear out your rubbish! We arrived in a new country to find our recycling had come with us thanks to very keen packers!

I second labeling the boxes yourself, or at least telling the packers what to label them. So 'mark all boxes from this room 'Ben's room' more helpful than ' bedroom 1'. Take a few labels and blue tac to stick on bedroom doors in new house so the boxes end up in the right rooms.

They will pack a dirty nappy if you leave it lying about so be sure to do as other advise: pack your own stuff to get you through the next couple days including school books, phone chargers, plates and cutlery, clothes, toiletries etc and put ot in your car. Get rid of absolutely everything you don't want packed, then let them at it.

I once heard an apocryphal story about a mother chasing after a packing guy who had headed off with her baby in his carry cot.

If you pack things like valuables yourself I assume they won't be covered under their insurance. When DM used packers she pointed out the things that were most valuable so they got treated with extra care. The packers she used were very good and used much more packing material than we probably would have. They are so quick too.

Remember to throw out any rubbish otherwise that will come with you. Label anything that needs to stay.

We had three different locations that the removal people had to drop things off, DM's new flat, my house and storage, and they managed to get everything in the right place.

As others have said remember to either label things you will need to keep with you or put in the car, otherwise it will be in the van before you know it. We had to borrow the neighbour's hoover to give DM's old flat the once over, as DM's got packed when our backs were turned!