Tips for moving house when movers are packing

[Jollyholibobs]

our last house move was horrible I developed back pain very early in the process and had to press on in agony. Can’t do that again. This time we have booked the removal company to pack for us. Packing tomorrow and moving on Tuesday. Any tips on what is reasonable to expect from packers. How will I know where to find everything when I get to the new house. How much of my personal stuff should I do myself. I like to be in control of everything but suspect I just need to relinquish control. Any tips or others experience in this would be great to hear. Feeling very anxious.

They will pack absolutely everything. So anything you don’t want to take with you, get rid of it. My bottom kitchen drawer of junk came with me, dust and all, to our new house whereas I’d have been better off just clearing it all out before they came.

Ditto food and things in your shed.

They gave me a heads up that they were about to pack the contents of the bedside chests, and did I want to move anything first! I didn’t, but I got the point!

Label the boxes so you know which room they came out of or where you want them to go.
As others have said they pack everything so you need to sort first.

We took our important documents and paperwork, jewellery and sentimental items with us in the car and left the packers to do everything else.

They will pack everything with ruthless efficiency and they'll label the boxes by room.

Get rid of anything you don't want to take with you and pack any personal items or valuables yourself.

they will work faster than you can imagine - so anything you want to pack yourself do that before they come! once you've done that, sit back and let them get on with it...it is 100% the only civilised way to move house!

It was the best money I spent, fantastic service and very quick but as said above they will EVERYTHING. Even though my stuff was going into storage and therefore no perishable things should’ve been packed, I went back into the kitchen and found the teabags and biscuits had been put in a box!

I would put aside a box of stuff you will need (I do this anyway when moving) - corkscrew, basic cutlery and some mugs and plates, cleaning stuff, screwdrivers, etc) and either mark it clearly or put it in your car out of the way during the packing. Ditto with anything very personal (I am sure they are used to coming across vibrators etc!).

They are usually packing a day before you move, so put the clothes and toiletries you need, plus clean sheets to make the bed up when you get in, into a suitcase that you can identify. They will label all the boxes.

Otherwise, sit back and relax – it was like having little fairies come in and solve all the immediate problems!

The most important thing is to be ready before they arrive. Put valuables like jewellery that you don’t want them to pack in the car, pack your underwear and personal items, empty waste paper baskets and bins, keep the kettle and cups if you want them etc because they go through at an incredible speed. There is no way you can keep one step ahead of them. It’s like a plague of locusts stripping your house! They will label boxes with the room they came from so you know roughly what’s in them. Then when you get to the new place they’ll put the boxes in the corresponding room. They will give you a few days to unpack, in my experience, but they reuse the boxes so they do want them back fairly quickly.

They are like a team of locusts and pack everything. Something I have seen previously advised is to put anything you don’t want packing in the bath!

When we had packers for my DM we had things going to 3 different locations, her flat, our house and storage and it all worked out well, we just directed them which items were going where.

They will tend to pack by location so boxes will be labelled by room with added descriptions of items in the box.

Just to add I would never consider moving without having the packing service, they are just so much better at packing than I would ever be.

A trip to the charity shop (if you have one accepting donations on a Sunday), a trip to the tip, and a couple of boxes in the car.
The car stuff you want: essentials like ID, and bank stuff - we still have a stoopid card reader thing to authorise some transactions, anything exceedingly fragile.
You will want to top up the car stuff with the hoover, kettle, and tea making stuff at the last minuite tomorrow.
Consider packing a suitcase as if you are going on holiday for a night or 2 plus a set of picnic plates/cutlery etc . Then that's all you need to unpack in the new house immediately!!

Our drawers didn't get "packed". They just moved the entire thing plus contents.

It was hot when we moved. I sent the kids to the supermarket for a box of icelollies. They were very popular with the guys packing - they turned down tea, but gulped down cans of juice and pop.

I’m currently getting quotes but don’t think I’m going to have the packing service (money reasons).

I have moved a few times and it’s a bit like having the whirling dervishes in your home.The ones I’ve had do packing on the day, so everyone comes in with a job to do which to them is pack everything, move everything, as fast as you can.

They generally don’t stop to ask you first, but they move kitchen stuff to kitchens, bedroom to bedrooms etc.

Perhaps ring and ask them ahead of packing day how they operate.

Also some advice - when you unpack your stuff keep your camera ready - just in case things have just been dumped in and get damaged/squashed/broken.

Some companies take on casual labour during the summer - occasionally that person maybe hasn’t been trained properly or just doesn’t care. I had a move once where I honestly think one of the packers was illiterate - which is tragic in this day and age.

Best money we’ve ever spent, too! As others have mentioned, we packed our very precious and sentimental items in the car and also a few days worth of clothes, toiletries, our phone chargers etc.

We labelled anything that was staying for the buyer with masking tape, eg doorbell plugged in in the hall, Hive thermometer etc.

One lesson learned: everything they pack will go into a box. We asked the movers to pop some things on the van near the end (for example a new scratching post we’d bought for our cat) not realising they’d vanish into boxes and be harder to find at the other end. So if you need to find something quickly either keep it aside or ask the movers to mention it when they label the box.

Regarding unpacking, our movers said we could take as long as we needed but that we had seven days to claim for any breakages (there weren’t any).

We agreed that we would leave everything that wasn’t to be packed in the bath! Then left a sign on top to remind them. We had them pack everything (we were there throughout and I cannot get embarrassed about my underwear!). We lost nothing, not even a single wine glass.

Are they packing your loft/shed? Sometimes they ask you to bring everything down/in rather than going into these areas.

Also, we used our downstairs toilet as a ‘no pack’ zone the day before and put things like cleaning products in there that we would need that evening.

Make sure everyone has a pair of shoes on or put aside so they don’t all get packed!

They are incredible. As others have said, it's like a team of locusts. One of the ways they are so efficient is that they don't sort as they go or think. So if your toddler DD's shoes are in the bathroom, they will be packed in with all of the bathroom stuff. Likewise, if your toddler DD has randomly lined up her favourite Happyland people in front of some books on the bookshelf in the sitting room when you thought she was parked in front of the TV, those Happyland people won't be seen again until you eventually get around to unpacking the books weeks later, by which time you may have put considerable time and money into tracking them down on eBay.

We went to hoover DM’s house after everything had been taken out and realised they had packed the hoover! Had to borrow a neighbour’s

We had put some things out for the rubbish and they got packed too!

Before they come, you need to pack certain things and keep them separate - either in your case it clearly labelled DO NOT PACK.

Personal documents, eg passport, insurance.
Personally precious/valuable items, eg jewellery, loose photos.
24h of stuff in case of delay, eg clothes, toiletries, medicines, bottle sterilising gear etc.
House cleaning kit, eg vacuum cleaner, wipes, etc, as you may want to clean the new place before you unpack. I would include kettle, a couple of mugs, and the necessaries for making tea.

The packers should label each box with the room in which they packed it. Either give them a plan of the new place, indicating where the contents of each room should go, or stand by the front door telling them as they bring each box into the new place.

They will literally pack everything. We tried to prepare for them and cleared out rubbish, but forgot to empty one wastepaper bin. They packed it! Carefully upright so that nothing fell out 😆

If you have lots of stuff make sure you pack enough of essentials like cutlery, underwear, plates, mugs etc. We had a rubbish packer who just labelled everything kitchen or bed 1 which is fine but when there are many many boxes it takes a long time to go through it. We did have absolutely loads if stuff though so probably not so much of an issue for most people.

Keep a corner for anything you want to take (essentials like enough cups, tea, kettle etc), and let them know about it. Give them a plan of the new place, and note what needs to go where- e.g. bedroom 1 here to bedroom 3 in the new house. Put post it notes on doors with this info (and create post it notes for the new place with room names so you can make.things easier at the other end).

Then sit back, make a cuppa for them and let them get on with it. If they are anything like the guys who did our place, they do it every day, and know what they are doing :)

Just moved DM, we had movers, not packers so slightly different. Are they unpacking for you too?

Pack a suitcase with your nightwear and clothes for tomorrow. Depending on what time you arrive you won't want to be having to find that stuff.
I'd also have food plans - lunch made and in the fridge? takeaway booked for dinner on arrival?And good access to drinks.
I'd make sure you have your vital paperwork - for the move and you as people - birth certificates / passports etc with you. Anything that would be a nightmare to loose. Also make sure you are leaving all the right paperwork- boiler manual etc in a folder marked doent pack - stays here or something!

Look at the plans for the new house - work out where your furniture will go as it is much easier to get the movers to put the furniture in the right places when you arrive if there is a plan. Work out which bedrooms translate to which new rooms. If things are changing e.g. 2 kids in 1 room now but separate in the new house try and separate they stuff to the 2 sides of their current room etc. Do you have access to the kitchen plan of the new house? Try and work out your cupboards and again split current ones if need be. (You won't get it right but if you know the cereal bowls were with the plates before and they are all in the same cupboard then they'll move together making unpacking easier?)

Good luck OP. We are still unpacking 2 weeks later!

Echo what others have said. I'd add get rid of any fresh food or put it in the car. Let's face it we don't always unpack every box on the day at the other end and you don't want any nasty surprises. The other thing is that there are some items they might not pack, like used paint tins, so check what they are and either get rid of them in advance or be prepared to take them in the car with you.

Yes definitely clean out the fridge because they will pack a mouldy cucumber 😂

They are brilliant and I will never move without packers ever again. But as pp have said they will pack everything, down to a crumpled tissue behind the sofa. And memorably a bin bag full of rubbish I forgot to chuck in the wheelie bin.

Make sure you do a dump run to get rid of everything you don’t want to take to the new house otherwise it will come with you.

I took the TV, valuables and paperwork in the car with me. Plus coffee machine, microwave and toaster so we could have a quick lunch when we got to the house.

Have moved many times over the years and having packers is tons easier! They pack FAST!,
1- Pack everything you will need in the 1st 24 hours after you move yourself and put it in your car. eg bedding, change of clothes, wash bag etc, food items including for pets, kids teddies etc. (If it won't fit, give it to the movers last minute to put in the van- ie last on, first off)
2- Pack anything yourself (eg in spare suitcases) you don't want them to see (!) and just label with the room you want the movers to dump it in the other end
3- valuables you may want to pack/ transport yourself- jewellry, money etc.( if they come across it they should bring to your attention before packing but varies).
4- they won't usually transport some cleaning stuff/ chemicals in their van. So expect them to leave you a box of stuff you have to find room for in the car.
5- They will probably not pack kettle/ mugs/tea/ spoons until last thing- so make sure you have enough for everyone!
Hope that helps.

Two tips, already said by others, but hey ho.
A. Put everything you will need on the day (weekend bag, kettle, cups, tea, coffee, spoons etc - which you'll also need for the movers!) in your car and lock it. I had bags sitting on the side with needed items in them and they packed them.
B. A friend moved and found 3 rubbish bags in the removals van at the other end...they'd been left outside but not in the bin and hence were packed.