Relocating and using full service moving company--HELP!

[jsmith]

ive moved more times than i care to count (father was military-then civilian gov-husband is miliary-and i am military contractor). We NEVER allow the movers to touch firearms-antiques-or collectables-or the wine celler-those items are packed and stored away from the house before the movers come and are transported in personal vehicles.

 

[PlutoPony]

Consider what you will need first thing in when you move in and put that aside to pack yourself and take in the car. It will seem overwhelming when your things are delivered to your new residence, and all you see is box upon box piled in the rooms. Finding anything specific can turn out to be a monumental task for awhile. Things like address book, phone, TP, soap, cell phone chargers, extra medicines. Also consider taking important documents / paperwork yourself on the off chance it would get lost. Extra checks, ANY paperwork that could possibly be needed for a real estate closing or first day of work (passport, proof of residence, SS card). Stuff like that.

As pp's mentioned, know what they won't pack and/or take. In addition to flammable household cleaners and the like, what about a gas grill and propane tank? Does the lawnmower have to be emptied? My husband's workshop was full of items that couldn't be transported.

Good luck!

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

Just remembered one more thing - since you are coming from this area of the country, you will need to clean anything that has been outside for gypsy moths. We were given one of those large wooden swing sets and have to clean it thoroughly before the moving company will transport it.

As far as the gas grill and lawnmower that someone else mentioned - the propane tank can not be transported so we will just turn it in at the gas station. The lawnmower and weed eater have to be completely drained of gas/fluids.

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

We did a corporate relocation a couple years ago. I don't have much additional advice to give--it IS kind of weird, having people come in and pack up all your stuff. Our guys were great, though. DH and DS(then)11 stayed at the house for the big load-out, I took the other three children and the cats and drove 3 hours to the new home.

Our comapny had special people for "special" packing--by that, I mean a granite slab from a coffee table. Also, they had people come out and immediately hook up the washer and dryer for me. They were laughing, because that one little thing really made it seem like "home", you know?

Unpacking took me forever, though. In fact, I still ahve some unpacked crap in the basement. And it was funny--about 4 months after we moved in, I unpacked some dirty laundry! My oldest DD was asking for one particular shirt, I couldn't find it anywhere, she swore she'd put it in to be washed...and we eventually did find it. I had done a ton of laundry the day before moving day, thinking I wouldn't have the w/d for a few days, and not wanting to, well, find dirty laundry, four months later.

Oh, we did have one item damaged--a custom coffee table that had just, just been made for us. They sent out an insurance adjuster, who cut us a check immediately to pay for the repair. They were all super nice about it.

In any event, I wish you luck. The moving company will try very hard to make this as smooth and stress-free as possible for you.

 

[rwdavis2]

Since someone else is paying this is probably not an issue. The last time we moved one company's bid was about 40% lower than everyone elses so we went with them. Big mistake. The guy doing the estimate left a large number of items off the list and when the driver and crew came to load up there was a huge problem.

Just make sure that when anyone gets an estimate it includes all the items you want moved.
BD

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We have 11 years of stuff and About 9 months clutter from my pregnancy. While we are eligible for a full service move ..we have opted to partially pack. The home we are moving to is bigger and I want my stuff packed according to where it will go and not where it originated. I.e. All my kids toys are now in a playroom while their beds, dressers and clothes are in a bunk room. In the new house they will each have their own room. Most of the rooms are dual purpose actually.

For insurance purposes....all breakables will be left for the movers. DH took up some irreplaceable items this weekend so that we can be sure of proper handling. Insurance won't matter if those items were broken. I have limited capacity in my van and we are taking the auto train up...so again, the self packing helps me go through everything so that we don't hAve any needed things packed.

It is all a very interesting process that is for sure. I moved a lot through all of school and my parents hAve done it all ways. I learned early on how to pack when I figured out that if mom did it, stuff would disappear. Lol. Of course my kids have never moved and do not know what moms do.

 

[monkeybug]

As far as the unpacking goes (if your movers are being paid to do that) I have them put the furniture and boxes in the right rooms and unpack the kitchen. The reason I have them unpack the kitchen is because there is a TON of paper in those boxes, and if they unpack it, they take it with them.
We always feed our movers. Something simple like pizza or subway sandwiches, and have water and soda in a cooler for them. I don't know if it's just coincidence, but all of the other Coast Guard families we know do the same.
Also you can sell your boxes on craigslist usually! They are really good quality, a lot like the ones people buy from uhaul and storage places.
I always just give them away (on freecycle or craigslist) but I know people who have sold them, and they seem to go quickly.
We always pack the stuff that we want to bring with us in the back of our cars, that way there is no chance it will accidentally get packed. (and that's where it's going to have to fit when we move anyways)

 

[jen0610]

Just remembered one more thing - since you are coming from this area of the country, you will need to clean anything that has been outside for gypsy moths. We were given one of those large wooden swing sets and have to clean it thoroughly before the moving company will transport it.

As far as the gas grill and lawnmower that someone else mentioned - the propane tank can not be transported so we will just turn it in at the gas station. The lawnmower and weed eater have to be completely drained of gas/fluids.

We just had to make sure the grill tank was empty. We took it to the facility that filled our tank, they emptied it, then put on a cap and a certificate tag that stated it was flushed and emptied. It had the company logo, name and contact info on it, so if there were any issue, they could be contacted.

 

[malibuconlee]

They should give you a list of things they won't pack/take. Sometimes it depends on the packer/truck driver if they take them. Cleaning supplies, aerosols, candles (when it's hot because they can melt). These things have been taken or left for us with different drivers.

They won't take, your propane tank for your gas grill, jewelry, firearms (?), lawn fertilizers, those kind of things. This is why I don't have a "spare" tank for our grill, just not enough room for it.

Ask for them to put together a box and put those things in them so you can take them with if you have room in your vehicle. Or find a friend/neighbor to give them to.

I suggest taking all your clothing and personal belongings you intend to keep with you and getting them out of the house. If not possible, designate an area and show EVERY packer that area and tell them this does NOT get packed.

Personal experience!!! Ask that all of the remotes for TV's and things be put in a separate box, otherwise who knows what box it will end up in and if it's say in with books or something you don't intend to open right away you might not find them for a LONG time. Seriously happened to us when we moved into a smaller house and had a lot of stuff boxed and stored. Found remotes 2 years later when we moved again to a bigger house.

That's what I have off the top of my head, when I think of anything else I'll post again.

Good luck with your move! We've had 6 professional moves.

 

[Melissa R]

We were relocated by DH's company 5 yrs ago, and it was my first experience with movers as well. Here's my two cents worth...

1. I know it's been said before, but have a NO PACK closet or room. If you are staying in the house after they leave with your things (we left the morning after they left) or if they are packing for more than one day (they packed us in two partial days), then be sure to put your pillows and alarm clocks in the no pack area! I remembered to put the air mattresses in the no pack zone but forgot about the pillows and an alarm clock!

2. Tipping - I had two wonderful guys pack us and planned ahead how much I wanted to tip them. Then when we got to our new home, we had two extra guys there to help unload! So I ran out to get more cash - gave the driver/lead guy the most, the other guy who helped pack us the second highest, and the two guys who only were there on unloading day a smaller amount. I don't remember what I gave though.

3. LUNCH - I fed my guys lunch each day and had drinks available. Although I was told (by the moving company) it wasn't my responsibility to feed them, they didn't bring any food with them and would have had to leave to get lunch, so I figure they sort of expect to be fed. I did pizza one day, a bucket of fried chicken another day, and subs on the unloading day.

4. UNPACKING - Another vote to not have them unpack you. I heard it's a nightmare...sure, you don't have all the boxes and packing paper to deal with, but I was told that literally every item you own will be sitting on the floor or on some surface and that it's awful.

5. SORT YOUR HOUSE BEFORE THEY PACK - Like others said, the packers don't think....they just pack. So I was told to make sure to put things in the right room. Don't have Child A's favorite toy in the living room, because then when you're looking for it at the new house, it won't be packed in Child A's bedroom boxes like you'd think...it'll be packed with your living room stuff. So take time ahead of the packers arriving to put everything in the room where it belongs or in the bedroom of the person it belongs to. This goes for kids' shoes too....don't leave them by the front/back door - get them all put in the kids' bedrooms. (And don't forget to put at least one pair for everyone in the no pack zone!)

6. ASSIGN LABELS TO BOXES FOR WHAT ROOM IT WILL GO IN AT NEW HOUSE - In our old house, we didn't have a playroom, but I knew that the new house did have a playroom. So if you have this situation, set those things aside and ask the packers to label those boxes for the new room.

Good luck! I know how it feels - it's overwhelming. But it'll all be ok in the end!!

 

[Acepike]

When you move with the military the movers do everything too. Don't pack a thing. Let them do it because if you pack it in boxes, they can't inventory it, and it will be more difficult to file a claim if something is broken or lost.

I do recommend having extra people at the house to keep tabs on what is being inventoried in each room as it is hard to keep track if you are by yourself.

Definitely, let them to pack to estimate how much would you paid. I remember the time when move to our new home. Definitely, I ensure that the moving company I hired is having a specialized service like pet moving service and others.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

They will pack everything, and I mean everything. They even packed the garbage that we accidentally left in a trashcan in my daughter's room. And I was surprised at how quickly they packed everything up.

Yep! Had this happen to us too.

But yes, take out good jewelry, cameras and anything you will want on the move. Leave everything else. And trust me, according to the very nice older lady who supervised the packers on one of our moves, there isn't anything the movers and the packers haven't seen. She laughed when I was totally mortified because I'd forgotten some of my fanciest lingerie in a drawer and informed me that I was plumb boring!

The packers and the movers will come through your house like a horde of locusts and leave with everything packed into labelled boxes. In one day.

Remember that you should tip them and feed them and provide bottled water.

 

[Green Tea]

Leave everything alone. They do it all and it is amazing to see the entire house, so quickly, become boxed and loaded.

Empty your trash before they come though. They pack the trashcans in a box. And when I say they pack everything, they pack everything! Get rid of the trash first!