Tips And Tricks While Moving Because packing boxes is one of the harder tasks to do

When moving to a new house or a new place, there are a lot of things that one has to keep a look out for. Moving around can be a task with a number of mental notes that one has to make to ensure that everything is in order and nothing is left behind. However, when it comes to packing, a lot of people don’t know the basic tips and tricks to make their packing and moving process easier. These tips and tricks can be of a great help and can also help you save the time and effort it takes to pack and unpack those large boxes.

When packing your brown boxes, there are certain essentials that you must have to make the process easier. These items can easily be found at any stationery or departmental store and can make your process of packing a lot simpler and easier. For starters, you will obviously need moving boxes of varying sizes. Depending on the things that you are carrying and the number of stuff you have to carry, this is something you will have to decide for yourself. Some people tend to move around with more stuff than others, while some prefer to go with as little as possible. Whatever the case, realizing how much stuff you are carrying can go a long way in understanding how many boxes you will need.

The next thing that you will need is the stationary supplies. This, we can tell you how much and what exactly you will need because no matter how many items you plan to move around, these items are a must to help ease the process of moving. You will obviously need to have a couple of rolls of packing tape with you, depending on how many boxes you are going to be packing. On an average, one roll of packing tape is enough for around 12-15 cartons but can vary depending on the size and brand of the roll. Next, having a tape gun will make the entire process of taping the boxes a lot easier, as well as quicker. Another essential that you will need is everybody’s favorite pastime, bubble wrap. Bubble wrap is especially useful when it comes to keeping easily breakable objects safe during your move. There are different kinds of bubble wrap now available in the market, so depending on the items you want to keep safe, you can take your pick! Also, you can also use other alternatives like packing peanuts to keep your stuff safe!

While moving, it becomes extremely essential to know what item is where. This can especially make the entire process of unpacking a lot easier and can significantly reduce the time one spends on searching for one article which may be tucked away somewhere. A good tip is to label boxes according to the room and then to label the items in the boxes so as to make the overall process simpler. Obviously, you will need tags and markers for this so that you can properly see the names of items written on the box.

When moving, you will often have to move small items which can easily get lost in the pile of things that you are moving about with. A good idea is to store away smaller elements in zipping lock pouches to prevent them from getting lost.

Benefits of Stretch Wrap Machines

Stretch wrap is a big part of shipping products to stores on tall pallets. Pallets usually have to be wrapped up again after being worked at the store to stock shelves. This can be a time consuming and costly process since the employees have to do it by hand and may use more wrap than what they need to. This can lead to tired employees and possibly improperly wrapped pallets. What can be done about this? A stretch wrap machine may be the perfect answer.

The initial cost may be expensive, however the money saved can allow the machine to pay for itself over time. Ranging from 5k – 10k may seem like a lot of money to spend on a piece of equipment that does such a simple job but it can save money and energy. Workers can’t get the stretch wrap to reach it’s full potential and that can get costly since they are then using more than what is needed to wrap pallets. What a stretch wrap machine will do is use less of the wrap while still securing the stack of product securely. The machine will also wrap faster than what one can do by hand. This would save time for other tasks!

Allowing the machine to do the wrapping will also reduce product loss. An improperly wrapped stack of product can fall over or individual products may become lose and slip past the plastic. Quality plastics will also continue to stretch to max potential. If the wrap didn’t reach full potential while being secured initially, products may stretch out the plastic and cause product loss.

Worker energy and efficiency will also increase with having a stretch wrap machine. Wrapping a large pallet isn’t easy. It takes a lot of energy and a toll on the back. By investing in a wrap machine, this allows workers to complete other tasks while the machine wraps the pallet. Workers could also prepare the next pallet to get wrapped while the machine works on one itself. This could also reduce labor costs since more work will be getting completed faster!

Finally, tall pallets will be able to get wrapped as well. This will reduce the number of pallets that would need to get put away after stocking and reduce the cost of wrap since you could put more on one instead of multiple. The average person can not safely wrap a pallet over about 6 feet tall. The wrap machine would be able to safely wrap pallets that are taller than the person who would be doing the work otherwise.

If your business wraps many pallets a week and you have to spend a lot of time wrapping them back up after stocking, it may be very beneficial to invest in a stretch wrap machine. Of course, the initial cost isn’t great, but over time it will pay for itself. The machine will reduce product loss, employee cost, and cost of the wrap itself since you will be using less. Employees will be able to accomplish more work since they won’t be stuck wrapping pallets that they are done with. The option to build taller pallets will also reduce the cost of wrap because you will be wrapping less over all pallets! What’s better than saving money and accomplishing more tasks during the day? A stretch wrap machine may be a budgeting hero for your company!

What Is Contract Packaging

If you are a small retail business, whether it is online or in a physical location, you know the difficulties that come with the ins and outs of your business. First, being a more mom-and-pop type of store, you have to compete with the big box stores and their prices. Granted, you have the one advantage of building a sense of brand loyalty, especially, amongst the local populace. However, offering competitive prices with the big-box store is difficult. Not to mention that you also have to do a majority of the work yourself, or with just one or two other people to help you. And while in most cases this isn’t a big deal, there are times when you find yourself at a crossroads on how to handle certain situations.

For instance, if you are a retail store that sells a specific product, more than likely your product requires special packaging supplies. In the past, when you were smaller and just starting out, packaging the products yourself wasn’t as big of an issue. Now however, that you’ve grown in size, you are finding that more and more of your time goes to packaging up your products just so you can place them on the shelves, or get them ready to ship to your customer. Sure, you’ve thought about hiring an extra person just to do this job to free up your time. But, once you started to run the numbers, you realize that it’s more expensive than you’d like it to be. And of course buying any fancy equipment to speed up the process is out of the question. After all, you don’t have thousands of dollars just to spend on machines that will automatically to the job. Plus, the cost of your packaging supplies is already through the roof. So, what is the solution to this seeming impossible conundrum? Enter, contract packaging.

Contract packaging is when you have a company pre-package your products. These types of company’s are already set up and prepared to handle situations exactly like yours. They have the equipment and labor, but can package your products at a far more cost-effective price. This is because they aren’t focused on selling particular products. Rather, they solely base their business on packaging products for businesses just like your own. This is beneficial to you because it allows your products to be packaged quickly, efficiently, but at a far less expensive rate than it would be to hire an additional person, or the fancy equipment to get the job done more quickly.

If you are a small retail business and you’ve never considered contract packaging, maybe now is the time to start. If you find a reputable packaging supplies company, you will have a professional service will do a professional job. You will be able to save time and money. And you can devote more of your attention back into your business, rather to focusing all of your time and attention on packaging your products. After all, your business and products deserve the best. So, why not make sure it has the best and find a company that can you provide the absolute best service to not only you, but your customers as well.

The Ultimate Moving Box Buying Guide

Moving can be a daunting task. It literally means uprooting your family to move to a new location that you’re not even familiar with. It requires an extensive amount of time, energy, money, and much of your sanity. And with all of the different aspects that it takes to make a move, such as selling your house, buying a new house, or learning about your new location. There are often times several things that get overlooked during the moving process. For instance, packing supplies is probably one of the most under thought of aspects to moving, yet it actually is one of the most important. Without the proper supplies, such as cheap moving boxes, you won’t be able to properly organize or pack up your house to move to your new home. So, in this article we will give you specific information on different types of moving boxes you have at your disposal when preparing for your move.

First, before we start into the different types of moving boxes, it may be good for you to know where you can get such boxes. For starters, if you are just looking for plain old generic cheap moving boxes, check out your local grocery or department stores. Often times they are clamoring to get rid of them and will give them to you for free. However, if you’re needing a specialty type of moving box, such as a China box, you may have to go to a packing store in order to purchase the proper materials.

Book Box

A book box is the most common type of moving back there is. Again, if this is the type of cheap moving box you are looking for, check out your local grocery stores first. However, if you’re wanting new boxes these ones are the first standard items such as CDs, books, magazines, cleaning supplies, items, etc. Just make sure that you don’t put too much weight into the. Otherwise the bottoms will break off. 50 pounds is normally your maximum limit for these types of.

Linen Box

Linen boxes are slightly larger than the book boxes, and are better for larger items such as pots and pans. Like with the book boxes, this also has a maximum weight limit of about 50 pounds. Also, we recommend filling in the empty spaces of this box with packing paper or towels so as your items inside won’t clamber around and break or become damaged.

China Box

China boxes are far sturdier than the two previous boxes. They are also larger. These boxes are constricted of extra thick cardboard and a double corrugated as to make sure that your items inside will be protected from harm during the move. These types of boxes are best for your fragile items such as bowls, vases, electronic, lamps, etc.

Wardrobe Box

Wardrobe boxes, like China boxes, are specialty boxes. These boxes are specially designed for clothes and other large shaped items. Typically they stand about 4 feet tall and come with a bar at the top that allows you to hang your clothes. Other types of items that you can use in these boxes are ironing boards, big cushions, umbrellas, etc. However, do not fill these boxes with heavy items or you will make it next to impossible to be able to move.

All the boxes we’ve listed above are here for you to utilize when making your move. The key to a successful transition is being prepared and giving yourself the adequate time to pack up your house before moving day. Just make sure that whatever you do you have the proper packing supplies in place before you start. This will better help you to have a stress-free move and actually let you enjoy the process of starting a new adventure. Happy moving!

How To Move A Safe

When making a move, you will have to move all sorts of different kinds of items. This will be standard items such as kitchen equipment, lighting, clothes, couches, tables, and patio furniture. However, you might also have to move some more unique type of items such as a pool table, an antique vanity, a piano, or even a safe. Trying to move specialty items will often take extra time and effort on your part because they will require special packaging supplies and materials in order to get the job done properly. Often times, your best bet is to hire a moving company that can safely and reliably move your specialty item. However, under some unique circumstances, such as moving a safe, you may want to do it yourself. In this article we will show you how to move such one particular item, a safe, and how to do it efficiently and safely. (No pun intended)

The first thing you want to do before moving a safe is make sure that you have all the necessary packaging supplies and moving materials to get the job done right. For this type of move you’re going to need at least one other person, a heavy-duty dolly, ropes, and thick blankets. You’ll also want to properly measure your safe. This will especially important when you go to rent a dolly, because they’ll need to be able to give you the proper size so you can safely move it. Also, prior to moving your safe, consider emptying it if you can to help make it lighter and easier to move.

Once all of your prerequisites for moving your safe are done, now you can focus your attention on moving the safe. So, make sure that the door is closed and your safe is locked in place. Then, wrap the entire safe with blankets and secure it with plastic covers and tape so no metal is showing. After that has been completed, enlist the help of your friends and slowly slide the heavy-duty dolly underneath the bottom of the safe. Once it’s on the dolly you’ll need to fasten it with the ropes and secure it tightly so it stays in place. Once it’s secured, you and your friends will need to tilt back the dolly so that the weight is balanced on the rubber wheels and you’ll need to wheel it to the truck. Once you get it on the truck, then you’ll need to fascinate against the wall of the truck with heavy-duty ropes or towlines, to ensure that it doesn’t move during the drive.

Once you get to where you want to go, you then start to work the process in reverse. Unfasten the the dolly from the truck, and with the help of your friends carefully wheel it off of the ramp and roll it to where you need it to go. Once it’s in its designated room, carefully unfasten the ropes and slowly slide it off with a dolly. Once it’s in place go ahead and take off all of the packaging supplies that you used to wrap it up for its trip. Then, if you took out any of the items replace them and lock your safe back up.

Moving a safe doesn’t have to be difficult, you just need to perform extreme caution and realize that while it is a safe, it isn’t the safest thing in the world to move. If you keep this in mind, and follow these steps, you will be able to safely and efficiently move your safe to its new home.

How To Pack For A Winter Move

While a winter move may not seem to be the most ideal, it can actually have quite a few advantages. For instance, during winter months you can often times get the cheapest rates for moving companies or rental companies. Which can end up saving you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Also, you have a tendency to have more flexibility with your moving company, because there’s far less business during that time of year, and they are more apt to work with you and your schedule.

However, if you do decide that you are going to go for a winter move, there are a few things that you should be aware of to help you better prepare. After all, because you’re moving at an odd time during the year, there are a few extra things you’ll need to do that you otherwise wouldn’t have if you were moving in the summer months. In this article we will highlight for you the most important things to prepare for and to do when getting ready for a wintertime move.

One of the most important things you can do in preparing for winter move is to have a plan, and then to have a backup plan. A backup plan, is more so for the possibility of there being too much snow on moving day. Once you have your plan and backup plan in place, you’ll want to start making a list of all the different types of things that you’ll need. For instance, you’ll want all your usual packing materials. Such as shipping boxes, bubble wrap, tape, markers, packing peanuts, etc. However, you’ll also want to be aware that you’ll probably need extra packing materials, especially bubble wrap. You’ll also want to make sure that you have snow shovels and salt as well as moving blankets or old towels to protect your floor from the excess water that you’ll drag in from the snow.

Another thing that you want to do is prepare your car for a winter move. This means that you want to make sure it gets into the shop to have a proper tune-up to help lower the risk of there being complications on the road. You’ll also want to equip your car was snow tires and have winter windshield wipers that can deal with snow and ice. It would also be a good idea to have an emergency kit with jumper cables, a first aid kit, and other survival essentials such as a flashlight, towrope, and flares. You also want to make sure that you pack extra heavy blankets, food, and water in the car with you, just in case you were to get stranded on the road.

The next thing that you’ll then want to think about is protection for your belongings from winter weather. This part is actually very critical as winter weather can play a major role in the damage of different types of wood furniture, musical instruments, and china. However, if you properly pack your items with plenty of bubble wrap, and make sure they’re insulated properly. You can further ensure their safety. Try to keep your more valuable items with you, and put the rest of your non-valuable items into shipping boxes on the truck.

When packing your truck it’s important to remember that you want to pack a winter clothes last. That way they are the first things that will come off when you get to your new home. Also, something to think about, try not to pack your teakettle or microwave too soon. This is because you may want to use it during the moving process to warm up drinks for everyone as you load up the truck.

You’ll also want to prepare your driveway and sidewalk for the move. This means deicing both and making sure that you put salt down to keep ice from building backup. Suggest that your family wear anti-slip boots to keep from falling, and use moving blankets on your floor to prevent slipping, and protect them from water damage. But, above everything else make sure that you take it slow and stay safe throughout the moving process. This is not a time to try to hustle through the weather. Otherwise you can wind up damaging your belongings, health, and wind up creating more problems than you know to do it. So, be prepared. But also be willing to go with the flow when things don’t necessarily go as planned. If you can do these this, you can make your winter move a breeze.

How To Help Move A Pack Rat

Moving is never fun. Especially, when it’s not even you moving and instead is a friend that you’re helping. Often times you wind up eating up an entire Saturday, or even an entire weekend in order to help your buddy move. But, of course you do it because it’s all in the name of friendship right? While this is true, if your friend is a packrat things may not only be not fun, but can get downright difficult very quickly. So, whether your friend is a hobbyist collector, an indecisive type who seems to keep everything, or borderline hoarder. We’re here to help you strategize how to help make their move just a little bit easier.

Step #1: Allow Enough Time For Sorting

Chances are if your buddy is a packrat, it’s going to take far more than an afternoon to sort through all their junk. So, plan ahead and make sure that you’re giving yourselves plenty of time to sort through all of their staff and organize it before you even start the moving process. Also, because of their hoarding tendencies, you’re going to need far more packaging supplies than you otherwise would have. So, make sure that before you start, you have more than enough packaging supplies to help get your friend through their move.

Step #2: Consider Their Emotions

Even though you may become extremely frustrated when you see the amount of work that needs to be done, don’t forget that this is hard for everyone. And, you did say that you were going to help. Therefore, take their feelings and emotions into consideration and try to be as patient as you can. And even though all of their stuff may seem like garbage to you, more than likely they are treasures to them. So as you go through each room work slowly and listen to what they’re telling you about each item. And try your best to see things from their point of view.

Step #3: Set A Plan To Declutter

This step will probably be the most difficult during the entire process. After all the definition of the packrat is someone who doesn’t throw anything away. So, odds are there will be a lot of stuff in their home that isn’t truly needed, but will be very difficult for the owner to want to get rid of. So, do your best to make the owner feel better about the process of decluttering by keeping the memory alive and donating some of their items. Suggest that you even donate them to their favorite charity. This may help make the process go a little bit more smoothly, and hopefully will also allow you to get rid of more junk.

Step 4# Have A Battle Plan

This step is probably the most important part in helping a packrat move. This is because having a plan can dramatically cut down on time, as well as emotional and physical strain. Make sure that you clearing areas so you can store your items into different piles such as keep, giveaway, and trash. Once you have your designated drop points, start in one room and don’t move on to the next until that room is complete. We also suggest to carry a durable laundry basket or large plastic bin with you so you can quickly move items to the right spot. Don’t expect this step to be easy, but with proper planning you can make it far less of a headache.

Step #5: Keep Deadlines

More than likely your packrat friend is probably not the most organized person in the world. And when you combine that with the fact that they’re probably already emotional because of the move, you’ll want to make sure that you help then to keep on track with their deadlines. You can do this by incorporating creative methods such as scheduling a charity donation pick up. This makes it so you and your friend are forced to hit your deadline in the proper amount of time.

No matter which way you look at it, moving isn’t fun. But, it’s one of the many reasons why you have friends. And you, being the good friend that you are, you’ll want to do your best in order to help your friend’s moving process goes smoothly as possible. So, give yourself plenty of time in advance, stay focused, make a plan, be patient, and you can better help your friend start their new adventure.

8 Valuable Tips for Moving Your Valuables

Moving day is fast approaching and you’ve already started to pack away all your worldly belongings into convenient shipping boxes. However, you’ve come across several items that are far too valuable to just be shoved in an ordinary box. You ponder what to do, wishing you would have thought more ahead. If this scenario sounds like something you would like to avoid, then this article will show you 8 valuable tips that will keep your valuables safe during a move.

Create an Inventory

While documenting your every item may not be worth your time, taking notes and photographs of your most meaningful and valuable possessions can help, should anything go wrong. For starters, it’s easier to make a claim against your homeowners insurance, or the moving companies, if you have documentation of the original state. If you plan ahead enough in advance this should fit in easily with your pre-move organizing.

Get Insurance

You may think that your items are covered under your moving companies insurance. However, often times this is not the case. So, either talk to your moving carrier about purchasing additional coverage, or individually insure your most valuable items through a third-party insurance company.

Big Stuff Needs Help

Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can move a giant grand piano or a 500-pound gun safe by yourself. These items often need special dollies and wooden crates. And sometimes movers will contract that work out to specialists. So, don’t try to save a buck by doing it yourself. Instead, allow the professionals to do the work for you to ensure the safety of your items.

Small Stuff Goes With You

What better way to make sure your items stay safe, then by keeping them with you? So, when it comes to small items such as jewelry or important paperwork, just pack it and take it with you in your vehicle.

Invest In the Right Boxes

There is a time and place for cheap shipping boxes, but when it comes to your valuable items, this is neither the time nor place. Yeah a $20 box may seem expensive, but it’s a whole lot cheaper than $1,000 for a new TV. Same goes for things like crystal stemware or china plates.

Dishes Side-by-Side

When you pack your dishes, pack them in several layers of paper. But, don’t lay them flat-side down. Instead fit them in the box on the edge. This way, they’re less likely to shatter of something bumps the edge.

Tape Paintings

By putting a big X with masking tape on anything under glass, you can help keep the glass from shattering.

Box It Up Right

Once you’ve finished boxing up your fragile items, gently shake the box. If nothing moves then you’re good to go. However, if it does, open the box back up and add additional padding to help make it more secure. Also, be sure to fill the box, so the top doesn’t cave in. And don’t just fold the flaps tape them.

Packing up and moving your valuables doesn’t have to be stressful. With the proper planning and following these 8 tips, you can keep your valuables safe from harm as you transition into your new phase of life.

How To Make A Gift Box Out of Scrapbook Paper

You’ve heard the saying that the best gifts come in small packages. Well this is a saying for a reason. Often times the most expensive, or sentimental gifts do come in small packages. But, what if you could package that small package in a beautiful package? Before we confuse you too much, what we are talking about is creating your own small box to wrap your special gift in, to give to the person you love. After all what better way to tell someone you love them, then by putting in the effort to make them something beautiful?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzhaJl4nrik

When making these beautiful boxes you’ll need to gather different sorts of materials together. For this project you will need things such as:

Velvety scrapbook paper
Paper cutter
Mod Podge
Scissors
Ruler
Pencil
Tissue paper
Pretty ribbon

Once you have your various materials together, you can go onto several forums to help you find do-it-yourself ways to make these types of boxes. While it may seem tedious to create your own box, it actually is quite simple. Often times there may seem to be several steps involved, but they are actually simple steps that are easy to follow. Plus, pictures will often be included with the steps so you can visually see your box come together before you even assembled. All you have to do is follow the step-by-step instructions, and you’ll walk away with a beautiful box when you are finished.

So, what else can you use these boxes for besides just your precious little gifts? Well, they can be used as candy boxes for one. Which are perfect during the holiday season when you want to give away small gifts, but don’t want to seem cheap. So, by creating your own box and putting in candy, thus making them candy boxes. You can impress your friends or coworkers with these little beautiful treats.

Other things you can use these boxes for are, pretty little jewelry boxes. These are also perfect gifts to give away to your friends or your friend’s daughters, or your daughters if you have any. By using a variety of beautiful different types of scrapbook paper, you can create unique designs that cater to any one of your friend’s styles or tastes.

Regardless of what you decided to do with these boxes. These little crafts can make a huge difference and incite a huge wow factor when giving away gifts inside of them. And they virtually take no time at all to make. They are simple, easy, and yet beautiful. Plus, you can show the person you’re giving them to how much you care. Because if you’re willing to go the extra mile to create a custom box that’s made just for them, how much more are they going to know that you’ll be there for them in the big things?

After all, the best gifts really do come in the smallest of packages. And when your small package is especially beautiful, how much more value is it going to add to the gift that you are giving. So, the next time you decide to give away small gifts. Take a few minutes to make a gift box that will knock the socks off anyone of your friends, family members, or coworkers. Happy Crafting!

3 Moving Scams To Watch Out For

Moving is already a difficult task, and it doesn’t need to be made more difficult by unethical people or companies trying to come along and take advantage of you. Yet, sadly, it happens. In order to protect yourself from these scams, it’s important to become aware of them, and follow a few tips in order to avoid being taken it by these “lowlifes”.

First let’s familiarize you with 3 common moving scams people try to get away with. The first is A Change In Charges. If you’re being offered a sweetheart of a deal, beware. A lot of times these movers will try to lure you in with a insanely low estimate, only later to turn around and double or triple charges after your shipping boxes are loaded and in their possession. They then will hold your things “hostage” until you pay their new bill.

The second scam is Invented Charges. This is when new clauses are added to the contract after you’ve already agreed to the terms. These clauses could include new driver fees, or for extra time required, or a number of any other things. Anytime this occurs, when things are added into your contract, after you’ve already agreed to the original terms, you’re probably dealing with a scam.

The third scam is The Bait and Switch. This is when the original estimate is based on one measurement or inventory of your belongings, but when the bill actually arrives you’re informed that your shipping boxes and other goods somehow exceed the original estimate. Even though, it was never part of the original estimate. Again, your belongings are help, until you agree to pay the new terms.

So, now the question is how do you protect yourself from these scams? Well, here are four tips that can help.

Don’t Sign a partial or “skinny” contract

Never sign a blank or incomplete contract with assurance that they’ll “fill out the details later”. Everything should be spelled our ahead of time. From the guaranteed price, to the delivery date, to the necessary supplies needed on your end, to a complete list of your shipping list, no stone should be left unturned nor should there be any questions in the contract.

Never put your furniture in an unmarked truck

If the moving company is on the up and up, they’ll have their trucks clearly marked. Their paperwork will have the company logo, and the movers themselves will either be in uniform or can clearly identify with the company you hired. Every part of your move should be traceable, including the truck.

Don’t pay cash

In fact, the only cash that should ever exchange hands during your moving process is when you tip the movers. Otherwise you have no way to track or prove if you’ve paid. When you pay cash, you increase the risk of your items of being held “hostage” or disappearing altogether.

Do your background research

As basic and simple as this seems, this step is incredibly important. It’s here where you can read reviews, find actual physical locations, and find a truly reputable moving company. Make sure as you search, they are recognized online, have positive reviews, and are in good standing.

Bad things happen to the best of us. But by taking these precautions and becoming aware of the scams out there, you can protect you, your family, and your shipping boxes from falling victim to yet another scam.