I need tips on packing a 5 bdr. 3 bath house in 5 days?

Paulagrace

we were just informed that the house we are renting has been sold, and we need to get out. not a shocker we knew it was coming eventually, we found another house to buy and we close this friday, due to circumstances beyond our control we need to move in next wednesday... that being said, i now have a 5 bdr. 3 bath house to pack in about 5 days,
any pointers or quick tips would be greatly appreciated. thank you in advance.:beer:

moneyistooshorttomention

Personally - I'd throw money at it...but I don't know if you have any spare to do that?

When I move I will be paying my removal firm to do the packing for me - as I quailed at the thought of it, even with a 2 bedroom, 2 reception room house:eek: I asked them to quote me two prices for the removal - one with and one without packing and it turned out they would charge me £300 extra if they do the packing. I decided it was worth it to save myself that hassle. They've told me they will send round people the day before my move to do the packing and I don't have to touch a thing before then:D

In the event, I've already decluttered what I can and decided I am just as well to store a lot of the more "storeable" type stuff in those large lidded plastic storage boxes - so I went and bought myself some of them from one of the local discount type stores and have already sorted that storeable stuff into those boxes for permanent storage type purposes anyway (which means its already there done and they can just put those boxes straight into their removal van come the time). I've had to hide away those packed boxes - so viewers don't see them and think "Desperate to move - put in a low offer" - but you have the advantage of not having to do that and can just stack them up packed at the edge of rooms etc.

You might as well buy yourself a couple of huge rolls of dustbin liners whilst you are out there shopping anyway and you can get on with chucking everything you intend to chuck.

Don't forget that freezer food. I know I havent got a hope of everything not having defrosted for the length of journey it will have to take to get to my new home - so I organised my freezer food into sections to see exactly what I have in there and am currently eating my way through those bits that certainly won't survive hours outside a freezer. You won't be able to manage to eat much of it in that length of time - but perhaps you could "borrow" a bit of freezer space in a friends home whilst you move?

PasturesNew

If you can afford it (it's cheap for what you get), then get the removals people to do the packing service for you. I've not done this myself, but my sibling always has this service, so I've experienced it - and I know it only cost an extra £200-300 or so on top of the national/large removals company removals price.

ValHaller

When do you need to be out of the current place? I assume you are likely to have a bit more of your tenancy to run yet

Kathy535

I did our 3 bed terrace in 2 days - that included a big loft with zillions of books.

Get lots of boxes, lots of wrapping paper (your removal company may provide this) and a marker pen. Work room by room, packing delicates in the paper, everything else can look after itself. Divide things by how soon you'll need them - you might need the alarm clock sooner than you'll need books. For quickness, write the name of the room on the side of the box and give it a priority rating - 1 for unpack immediately, 2 for soon and 3 for probably won't unpack for 6 months. This is less organised than the noting exactly what is in each box method but saves a lot of time. Don't forget to have a bag to chuck out anything you really don't need to keep.

Don't make the boxes too heavy - I picked up my first box of books and the bottom fell out along with all the books.

Work in a logical way - do room by room and cupboard by cupboard - and rope in anyone you can to help, kids, OH, neighbours. Don't forget you'll need to do the loft, sheds, outhouses etc.

Don't forget things like having to buy the plumbing wotsits to cap off washing machine pipes if you are taking the washer etc with you.

Above all, don't be freaked out by the scope of the task, it's just moving stuff from one place to another.

And finally, don't forget to buy a big bottle on wine for the night before you move to celebrate that fact that everything is in boxes and another to celebrate that all the boxes have been moved from one pace to another and another to celebrate that all the boxes are unpacked (this might be some months after you drink the first 2 bottles!)

Slinky

Packing service. Worth every penny. Wouldn't ever move house again without using this service even if it was £1000 extra.

Lou67

So how much would these companies charge to pack for you? (AND take it all for you to the new house presumably?) And is there anything you'd have to pack yourself???

We have a 3 bed large-ish semi, and loads and loads of stuff. It took two 7.5 ton lorry loads last time (we did it with a mate,) and we took 15 carfulls of stuff FIRST, (toys, CDs, ornaments, games, clothes etc etc etc...,) as we had both properties for a wee while. The two lorry fulls were the 'big stuff.'

So how much (ish) ???

mysk_girl

Would also get the removal men to pack. First house I owned we completed on a Thursday, couldn't get any time off work. We paid £200ish - removal men turned up at 8am, our entire house was on the lorry by 11.30am. We had literally done nothing. Unfortunately, we were going into storage for 2 months between properties - I remembered to put all our clothes in the car but forgot about our shoes... Had to buy a couple of new pairs as they were long gone onto the lorry when I remembered, not to be seen for 2 months!

mysk_girl

Lou67, our last house was a 4 bed semi, pretty full. I was charged £300 (Oxfordshire). And they did literally everything. Emptied the loft, dismantled the beds, packed delicates. They broke one clip frame.

lessonlearned

A 5 bedroomed house means a lot of stuff. Are you moving into a smaller property - if so then even worse.......

5 days is not long so you will need to get a wiggle on.

I'm another one with the if you can afford it - leave it to the experts. Well worth an extra £300 or so for the packing service. Just make sure that you label everthing eg bed 1, bed 2 etc.

Draw up a floor plan of the new property with each room clearly marked ie bed 1, bed 2 etc.

Those plastic storage boxes are a must - fairly cheap too. Boxes need to be very stout. When labelling boxes, put labels on the the side as well as the top.

That way when the boxes are stacked you can still see the labels to see what's inside them.

Let the removal men worry about disconnecting w/machines etc.

Declutter as much as you can over the next few days - no point in paying someone to transport a load of rubbish for you. Charity shops for the decent stuff, then just take the dross to the tip.

Some charity shops will take unwanted furniture too.

You haven't got time now to do any car boot sales.

For people with time I would suggest start decluttering early, trying to sell as much as you can to help pay for removal fees.

On the day - keep that kettle handy, together with a supply of eats, clean cups, milk tea etc. Please don't forget to feed the removal people.

Keep important documents together - passports and the like and put them in a very safe place. I preferred to keep all mine in my own car rather than the removal van. Same with my jewellery.

On the day make sure you cover up carpets etc in both the old and the new properties especially if the weather is wet.:eek: The removal men won't be able to keep removing their shoes.

If you cannot clean each room as they finish, and you cannot come back to clean thoroughly, then employ someone like Merry Maids.

Check your new property for cleanliness too - easier to give it a good blitz when it is empty before you start unloading your stuff.

Keep you bed linen separate. Get the men to put up your beds first and get them made up straight away, don't leave it till later - you will be shattered. At least you will have somewhere to sleep.

Either get organised with a takeway for your dinner or pre-cook something you can just defrost and zap in the microwave.

Some people might prefer to go out for dinner that night but I found I was just too tired and too filthy. I just couldn't be bothered.

Don't forget to tip the removal men and of course make sure you put your feet up with a glass or three of your favourite tipple.

You will have earned it.

If you have small children or pets try and palm them off with relatives for the day at least.

Don't forget to read the meters.

Lou67

mysk_girl wrote: »

Lou67, our last house was a 4 bed semi, pretty full. I was charged £300 (Oxfordshire). And they did literally everything. Emptied the loft, dismantled the beds, packed delicates. They broke one clip frame.

Bloody hell!!!!! :eek: REALLY?!! That is bloody brilliant! It caused me so much stress and hassle last time, and it took SOOOOOOOO long! We have so much stuff as we are collectors and have 1000s of CDs, DVDs and games and books and sci fi memoribilia and ornaments etc. I would get anything 'irreplaceable' and keep it to one side, but this is amazing!

And then the regular moving costs on top I guess??? I feel like it took us about 150 man hours last time to pack everything!!! that is cheap! I was expecting like a thousand!