Tips for moving house ourselves please!

zonifer

...Apart from the obvious of don't 

We are not under the usual time pressure of moving in one day so have a week or two to move a couple of miles down the road. We are going to hire a luton van for a weekend. We currently have 45 medium size boxes and shed loads of bubble wrap.
Any tips for the packing or moving process when doing it yourself? Thanks 

MFWannabe

I honestly wouldn’t move myself, even if it’s only round the corner which ours was. Way too much hassle and exhausting! You have loads more stuff than you think and tbh cost wise it didn’t cost us much more than it would if we’d hired a van etc 

However if you really want to do it yourself, make sure you write on the boxes what room it’s for. Pack the van logically, so room by room 

Make up the bed ASAP as you’ll want to flake out when you’re done! 

Get the local takeaways number in your phone, last thing you’ll want to do is cook! 

skm1981

We recently moved house and was going to do it ourselves but didn't in the end.  But we had a gap between our sale and purchase, so had to move all our stuff into storage.  So we technically did move ourselves, just into a storage unit.  My husband did most of it and I just helped with the bigger stuff.  We were lucky because he could use his firm's Luton van to move the big stuff, but saying that, the rest of our stuff fitted into the car with the back seats down.  

We moved 2.5 hours away so decided to get the professionals in to actually get our stuff over there because it was just going to be one big headache, plus once we worked out costs, it wasn't much more expensive to use a removals company. But if you're not moving too far away and don't have too far to travel between houses, I reckon you'd be fine, as long as you're able to move the big stuff by yourself as well as get it in/out of the house.

dimbo61

You have time between moving out of your current home and moving into new place Great !
Hiring a Luton van with tail lift is a good idea and getting help from a couple of friends or family is also helpful.
Clearing the rubbish you have not used in 2/3 years saves taking junk from house A to house B.
Writing on the box with a large felt tip pen means you only move a box twice.
Into the van and into the right room.
You can hire a van for a good rate over the weekend is also sensible.

AdrianC

We DIYed our move, in a rented 3.5t Luton Transit. Fortunately, it had a tail-lift.

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE IT.
6x 300 mile return trips in 6 days. We spent more on diesel than on van hire.
We had a house, three garages, and a 75sqft big yellow room to shift...

MovingForwards

When I moved to the last flat, there was 5 of us doing it, 2 cars and a van. Everything was boxed, bagged, tagged and it was hard work for everyone up and down the stairs from one flat, to up and down the stairs of the next flat. 

I got booted out the moving chain on health grounds and it still took 2 van trips and several car trips, plus all the runs I did.

Moving to my home I paid 2 guys in a van to do the move, they were very efficient as this is what they do all day every day. Best £200 I spent during the first lockdown. 

Doozergirl

Hire a skip before you move! 

maisie_cat

Because we were moving 250 miles the removal companies wanted circa £4k plus a local firm to  shuttle our stuff from the pantechnicon to the house down our long grassed driveway. We decided to hire a storage unit closer to our new home and over the weeks prior to exchange we did 4 trips in a van. What was left in the house was a Luton worth and when we actually moved we hired a Luton and did the house, then emptied the storage unit. We did the whole lot between 2 of us, except for an hour of next door neighbour help. It did save us money and enabled us to spread it out, the only thing I would recommend is the person loading the van is the one who is best at Tetris!

youth_leader

I had to move myself during lockdown and wish I'd bought a sack barrow.  My house had 18 steps at the front, I couldn't have managed without the kids old sledges!

pinkteapot

zonifer said:

...Apart from the obvious of don't 

We are not under the usual time pressure of moving in one day so have a week or two to move a couple of miles down the road. We are going to hire a luton van for a weekend. We currently have 45 medium size boxes and shed loads of bubble wrap.
Any tips for the packing or moving process when doing it yourself? Thanks 

If you absolutely INSIST on doing it yourself... 

Move furniture first, so when you then bring boxes in you can put them on tables, sideboards, etc. Also so you don't bring a massive pile of boxes in and put them where you then realise you want to place a bookcase or something. 

On the day where you yourselves move (so that night you'll be sleeping at the new place), make up the bed as the very first thing you do. Then it doesn't matter if you don't do anything else. 

Have takeaway leaflets to hand for meals. 

As you'll be doing it over several days, pack a bag like you're going on holiday with clothes/toiletries for that time, plus a box of basics (plates, cutlery, any other kitchenware you need to cook). While doing packing/removing, put these in a car or somewhere else totally out the way so they don't accidentally get moved.

Not eco-friendly, but disposable cups, and even paper plates. Minimise washing up as much as poss. 

Label every box very clearly with what's in it. If possible, plan layout at the new house (which furniture and 'stuff' is going in which room) so that when you're carrying heavy things in you know exactly where they're going and aren't dithering over where to place things. 

Anything that you need to leave behind at the old house (window keys, loft hatch pole, leftover paint that's useful for touch-ups, etc), put in a corner somewhere with a big sign above it saying 'DO NOT MOVE'. Even if you're DIYing it, it's easy to forget in all the chaos, especially if any friends or family are helping you.

Remember that fridges should be left to stand for 24 hours after being moved before you plug them in again. 

Have a huge supply of sugary snacks. Moving is about the most physical job there is and you'll be HUNGRY. 

You'll almost certainly need more boxes than you think. How big is your current house? (how many bedrooms) My last few moves have been 100+ boxes each time, moving out of 4-bed houses. 

Packing paper is quick to use than bubble wrap for china - no faffing cutting it off a roll. Wrap plates like your chippy wraps a portion of fish (one sheet, folded round the plate, next plate wrapped the same and goes on top, etc). 

lookstraightahead

Ah have always done it this way! Gap between so that you can take your time.

my biggest tip is to give away anything you really don't want - and get the council to take large items away. We worked out it was cheaper to buy some new stuff than pay for a big lorry. 
Careful of heavy things - maybe hire a man and a van for one of the days. For heavy things like a piano that never gets played ! 
Good luck - I wouldn't never move out and in on one day