How long to do the packing?

lookstraightahead

Pixie5740 said:

I’ve just moved and I a) regret moving in the first place, and b) wish I’d got people in to do the packing. Between work and studying for my MSc the move came very close to breaking this camel’s back. 

My DD did her MSc last year - had to move back home from uni because of covid. When she got stressed I just said imagine doing it, and working, and having to make your own tea "like I did back in the day". Add moving to that and yes it's no mean feat!

now she's working she gets it! 😂

From her perspective, packing was just 50 bags dumped back at home and then moving out and leaving them in the spare room. I wouldn't subject packers to that ... 

Skiddaw1

I have to say I really enjoyed packing. I'd much rather do it myself than use a packing service. Mind you, I enjoy housework too. I find anything like that therapeutic. Think I'm probably a bit weird.

Ally_E.

We packed in 10 days, taking half days off work here and there. Moved from 3 bed house with garden and shed, 2 of us. We got quoted £2,400 for moving plus packing to move 7 miles away. That was way too expensive for us, so we packed ourselves and found man and van company who moved us in 2 trips of luton van with 3 movers, they disassembled and re-assembled out furniture too, all for £600. It was hard work packing it all ourselves, but the savings we got are important, that gets us closer to a new kitchen much sooner. 

ic

I'd agree with other, 2 - 3 days.  We did it over a week of evenings and then a weekend.  We had however before listing our own house already cleared the loft and sheds, and had a general declutter.  We bought boxes on eBay of lots of sizes - a two bed wound up needing 60 - 25 small, 15 medium and 10 large, plus a couple of wardrobe boxes.  For the move we had two guys with a luton van, and were able to move as two trips.  We were busy throughout helping to shuttle boxes and smaller bits of furniture, they took on all the big and heavy stuff.

zagubov

I'd never do the packing myself.
It's a modern profession, best done by people who know what they're doing.
For your blood pressure's sake, get the moving company to do it.
On the other hand, if you're the kind of person who drills their own teeth before they go to the dentist tp get a filling, yeah, do it yourself and good luck with it.

rexmedorum

zagubov said:

I'd never do the packing myself.
It's a modern profession, best done by people who know what they're doing.
For your blood pressure's sake, get the moving company to do it.
On the other hand, if you're the kind of person who drills their own teeth before they go to the dentist tp get a filling, yeah, do it yourself and good luck with it.

Ow come on, packing is something you can definately do yourself. If you don't have the time/energy/strength and prefer paying somebody else, that's fair eough but to say that it 's something you can't possibly do yourself geod to far. (i've done it many times myself, both just the packing as well as the whole move with a van).

Skiddaw1

zagubov said:

I'd never do the packing myself.
It's a modern profession, best done by people who know what they're doing.
For your blood pressure's sake, get the moving company to do it.
On the other hand, if you're the kind of person who drills their own teeth before they go to the dentist tp get a filling, yeah, do it yourself and good luck with it.

Wholeheartedly disagree with the above. Packing isn't rocket science. I think packing is fun!

Doshwaster

Moving house is a great excuse for a big declutter. I think last time I moved I threw out, donated or sold more stuff than I actually took with me. It's nice being in a new house with the minimum you want or need so that you have space to collect new crap over the coming years.

ss2020jd

It always takes longer than you think, unless you are a minimalist or are donating or selling a lot of stuff.
I am donating washing machine and fridge freezer, but unfortunately I love things like old crockery and furniture so it took me a very long time. I wasn’t planning on doing it all myself though. 

On the move into storage we got the packing service but unfortunately the removals lost and damaged various bits of our furniture so we haven’t used them for the onward move. Packing so much of my stuff has really made me nearly lose the will to live so I would allow at least three-four weeks leisurely if you have a lot of stuff and are doing it yourself. Or pay for packing and just do your most important stuff yourself which will be much quicker and easier. 

Windofchange

I moved us out of a two bed house to a four bedder a couple of years ago. Lots and lots of black bin sacks for pretty much anything and everything that wasn't fragile / too big. Used my car for most of it, but as we were only moving a couple of miles down the road, it wasn't too much of a bother doing 101 trips back and forth. Oh, and it was August too so pleasant to be out and about, long days, warmth etc. Took me two weeks to do it largely on my own, but I hired a big van and got my brother round for a day to move the sofa, big tv, mattress and things like that. 

Would I do it again? I don't think so. We have already in 2 years amassed more stuff than we had before, and our house is two storey with lots of heavy and awkward things up top in the loft conversion. I think even with a few mates it would take an age, and if we were moving hundreds of miles away then it isn't something you can do in car trips back and forth, so you are going to need someone who has / can drive a Bedford or bigger truck. 

I think the answer will be it depends. Our friend moved out of his bedsit into a very small 1 bed flat over a weekend. He had no furniture, no kitchen ware other than a few pots and pans, and it took him two car trips and he was done. For me, I had two weeks annual leave and thought well why not. Thought I'd have it done in a few days but how wrong I was!