Three Most Common Moving Errors, and How to Avoid Them:
I have helped a number of friends and family over the years with their self-moves. I typically see the same three general mistakes over and over again. Let's review the mistakes, and how to avoid them:
- Lack of Planning. It takes more than renting a truck to have a successful move. There is quite a bit of planning that should take place before ever renting the truck. You will need to estimate how much "stuff" you are moving, and translate that into a "cubic feet" estimate. That means you should do your own "household furniture inventory." With a proper inventory, will will know how big a truck you will need, how many and what types of boxes you will need for packing, and how many furniture pads you should rent. You will want all this information BEFORE you log onto a web site to order a truck and equipment.
- Incorrect Packing. There are three main components to packing a household: filling boxes, disassembling furniture, and disconnecting appliances. All of that packing should be completed BEFORE bringing the rental truck home for loading. In my book, I recommend completing all packing the weekend before loading.
- Incorrect Loading. People are under the wrong impression that the more people the better when it comes to loading a truck. I have been at self-moves where there are a dozen friends and family members carrying items to the truck in no particular order. When it comes to loading, the ideal number of loaders is five: one person who stays on the truck, pads the furniture, and builds furniture "tiers" on the truck, and two team of two workers who alternate brings items onto the truck.
How to avoid these mistakes? My website contains a series of twelve "planning templates" that you can download for free to help you with your planning. The templates come in one Excel file with twelve tabs along the bottom. You will find a Furniture Inventory template, and other templates to help you order the correct type and number of moving boxes. For more information, purchase my eBook that provides detailed instructions on using the planning templates:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084137KJJ E-Book
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B083XTHPK9 Paperback version
My book also contains useful chapters on how to pack, how to load, and how to unload. I have included all the tricks I learned as a former professional mover. With the right tools and techniques, you can save a bundle with your own self-move.