If you want to survive the stressful feat of moving house, you are already a step ahead because you have taken the time to research some tips. After moving seven times, I have learned that no move should be made before doing the following:
Dump, Donate, Keep
Moving house is one of the only chances you get to go through every single possession in a short space of time. Take this opportunity to consider every item and decide whether you dump it, donate it or keep it.
Overestimate
Play it safe and overestimate everything: number of boxes, number of helping hands, time needed to pack, number of transport runs, time needed to unload the van and time needed to unpack. Start packing weeks in advance. Trust me; you have a lot more possessions than you think you have.
Make Lists
List out everything that needs to be done before moving day, e.g. drain appliances connected to water pipes; dismantle furniture, liaise with the removals company, buy a pet carrier for the cat etc.
Pack Correctly
There are a few golden rules to packing: Start collecting boxes a few weeks in advance (tip: 24 hour supermarkets do a lot of unpacking at night so they will have empty boxes handy); pack infrequently-used items first; don’t pack boxes so heavy that you can’t lift them; wrap breakables in bubble wrap; label boxes with room names; draw arrows on boxes that should be kept upright; mark boxes that contain fragile items.
Don’t Cut Corners
Maintain attention to detail, e.g. remove lamp shades and bulbs from lamps; take discs out of cd players; keep hazardous cleaning and gardening products separate from food; cable tie electrical chords; and tape the TV remote to the TV.
Inform The Powers That Be
You need to pick up the phone to your utilities companies at least one month in advance. You don’t need to cancel anything that soon, but you do need to give them a verbal or written heads up.
Here’s a list of organisations that need to be informed: electricity, gas, water, television, internet, landline phone, mobile phone, waste collection, financial services (banks, credit cards, credit union), health providers (doctor, dentist, optician, physiotherapist), local authorities (social welfare, social services), postal service, insurance (health, home, pet and motor), revenue office, motor services (tax, tolls, vehicle registration), employer, school, dvd rental store, magazine subscriptions, online services (ebay, amazon, paypal), grocery store loyalty cards, vet, dog license, electoral register and, of course, family and friends.
Ask For Help
Gather friends and family and give everyone jobs. Alternatively, hire the hands, equipment and know-how of a professional removal company and let them do everything for you.
This article was written by Julie Traynor who has hired the services of house removal companies in Dublin.