The Core Blimey Moving House Guide

Phychologists say that the process of moving house can be one of the more stressful events in a persons life!! Whilst it is exciting to be moving into a new home, it is a very busy time and if you work and have children, life can be very busy indeed without having to pack and organise for a move.

The key to a stress free and sucessful moving day is planning. We have put together a small guide to try and make the big day a bit easier - why reinvent the wheel when somebody else has already done it for you.

To help you with your own personal plan we have put together a comprehensive checklist on an excel spreadsheet available for you to download. The checklist starts at 4 weeks prior to the move and goes right up until the day of the move. You can add your own items into the checklist and whatever notes you think you might need. There is a page for contact details of suppliers, vets etc

We have 3 moving kits available which have all the packaging products you might need, everything from cardboard boxes to bubblewrap to fragile labels. As well as being able to purchase any one of the kits you can add to it from any of the other products available on the site.

Small - suitable for moving an apartment or flat.

Medium - For a 2-3 bedroom,2 bathroom, 1 living area home.

Large - For a home with 3+ bedrooms, 2 living areas and 2+ bathrooms

Take some time to review each section of our guide to give you some ideas on things you have to consider and then go an choose the appropriate moving kit. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions you would like answered.

 

 

How much stuff have you got....

The first step is to try and figure out approx how much stuff you have to move. Once you have estimated this you can work out what size truck you need, how much packaging material you need, do you need to find a driver with an HT licence or can you drive it your self.

The average 3 bedroom house would have approx 40-55 cubic meters of furniture, clothing, applicances and other miscellaneous items to move. We have worked out the average size of some of the major items for you below so you can make an approximate calculation.

To work out the volume (or cubic meter size) of anything else you first need to measure the height, width and depths and then multiply them by each other. For example a clothes dryer might have the following measurements:

Some rough guidelines on sizes

To get yourself a more comprehensive estimate on the size of your move visit the Backload Moving Company website where the have a very detailed and easy to use estimating tool.

Booking the Truck

Drive the truck yourself

The biggest truck you can drive yourself with only a car licence holds 14m3. An average 3 bedroom home would probably hold somewhere between 40-45 m3 of household items. Therefore if you want to drive yourself and you don’t hold an HT licence you would need to make several trips. If you are moving from Mt Eden to Mt Albert this is not a problem. If you are moving from Auckland to Hastings it is definitely not the option for you!

You can rent much larger trucks (up to 54m3) with tail lifts and all the fancy gear but you need an HT licence to drive one.

Make sure you ring around and find a good deal - there can be quite a difference. Start looking 3-4 weeks before your move date so you can make sure there is a truck available for you.

Rent a Driver and Truck

If you need to rent a truck and a driver there are plenty of companies around who undertake this kind of service. Check out your yellow pages.

Make sure you get some quotes before you decide on your moving company. Ask friends and family for recommendations of companies they may have used. Book your moving company well in advance - you don't want to get too close to the move and then find you can't use the company of your choice because you have left it too long.

One company that works a little differently (and could work out a lot cheaper) is the Backload Moving Company. You list the details of your move on their website (to, from, how much etc) and registered moving contractors who always have an empty truck on one way of their journey may contact you and give you a quote. This is a win win situation for everyone!! Go to their website at www.backloadmoving.co.nz for more information.

Another great company for

Domestic & International Moves

www.nzbaggagemovers.co.nz
Ph 0800 692 244

Domestic NZ and international shipping of boxed personal effects. Specialists in shipping to Australia, UK, Ireland, USA, Canada and hundreds of other worldwide destinations.  Residential pick up throughout NZ.  

Buying your Kit

We have designed kits to try and meet every need - from moving a flat to moving a large houseload. If you use the buttons below the website will take you to the product page where you can purchase the appropriate kit. Also available are extra items to add to your kit. For example, if you have a large collection of porcelain you can buy extra bubblewrap separately to ensure you have enough protection for your whole collection.

8 x No 9 Stock Boxes 15 x No 6 Stock Boxes 5 x No 3 Stock Boxes 1 x Wardrobe Box 20 x Radiant Red Fragile Stickers 10 x Top Stow Stickers 1 Black Marker Pen 30 x Large Blank Stickers 3 Rolls Packaging Tape 1 Tape Gun 1 Roll Bubblewrap 300mmx100m 225 Newsprint Sheets 445mmx570mm 1 x Box Knife
15 x No 9 Stock Boxes 45 x No 6 Stock Boxes 13 x No 3 Stock Boxes 2 x Wardrobe Box 30 x Radiant Red Fragile Stickers 15 x Top Stow Stickers 1 Black Marker Pen 80 x Large Blank Stickers 6 Rolls Packaging Tape 1 Tape Gun 1 Roll Bubblewrap 900mmx100m 450 Newsprint Sheets 445mmx570mm 1 x Box Knife
30 x No 9 Stock Boxes 90 x No 6 Stock Boxes 15 x No 3 Stock Boxes 4 x Wardrobe Box 50 x Radiant Red Fragile Stickers 20 x Top Stow Stickers 1 Black Marker Pen 150 x Large Blank Stickers 12 Rolls Packaging Tape 1 Tape Gun 1 Roll Bubblewrap 900mmx100m 1 Roll Bubblewrap 300mmx100m 900 Newsprint Sheets 445mmx570mm 1 x Box Knife

Packing Tips

Let's face it - everybody collects a certain amount of junk in their house! Go through everything and throw out stuff you don't need or have a garage sale or even put up your extra stuff on Trade Me. Make some money and have some fun at the same time! You can start getting organised for your move way in advance by packing things that are not used often. Pack one room at a time and mark each box/item with a large sticker and the name of the room the box is destined for in your new home. You don't need to name what's in the box unless it is something you may want to specifically retrieve in a hurry after you arrive - for instance tea and coffee making facilities! Don't forget to make good use of your fragile stickers and the bubblewrap to protect your more precious and fragile items. Never pack books into a box any bigger than a number 6 shipper - they get way too heavy to carry! (As a general rule - the heavier the item, the smaller the box).

• Don't forget to tape the bottom of the boxes really well - take the tape along the bottom and up onto the side of the box. This dramatically increases the holding strength of the tape.
• If you are packing something a bit heavier, like books, don't be shy to use more tape going both ways (horizontally and vertically across the bottom) to give it even more strength.
• When packing a box start off with the heaviest items in the bottom and lighter items on the top.
• Try not to leave empty spaces in a box, fill any voids with towels or other linen or the newsprint sheets included in each kit make excellent void fillers.
• Make sure that the doors on cupboards or fridges etc that are being moved are taped closed so that they don't fly open when they are being moved.
• Make sure that you take the high value items and important paperwork (jewellery, photos, stock certificates, birth certificates, passports, mortgage paper work etc) yourself. Don't leave these things to a moving company - they are too important!
• Don't forget that there are things a moving company is not allowed to take. For instance anything flammable or combustible or that can be otherwise classified as dangerous goods. (BBQ gas cylinders, lighters, ammunition, batteries, aerosol cans, firecrackers, paint or paint thinners). Check with your moving company if you are not sure what is or is not considered hazardous.

A special word about pets

Although most pets enjoy new experiences moving house can be stressful for them too! New smells, new neighbours, new garden! Cats can be especially difficult to deal with - you know what a drama it is for them when you don't feed them at the same time every day! So lets start with the family cat.

• Firstly it is recommended that you keep them inside for at least a week once you get to your new home. The first time or 2 that you let them outside make sure it's near dinner time so they have a good incentive to stick around. Don't make moving time a time to change bedding or food or any other familiar things. Just try one change at a time.
• Dogs are generally more relaxed but still try to keep as many of their familiar things and routines around as possible. Food, bedding and toys can all wait to be changed for another time.
• It's a good idea to have a new collar tag made up early with your pets new address and phone number details on it just in case they do try to make a break for the old house!

A special word about children If possible involve your kids in every aspect of the move (to whatever degree is appropriate). Take them with you when you look at perspective homes and make them feel like they have taken park in the decision making process. Communicate with them very openly and honestly about what is happening. Tell them you are moving to a new home and they are going to have a new room and make lots of new friends at the their new pre-school/school.

Don't be suprised if children who are just starting in a pre-school environment suffer a bit of a set back. Developmentally this is a time when they are learning to cope with the separation anxiety from Mum and Dad and being more independant. Moving at this time may cause a slight step back but keep telling them what is happening and focus on the positive ("your new school has a swimming pool" etc). Even very young children understand a lot more than they can communicate. Encourage them to say goodbye to their friends and collect phone numbers etc.

So make sure you explain clearly to your kids the reasons for moving and focus on the positive aspects of the move for them (there will be skiing or a lake or a surfing beach near our new house). Try and give older kids some responsibility for a certain task during the move - even if it's just packing up their own toys or books.

After the move try and get them involved in after school activities as soon as possible to encourage new friendships. Strictly speaking the older the child the harder the move as peer groups are more important the older they get. Keep an eye on them afterwards and seek help from your GP if you see any significant changes in behaviour.