Moving On: Efficient Furniture Removal During a Relocation
How should I organize and be ready for moving furniture?
Review What Needs to Be Moved
Before starting to pack or move anything, create an inventory of all the items you plan on relocating. To be as efficient as possible, know how long it will take to disassemble and prepare each item, which pieces can be completed in advance, and if you require any additional tools or support. It may not, for example, make sense to disassemble any beds until the day of your move.
Measure Doorways and Hallways
To make the process easier during moving day, measure any doorways, hallways, elevators, or stairwells that you’ll need to pass through. Comparing these measurements against your furniture pieces will ensure everything can fit when it’s time to move them. This also allows you to create a plan for items that are a tight squeeze or cannot be moved as one whole piece.
Have the Right Tools and Equipment
Depending on the furniture you are moving, there’s a good chance that some legs, tabletops, doors, or frames may need to be disassembled. Having the correct tools and equipment on hand before and during the move will make this process much easier.
In addition to actual tools, you should also have plastic bags to put small pieces in, a marker for labelling, blankets to wrap anything fragile, and packing tape.
How should I prepare for moving furniture?
1. Create a moving binder
Creating a master binder where all your paperwork, contracts, and receipts are stored can help make the whole process much smoother. All of your moving tasks can easily be consolidated into one place.
Examples of things you can store inside a moving binder are:
- Moving checklists
- Moving and donation receipts
- Utility company phone numbers
- List of donations
- Floor plans
- Design/decor ideas
- Contractor bids/moving company paperwork
- Medical and school records
- Financial documents
2. Colour code moving boxes
The more organized you are before a move, the easier it will be to settle in and unpack once you’re done. You can start by labelling items based on their corresponding rooms in the new location. If you feel like taking it one step further, however, you can also purchase or create colour-coded labels to make them easier to spot on the moving truck.
3. Plan ahead
To keep things from getting too overwhelming, it’s a good idea to make a packing strategy ahead of time. Determine which rooms to tackle first, then begin organizing and cleaning them.
It’s typically recommended you start in rooms that have non-essential items that won’t be needed or used leading up to the move. Once you properly evaluate the rooms you plan to begin with, you can get a better idea of the required moving supplies.
How can furniture be transported safely?
Some possible issues when transporting furniture include the following:
- Large or tall furniture may not fit in the car.
- Furniture can be damaged when loaded into an elevator or truck.
- Fitting shelves or furniture parts can be lost during transportation.
- Furniture can be heavy. Without special skills, it will be difficult to transport it yourself.
- Irregularly shaped or large furniture is difficult to pack.
- It is necessary to understand in advance the total volume and dimensions of the furniture so that it all fits into the transport vehicle.
- Large sofas and wardrobes can be time-consuming to transport.
In order to avoid these common problems, it is essential you take the proper steps to prepare everything.
- Preparation: Remove any fragile or moving parts from all furniture, such as glass, drawers, wheels, mirrors, etc.
- Disassemble: Disassemble the furniture into its component parts as much as possible.
- Packaging: Labeling should happen at the same time as packaging. As soon as an item is packed, the box should be labelled.
- Loading: Plan for how you will move the furniture through any doorways, hallways, and stairwells, in addition to loading it into the moving vehicle.
- Determine transportation: While you could choose to move everything yourself, a furniture removal service has the necessary expertise and vehicle selection to make transporting your belongings easy.
What methods can be used to load and unload materials quickly?
- Be prepared: It’s been said a few times in this article, but preparation could be what makes or breaks your moving experience:
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- In addition to having everything disassembled and packaged properly, you also need to consider how items will be loaded and unloaded into the moving vehicle.
- Some carriers may charge for missed pickups/deliveries, which can include not having the means to properly load or unload items.
- Moving equipment: For larger items, it may be easier to move them using specialty equipment such as a trolley or forklift. You should never operate heavy machinery without proper training and supervision, which is why it’s recommended to hire furniture removal professionals who can help you move.
- Tailgates/liftgates: Tailgates are small hydraulic lifts at the back of a truck that are used to get a shipment from a truck to ground level. These can make it easier to load furniture items in and out of the moving vehicle. You can often request the furniture removal service to provide one in order to help ease the process.
- Loading ramp: A loading ramp allows access to the back of a truck without a dock. If you are planning more than one trip, or you move frequently, then investing in a loading ramp could be a good decision.
How to Handle Furniture Removal in an Eco-Friendly Manner
Selling and Upcycling
Moving gives you a great opportunity to evaluate everything you own and declutter as much as possible. Selling your old furniture can reduce the number of items you will need to move, while also earning you some extra money to put towards the new space.
If you aren’t ready to part with certain things yet but want to have a fresh aesthetic in your new home, then consider trying an upcycling project.
Donate Furniture
If you are interested in selling your old furniture pieces but want them to go to a good home, then consider donating to a local charity or business. Used furniture in good condition can help benefit people in need, without letting it go to waste or end up in a landfill. Moving is a good time to give your unwanted items a second life and extend their use.
Hire a Furniture Removal Service
If you are in a time crunch or need help removing excess furniture from your property, then a furniture removal service can provide assistance. Such companies exist for sustainable furniture removal of everything from dining room furniture to used office pieces.
These experts specialize in the proper disposal of unwanted items and will deliver your furniture to a sustainable recycling facility nearby.
Where to Get Help Moving
Moving can be a tedious, overwhelming, yet incredibly rewarding process once it’s finished. Although some people prefer to do everything themselves, there are many elements of moving—especially when it comes to furniture—that could benefit from professional assistance.
Furniture removal services are ideal for anyone looking to discard unwanted items from their home or dispose of excess waste products.