Moving house can be one of the most stressful things you do

A measurement of stress devised by psychiatrists Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe places various stressful life events on a scale from 100 (most stressful) to 1 (least stressful). With ‘death of a spouse’ topping the list, ‘change in residence’ comes further down the list at a score of 20. Holmes and Rahe determined that if your cumulative stress points added to more than 150 units, you could be at risk of illness as a result of the stress. Moving house on its own doesn’t seem that scary in the numbers, but when you look more closely, lots of other things could be happening at the same time, like changes in schools for the kids, change in living conditions, changes in your mortgage or loans, or weekly rental costs, changes in your sporting, church or social activities (if you moved far enough), and lots of other factors.

At Tony’s Transport, we reckon all of these things add up to a whole lot of stress for you and your partner, and probably your kids as well. Getting us to help make your house move go smoothly is really worth it. We can even help you with some great preparation tips that can ease the stress both before and after the house move too.

Below are some tips on how to best move your household, check them out they may come in useful.

START PACKING EARLY

Everyone always underestimates the packing time needed to pack small items. If packing yourself start well before the moving date. Do not leave it for the day before the move.

MARK BOXES CLEARLY BY ROOM

Mark boxes clearly as to which room you want them placed in at your new house. An unmarked box slows up moving and causes confusion.

DON’T UNDER-FILL PACKING BOXES

Partially filled boxes may collapse if heavy items are placed on top of them. Try to distribute your things evenly in the available boxes.

AVOID OVERLOADING BOXES

Never overload box’s to the point of bulging. If your box cannot close, then you have packed to much into it.

DESK DRAWERS AND WARDROBES

Insure that all contents are removed from desk draws and wardrobes prior to the move.

TAKE A PHOTO OF HOW YOUR ELECTRONICS ARE CONNECTED SO YOU CAN REMEMBER HOW AND WHERE ALL THE WIRES GO

PICK A COLOR CODE FOR EACH ROOM

Pick a colour code for each room and label that room’s boxes accordingly. Label the door of each room with the corresponding sticker/tape so that movers know where to place the boxes

MAKE LISTS & LABEL YOUR PACKING BOXES

Make a list of what’s in each box. Keep it simple but make sure it will allow you to easily find where everything is packed.

PACK HEAVY – PACK LIGHT

Pack heavy items in small boxes and lighter items in larger boxes. Don’t fill a huge box with books then try and pick it up.

KNOW HOW TO PACK PLATES & RECORDS

Plates and records should both be packed vertically on end, rather than placed flat and stacked.

CHESTS OF DRAWERS

Remove all breakable items from chests of drawers; clothing and soft items may remain. Try not to overload the draws.

MOVING THE FRIDGE

Empty fridge/freezer on move day into chilli bins etc. Clean the fridge and don’t forget to empty the drip tray at the rear of the fridge. Always allow 45 minutes for the fridge to stand after it has been moved, before turning it on.

SHARED DRIVEWAYS

If you have a shared driveway, please speak to your neighbours and ask them to put their cars on the road prior to the truck arriving. Having to continuously move the truck in and out of the drive is time consuming and costly.

PACK SEPARATELY FOR THE FIRST 24-48 HOURS

Don’t forget to plan for the first night in your new home. Pack the items you’ll need for the first night in a easy to find box or suitcase. Tooth brush, PJ’s and a change of undies is a good start.

And most important of all; resist the urge to pop the bubble wrap before wrapping your fragile items.

For more information on moving home or office in Auckland, visit https://www.tonystransport.co.nz/

© Scoop Media