GON Reader Question
Do you have an organized plan for packing up and moving stuff for our home improvement project?
I am planning on replacing my flooring in my living room, dining room, down the hall, and back bedroom of my house. Do you have an "organized" plan for packing up and moving all this "stuff" to accomplish this? I am trying to plan ahead and have this done once the weather warms up a
bit.
Downsizing is also in my plans at the same time so I want to have a good plan prior to starting. Thanks in advance for your assistance!
-- Lucy Arthur
Maria's Response
Hi Lucy,
Oh, how fun. You're going to love your new flooring when it's done.
Do you actually have a room or two where you're going to be able to move your current furniture while this project is being done? If so, buy furniture sliders so that furniture can slide from one room into another; even very heavy furniture can be moved using sliders without too much effort.
If you don't have the extra space in your home, you may have to invest in temporary storage, like a PODS moving container or something similar, that can sit in your driveway with your stuff until the project is finished. In this case, if your furniture is very heavy and you feel you and your family
can't handle it, consider hiring a moving company to move the furniture out, and back in when the project is complete.
As far as items that are NOT furniture, I would box it up just like
you would if you were moving.
1. Make a written plan. This is important. Consider where your furniture and other belongings are going to go (another room, your garage, or
temporary storage containers, etc.), approximately how many moving boxes you're going to need, what you absolutely have to have accessible, what your plans are on installation days (you and your spouse if applicable, kids, and pets,) and what you need to purchase (boxes, sliders, etc.) to make this a successful move.
2. Shop for what you need. You'll definitely need boxes and strong tape to tape those boxes, Sharpies to label the boxes, and furniture sliders. You may want to pick up sturdy storage
bags with handles for non-breakable items (clothing, books, etc.). I like storage bags because they can be collapsed when the project is finished (so they won't take up unnecessary space later), and can be used for other purposes in the future.
3. Choose one room to start, and begin boxing everything up (except the items that you truly need to live day-to-day). Whatever you have that's important to access on a day-to-day basis needs to go somewhere else in your home that is easily accessible. Keep a written list of where these items are being moved so you're not searching for
them later.
3. Label each box with the room it belongs in (e.g. Bedroom Box 1, Bedroom Box 2, etc.) and what's in the box. In doing so, all of these boxes can be moved to
other spare rooms or your temporary storage unit a little bit at a time.
4. Leave a clear path. Remember that movers and flooring installers need a clear path. So in
deciding where furniture and other items will go, these definitely can't be in the path of anyone helping out.
5. Make arrangements for children and/or pets. If you have
young kids or pets, you'll want to make arrangements so they're safe when the furniture is being installed. Perhaps a relative or neighbor can help out as needed.
6. Find out from
your flooring people how long after the flooring is installed can items be put back on it. If it's immediate, and you're moving furniture and boxes on your own, you may be able to move items back into the appropriate rooms after the flooring installers complete each...even if they're still working on another room. That being said, you definitely don't want to be in their way, so you might do this after the installers leave each day.
I hope your project is smooth, quick, stress-free, and ends up in the perfect results that you are expecting. Write back when your project is done and let me know how it went!
Oh, and as far as downsizing as you go, you'll want a donation bag/box (donate as soon as it's full and then start another) and trash bags for anything you're getting rid of.
Good luck!
