Packing Breakables

Hi again!

For my final discussion on packing tips, I am including a few pointers on how to pack breakable items. I don’t know about you, but for me, it is anxiety-provoking to think about my most precious items (china, silver, pictures, etc.) loaded into a box and onto a truck to be shipped across town, or in our case, across the country. For this reason, many customers (myself included) leave it to the moving professionals to pack their breakables. However, if you are feeling ambitious and opt to pack the breakables yourself, here are a few tips for you:

CHINA AND STEMWARE:

-Wrap all pieces of china and glassware individually in clean paper. Using several sheets of paper, start from the corner and wrap diagonally, continuously tucking in overlapping edges. A double layer of newspaper serves well as an outer wrapping.

-Place wrapped china vertically in a Dishpack box (which you can obtain from Sorensen Mayflower.) Use the insert included in the box to secure the china.

-Larger china, glass plates, and other flat pieces are excellent as the lowest layer in the Dishpack box. Be sure to place them on the edge, with the eating side facing the outside of the box. This procedure absorbs shock better than when dishes are placed flat.

-Place a partitioned separator over the packed dishes for wrapped stemware and cups. The last tier on top should be cushioned with a generous amount of paper. Label box, “FRAGILE-THIS SIDE UP.”

SILVER

Nest silver together and wrap in clean paper. Cushion the nested packs in the silver chest. Wrap the chest in unprinted newsprint.

STATUARY & FIGURINES

Cushion statuary and figurines with bubble wrap or clean paper. When using paper, roll or wrap the item, and then reverse wrap until the article is adequately cushioned.

MIRRORS & GLASS

Wrap the picture or mirror in a generous cushion of unprinted newsprint, and place in a flattened packing or telescoping box. Carefully tape or seal the box, and label the box “FRAGILE.” Always stand glass, pictures, and mirrors on their edge. Don’t lay flat. 

I hope that you all enjoyed reading these tips for packing. I got all of my information from Mayflower’s packing guide, which you can obtain from a Sorensen representative upon setting up your move.

Until next time,

Elizabeth

 

Additional Packing Tips

Below are a few more packing tips to follow up on my previous post. I didn’t want to overload you last week with all that I discovered, so thought I would save a few of the tips I found for this week. They are as follows:

1.      Pack goods that you don’t use very often, such as out of season items, first. Next, pack the things that you don’t use on a regular basis. Wait to pack the items that you use daily until the day of your move. Note the importance of these items (cooking utensils, toiletries, etc.) by marking “open first” on these boxes and making sure that they are loaded last.

2.      Pack all boxes tightly. If a box rattles or makes noise, the contents could be damaged in transit. Limit boxes to a weight of 50 pounds or less to make handling easier.

3.      Use generous amounts of paper at the bottom and top of each box to provide a good cushion for items packed. Use clean, unprinted paper to wrap each item. You could also consider using linens, cushions, or other soft items on not quite-full boxes to fill the space and provide extra cushioning.

4.      Pack boxes in layers, with the heaviest items on the bottom, medium weight goods in the middle, and lightest items on top. As each layer is completed, fill in empty spaces firmly with crushed paper. Add more paper to make a level base for the next layer, or use cardboard cut from boxes as dividers.

5.      Use professional packing tape. Masking tape isn’t strong enough to support fully-packed boxes. Also make sure that the boxes that you use are sturdy, and close all the way.

6.      When packing furniture with drawers or cabinets, make sure to empty it of anything that could break or spill. You may keep blankets, sweaters, bath towels, and similar soft, lightweight items in the drawers.

I hope that you are finding these tips helpful! Next week, I will discuss how to best pack breakable items such as mirrors, glass, china, and other valuables. Until then, have a great week!

Best Regards,

Elizabeth

DIY Tips for Successful Packing

My name is Elizabeth, and I am the daughter of Scott Sorensen, the owner of Sorensen Moving and Storage. My husband is a pilot in the US Air Force, which means that we move around quite a bit. In fact, our next move, which will occur this March, is quickly approaching. To prepare for our move, I am beginning to research some ways to make our moving experience as easy as possible. I have found some great information, which I thought I would share it with you. As the move date approaches, I will continue to provide insights that I discover. I truly hope that my experience can help you and your family prepare for your next move.

The thought of packing up the entire house is quite daunting! For this reason, many people opt to leave this job to the moving company. However, if you decide to do most of the packing yourself, here are some helpful tips:

-Pack one room at a time. Try to keep from combining things from different rooms in the same box. It will make unpacking much more difficult and time consuming.

-Pack clothes and linens in suitcases. This will allow you to get use out of the suitcases you are moving, and will save you from having to use more boxes.

-Wrap small items that can be easily misplaced in brightly colored tissue paper before packing them in boxes.

-Use small boxes for weighty goods, large boxes for light items, and medium sized boxes for everything in between. A Mayflower representative can give you an entire list of packing materials and their suggested usage.

-Clearly label each box with your name, the contents that it contains, and the room to which it belongs. Also label which side is up.

-Have area rugs cleaned by a professional before you move. They should return them to you rolled and wrapped, which makes moving them much easier.

-When taking furniture apart, gather all hardware and place it in a plastic bag. Attach the bag to the furniture to which it belongs. This makes reassembling it much easier!

-Do not pack anything that is flammable.

-Allow the professionals to pack your fragile items. Most moving companies will be responsible only for the items that they pack themselves.

I hope that you find these tips helpful! Good luck packing!

 

 

 

 

The World's Largest Food Packing Event

Did you know that 17% of children in our nation rely on a free and reduced-price lunch
program in order to eat each day? Unfortunately, this is not only a problem on the national level,
but also right here in our community. In fact, 50% of children in Brevard County participate in
the school lunch program to keep from going hungry, which is well above the national average.
Although this lunch program is a great start, it doesn’t completely eliminate child hunger in our
area. For instance, what are children who rely on this program to do over the weekend when they
do not attend school? Fortunately, there is a program here in Brevard County called The
Children’s Hunger Project, which provides hungry youths in the Space Coast with weekend food
backpacks so that they do not have to experience hunger and malnutrition on days that they are
not in school.

On Saturday, February 8, 2014, the Children’s Hunger Project will conduct the World’s
Largest Food Packing Event at the Clemente Center on the campus of FIT. Sorensen Moving and
Storage is honored to sponsor the event. In addition to our sponsorship, we will have members of
our team there to help sort through the collected food. Once the food has been collected, we will
also help to transport the food from the Clemente Center to the Children’s Hunger Project
storage facility. We are very excited to participate in this event, and hope that you will join us in
supporting this cause. For more information, please visit the Children’s Hunger Project website
at www.thechildrenshungerproject.org.