When you’re packing up to move house, things can get a little stressful (which is one of the reasons we offer a packing service, if you’d rather get the experts in to handle it!)

Having a good clear out is essential when you’re moving home, so it makes sense to do that ahead of packing things up. That all takes time as you’re deciding whether things need to be binned, shredded, sent to charity shops, given away or sold. It’s so easy to accumulate too much stuff!

But when it comes to packing up like a pro, we’ve lots of great advice. We’ve been handling house removals in Leeds for almost 100 years and packing expertise has been handed down through the team for generations. So, here are our top 5 tips for packing up a property from those in the know:

1. Buy the best materials you can. This is not an area to skimp on – weak boxes will break and your belongings will be at risk. Particularly if you’re moving in bad weather and things are getting rained on! Buy good quality, thick and strong cardboard boxes in a range of sizes. Get decent bubble wrap or tissue paper to wrap individual items. And don’t forget some strong tape to seal the boxes, top and bottom. Never just fold in the edges of the box underneath – make sure they’re securely taped.
2. Fill your boxes – but pack clever. Boxes with too much space in them will see items rolling around and the weight won’t be evenly distributed. Put heavy items in the bottom and lighter items on top. Pack towels and other linens or soft toys around items to fill extra space. Don’t overfill your boxes in terms of weight. Anything beyond around 22kg is going to get difficult to lift.
3. Stack books and plates on their ends. For hardback books in particular, make sure their spines are lined up at the edge of the box. For plates, stack them on their side like they’re a vinyl record. That will make them stronger than piling them flat one on top of the other. It’s the same for glasses, pack them standing (and individually wrapped).
4. Ask what specialist boxes your removal firm can provide. They should have special boxes for things such as clothes on hangers, pictures, golf clubs, bottles and so on, to help keep them protected. Clothes in drawers can often be transported in situ. If you have any particularly unusual or valuable items, speak to your removers about how best to transport them. Certainly at Holdsworths we’ve seen it all, and we’ve worked out the best way to get them safely from A to B!
5. You can’t label enough. We really mean this. Make sure you know exactly what it is in each box and mark on where it needs to go in the new house. This will make it much easier for the removal team, who can then ensure it’s left in the right place for you. But it will also make it much easier for you when you’re looking for breakfast bowls on your first morning in your new home! We also recommend you keep a box of essential items with you in your own vehicle. That might include medicines, pet and baby food, tea and coffee, chargers, a torch, toilet roll, handwash, a screwdriver, nightwear and so on. Anything you might need to urgently get your hands on before things have been unpacked.

If you’re planning a house removal in Leeds or Yorkshire, give us a call to find out more about how we can help. We’ll definitely have additional top tips to help make your move as hassle-free as possible!