5 Ways to Protect Your Furniture During a Move

Mov­ing any­where, let alone across the coun­try, can be a has­sle, and trans­port­ing expen­sive fur­ni­ture can be a major cause of anx­i­ety dur­ing the process. Being well-pre­pared for your move will make things sig­nif­i­cant­ly eas­i­er. While fur­ni­ture is heavy, bulky, and dif­fi­cult to move, these fur­ni­ture mov­ing tips and best prac­tices will help to pro­tect your fur­ni­ture and prop­er­ly pre­pare you for the move.

1. Clean and Photograph Furniture

The first thing you should do is thor­ough­ly clean and inspect your fur­ni­ture before pack­ing it up. Not only does a thor­ough clean pre­pare your fur­ni­ture for the move and for your new home, but it also gives you the oppor­tu­ni­ty to inspect your fur­ni­ture close­ly. Note and pho­to­graph any pre-exist­ing dam­age so that you have records of the con­di­tion of your fur­ni­ture and per­son­al items before the move, in case any dis­putes arise with your movers.

Make sure that you clean your fur­ni­ture prop­er­ly and with the cor­rect mate­ri­als. For exam­ple, if you’re clean­ing a couch, find an appro­pri­ate fab­ric clean­er and test the clean­er on a swatch of fab­ric some­where unno­tice­able to see if the clean­er caus­es dis­col­oration. For wood fur­ni­ture, use a nat­ur­al wood clean­er to avoid stain­ing or dam­ag­ing the wood.

2. Take Apart Furniture

If pos­si­ble, dis­as­sem­ble your fur­ni­ture before the move. Tak­ing apart your fur­ni­ture will not only help you get it through your door­ways, but it will also make pack­ing much easier.

The strain and pres­sure on fur­ni­ture while mov­ing may loosen screws or lead to bent or bro­ken pieces, so tak­ing it apart will also help pre­serve it. You can dis­as­sem­ble fur­ni­ture items such as bed frames, desks, tables, book­shelves, and dressers. If you’re unsure about how to take these items apart, con­sult the build­ing man­u­al or instruc­tions. If there are large pieces, such as table legs, label these with stick­ers. Be sure to keep track of all screws and hard­ware that you remove from your fur­ni­ture. Sort­ing the hard­ware and clear­ly label­ing which piece of fur­ni­ture it’s from will save you time and frus­tra­tion when it’s time to rebuild your fur­ni­ture in your new home.

3. Pack and Move Properly

Now that you’ve cleaned, cat­a­loged, and dis­as­sem­bled your fur­ni­ture, the best way to pro­tect it is to pack it prop­er­ly. Remove any cush­ions or pil­lows and place them in clear plas­tic garbage bags. Care­ful­ly insu­late any­thing frag­ile or mate­ri­als that could be scratched or scuffed. Uti­lize pack­ing mate­ri­als, such as bub­ble wrap, mov­ing blan­kets, and card­board to pre­vent items from tap­ping against each oth­er or falling dur­ing transit.

When it’s time to load the mov­ing van, max­i­mize the space inside by strate­gi­cal­ly load­ing in your items. Start with the heav­i­est and bulki­est items in the back of the van. Next, fill in space with box­es and bins. Final­ly, fill the remain­ing space with odd­ly shaped items and frag­ile items that need extra cushioning.

4. Hire Reputable Movers

To ensure the smoothest expe­ri­ence pos­si­ble, hire rep­utable movers.  Movers, espe­cial­ly those expe­ri­enced with cross coun­try mov­ing, will know best prac­tices for moves and help you pre­pare your fur­ni­ture and belong­ings for the trip. There is a lot to con­sid­er when mov­ing, includ­ing the size of van you need, the option of ship­ping some items in advance of your move, and stor­age units at your new des­ti­na­tion; movers can offer advice and help take the guess­work out of the move.

5. Check Furniture for Damage Upon Arrival

Once you reach your new home and unload your fur­ni­ture and belong­ings, be sure to inspect your fur­ni­ture for any new dam­age such as scratch­es, dents, break­age, and more. Refer to the pho­tographs and notes you took at the begin­ning of the process. If some­thing is dam­aged, do not repair it your­self; instead, sub­mit a claim with the mov­ing company.

Wrapping Up: Safely Transporting Your Furniture

Although mov­ing can be stress­ful, it doesn’t have to be! Tak­ing your time to prop­er­ly pre­pare and pack your fur­ni­ture and belong­ings can alle­vi­ate a lot of the anx­i­ety and frus­tra­tion that comes with relo­cat­ing. Clean­ing and inves­ti­gat­ing your fur­ni­ture for pre-exist­ing dam­age pre­pares you to then dis­as­sem­ble and prop­er­ly trans­port your per­son­al belongings.

Make sure you pack intel­li­gent­ly, uti­liz­ing pack­ing mate­ri­als and best prac­tices for load­ing a mov­ing van. Con­sid­er hir­ing movers to aid with the move, and inspect your fur­ni­ture for dam­age upon your arrival. These fur­ni­ture mov­ing tips and steps will make your move a breeze so you can enjoy the trip and be excit­ed for your new home.