Choose Quality Moving Boxes for Your Moving

Anyone who's moving has faced the uncomfortable question about moving boxes: How many do you need? How much will you have to fork over for them? How do you get rid of them when you're done?

UStorage.com can help.
While it can be tempting to use the cheapest boxes and packing supplies you can get your hands, their quality will have a big effect on keeping your belongings safe and secure. If possible, choose only boxes specially designed for moving and storage.

Moving boxes are different from other boxes because they're used specially for loading and transporting items onto a truck. Professional movers employ standard-sized boxes to help them plan effective use of their truck space. Also, their experience helps them determine how many boxes and the type of boxes that will be needed to complete your move; from this information they can determine how best to pack these boxes horizontally and vertically on to the moving trucks. Using non-standard boxes just makes this more difficult.

Draw up an inventory of what you have to pack so you have a rough idea of the type and quantity of items you need to move. You can then buy ready-made moving kits that give you exactly the right number of boxes and supplies. When shopping for moving boxes, you'll see they have 3 inside dimensions: length, width and then height or depth. For example, a standard medium moving box will be shown with the dimensions of 18 x 14 x 12, which indicates its length, width and height as look from the top down into it.

Moving box manufacturers have several types of boxes, specially designed for moving household goods. Normal moving box types and sizes include:

• Medium Moving Boxes (18x14x12) – These are versatile and can be used for many different types of household items: store books, kitchen gear and most of your other household items.
• Large Moving Boxes (20x20x15) - These are all-purpose moving boxes that can be packed with heavy items, but can also be easily carried. These are best suited for a mix of heavy household goods and some light items.
• Extra Large Moving Boxes (23x23x16) – These are best suited for light goods such as bedding, drapes, towels and clothing that you do not place in a separate wardrobe box. Do not place too many items in a large moving box; it can become unwieldy to lift and carry.

Keeping Items Safe In Your Moving Boxes:
The most common cause of damage during a move comes from the vibration of items inside your box during transport.

Insist that your movers use quality packing tape, packing paper and bubble wrap. Even if you fill up boxes with clothes, blankets or pillows, you are providing more protection against the shifting of items inside the boxes.

If you leave space within the box or you have not properly wrapped the items in padding and bubble wrap®, you will leave open space that create movement of your items. If there is too much space, a jolt could cause your items to penetrate the box and be left open or exposed in the truck.

The small extra investment in boxes upfront can pay big dividends. A few damaged dishes or other expensive items can create an expense far exceeding the cost of extra packing materials.

Other Important Moving and Packing Accessories:
Other items that you should keep on hand, along with your quality moving boxes, include:

• Labels
• Box Markers
• Packing paper
• Bubble Wrap
• Furniture Pads
• Sofa Covers
• Packing Tape