Need to know how to pack correctly, so your belongings don’t get broken during the move? Below are tips for packing different types of household goods so they will remain safe during transit.

Don’t Pack Your Tools First

Many of the things in your house will need to be disassembled before moving so they can be relocated in the safest manner. You’ll need to have a toolset around that will allow you to take items apart quickly. An important thing to remember when you’re doing this is to take all of the hardware for specific pieces of furniture or other things you’re breaking down and put them in separate containers with labels indicating what each set goes to. You’ll need things organized on the other end so you can unpack and set up your house as quickly as possible. You don’t want to end up stuck without the screws and other pieces that hold your furniture together because you didn’t take the time to be diligent about things on this end.

Wrap Fragile Items

Make sure you get some packing paper, foam wrap, or bubble wrap. Maybe even get all three. These are great for wrapping up any of your fragile items, like dishes, frames, and more. You can even use cloths or clothing from your home if you don’t mind them getting wrinkled. We recommend not using newspaper as the ink will sometimes transfer to certain items and ruin them. Wrap fragile items loosely as doing them too tightly can lead to them getting broken anyway. Now let’s look at some specifics.

Glasses

Glasses are notorious for getting broken. Usually, it’s because they don’t get packed correctly. It’s not because people don’t wrap them up, it’s because they often get put in the box wrong.

Once you’ve wrapped the glasses, place them in the box standing up. Glasses are not as strong when they’re laid down, so they are more susceptible to breaking from vibrations in this position. Fill the box with glasses that are standing up and then seal up the box with three strips of tape on top and bottom. Don’t use or leave any metal staples in the box because these can cause damage to your glasses. Then finish by marking the box clearly with the word fragile. You should also mark what room the box should go to at the new location.

China

China and things like plates that can be set upon each other nicely need to all be individually wrapped. It’s not enough to just put one thin layer of paper between each piece either. And do not wrap a set of plates or bowls together with nothing in between them. This is a surefire way to end up with broken dishes when they’re transported. Every breakable dish needs to be wrapped by itself. There also needs to be enough of a barrier or padding between each one that there’s not clattering or banging that could result in broken items. Transport trucks get jostled and bumped throughout the relocation trip, so you need to make sure your dishes are protected.

Pots and Pans

Just because your pots and pans are metal doesn’t mean you can just toss them in a box and call it good. You might not need to wrap these up in enough padding to keep them from breaking, but you should wrap them in at least one layer of something to keep them from getting scratched. They have a way of getting dinged or scratched by other items or scratching each other.

Silverware

Don’t just throw your silverware into a box haphazardly. You can put flatware into small bunches and wrap them up. Then they can be placed safely in boxes. Don’t put these items in boxes that have fragile, breakable pieces in them. Silverware can be heavy and could cause other things in the box to get broken if they break free from their wrapping and get jostled about.

Pictures and Paintings

Paintings that are done in oil-based colors should be wrapped first with a clear wrap that is non-acidic. Then you can wrap it again with bubble wrap or something else just like any of your other pictures in frames. From there you’ll want to put it in a picture box. Tape all sides of the box that can come open, so the picture doesn’t end up slipping out during the move.

Lamps and Lamp Shades

For starters, don’t pack these together in the same box. Lamp bases should be wrapped with bubble wrap and placed in a box that has cushioning like bunched paper. If the lamps are small, you could probably put more than one in the box, but be sure to put enough padding between and around them. Lampshades should only be wrapped with clean, white paper. A box shouldn’t be packed with more than one lampshade. This is the best way to keep the shade clean and in the right shape.