Packing a garage for moving often proves to be more challenging than you think.
Garages tend to serve as storage areas with all types of items found in them.
To make things even harder, various hazardous items can be found in a garage – things that are not allowed to be packed and transported to a new house.
These 7 steps will show you the best way to pack a garage for moving.
If you think you’ll have the fun of your life while packing your garage for a move, you may be the only one. The truth is that few people would actually enjoy the garage packing process because it is nothing but hard work over a long period of time.
Packing a garage for moving is a big project that surely needs to get underway as soon as you know your move-out date.
Be sure to mark packing your garage as a high-priority task on your moving calendar.
Also, do your best to complete it before you’re mentally and physically exhausted by all the other move-related jobs.
Read on to learn the best way to pack a garage when moving to another house.
Step 1. Gather the garage-packing materials
The very first thing you need to do before getting down to sorting your garage is to get hold of suitable packing materials.
Obviously, you can’t pack up your garage for a move without sturdy cardboard boxes of various sizes, a huge roll of bubble wrap, packing paper (newsprint will also do the trick), heavy-duty packing tape, a large assortment of resealable zip lock bags, cable ties, and markers.
Also, look around the house for any old towels and rags because they will prove to be much handier than you can imagine.
Before you start placing your garage belongings into the moving containers, make sure you have secured their bottoms with several layers of packing tape for added protection. Why? Most items that can be found in a garage or a tool shed are quite heavy, oddly shaped, and often have sharp edges or protruding parts.
Also, keep in mind that your biggest expense when packing for a move will be purchasing all the cardboard boxes you need. This is why you should know that you can get some or even all of your moving boxes for free as long as you have enough time to go look for them.
Follow the link below to learn where you can find free moving boxes near you. This is especially critical when you’re moving on a budget and you’re trying to spend as little money on your move as possible.
A garage sale is a good opportunity to cut down your impending moving expenses by pocketing some much-needed cash.
The sheer number of things in garages and storage sheds is usually overwhelming. It’s where people often store two bipolar types of items: either very useful or very… worthless.
Therefore, you’ll need a clear strategy before you start sorting through all the odds and ends that can be found in your garage.
Instead of handling things randomly, divide mentally the entire storage space into several logical segments, and sort one area at a time for better results.
Also, designate two large zones within your garage space: one zone for the things you are taking with you (and will pack soon) and another zone for the stuff you don’t want anymore, won’t use in the foreseeable future, or is forbidden to be transported to your next place of residence.
And here’s the big question when packing your garage for moving: what should you do with all the garage items that you have chosen not to take with you?
Basically, you have several good options to get rid of the garage items you no longer need:
Organize a moving saleto try to sell all the garage stuff you won’t move to the new house. Provided that you have enough time until Moving day, hosting a profitable garage sale is an excellent choice for you because you’ll be able to get rid of all the needless things in your garage and pocket some cash at the same time.
Gift some of the still usable garage items to friends, neighbors, or even strangers. Due to the increasing transportation charges, sometimes it’s not worth moving some of the things found in garages, especially when it comes to items that are not allowed to be transported in the first place – see below for more information.
Throw away any garage items that you can’t sell and nobody wants even as gifts. In most cases, those are things that are too old or too broken – worthless stuff that you should simply dispose of in an environmentally friendly way.
Be mindful that almost all garages have a certain number of hazardous materials that can’t be moved due to safety reasons.
Moving companies forbid fuel, motor oils, antifreeze, paint and paint thinners, charcoal, propane tanks, fertilizers, pesticides, chemicals, car batteries, cleaning supplies, and the like to be loaded on their moving trucks due to their hazardous nature.
As a result, you’ll have to decide how to properly dispose of every flammable, explosive, or corrosive item that you have in your garage. Don’t forget to ask your chosen mover for a complete list of those non-allowable items.
Don’t waste your time packing any items that your interstate mover won’t agree to transport for safety reasons.
Below you will find more important information about all the dangerous items that professional movers won’t move, including a detailed explanation of why those items are prohibited and how you should dispose of them properly.
Hand tools can be quite the packing challenge due to their odd shapes, irregular sizes, and sharp edges.
Leave your smaller hand tools such as screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers, hammers, etc. in your dedicated toolbox and shut it tight.
If you don’t have a toolbox, use strong small or medium-sized boxes because tools are usually rather heavy.
Zip lock bags are ideal for safekeeping smaller hardware parts that could otherwise go missing during the relocation process.
It’s very important that you take the necessary precautions when preparing sharp-edged instruments (knives, gardening sheers, pickaxes, scythes) for a state-to-state move, or even local relocation. Wrap the dangerous sharp blades with a few layers of bubble wrap, old towels, or rags and secure them in place with a long piece of string or a few cable ties.
As far as your long-handled garden tools go (brooms, rakes, shovels, hoes, etc.), group them according to their size and tie or tape them together in a tight bundle but not before you have previously secured their open blades as described above.
Finally, wrap them tight with a large (moving) blanket and they should be ready to be loaded onto the moving truck.
Step 5. Pack your power tools
Electric power tools are pretty straightforward to pack. Remove any detachable parts a tool may have, including the batteries, and pack them separately but preferably in the same box as the main body. Then, wrap the power cord around the electric device so that it won’t tangle with other instruments during the haul.
It’s great if you still keep the original packages of your power tools because that will speed up the packing process considerably and improve the overall protection.
If you don’t, look for suitable protective covers to keep them safe until they reach their new home, but bubble wrap, old towels, and unneeded pieces of clothing will serve the same purpose.
Gas-operated machinery should be emptied of fuel before packing for moving.
Lawnmowers, chainsaws, snow blowers or any other gas-operated machinery cannot and will not be transported until their fuel is drained.
Provided that a gas-powered unit has very little fuel left, you can start the machine and let it run idly for a while until the tank is as empty as a bird’s nest in December. However, if there is still quite a lot of fuel inside, you’re going to need to siphon it out of the tank with the help of a hand pump.
Remember that moving companies will refuse to move any gas-powered tools whose tanks have not been completely emptied of fuel.
Any outdoor pieces of furniture need to be thoroughly cleaned and then dismantled as much as possible for easier transportation.
Remove cushions and stack chairs together.
After making sure they are dry, fold umbrellas or parasols and place them in plastic covers or bags.
Be extra careful when handling easily breakable items, such as glass from table surfaces, flower pots, bird baths or feeders, decorative pieces, and so on – make sure you wrap them well in bubble wrap or thick cloths so that they survive the move across the country in one piece.
Here are some more tips on how to best prepare and move more items usually found in and around garages, tool sheds, and storage sheds:
Garden tools with long handles should be bundled together and wrapped up in a moving blanket.
Car and/or motorcycle. If you don’t plan on driving your own vehicle to the new home, contact a reputable car transportation company to arrange for its preparation and transportation. The same is also true for your motorcycle. If you’re unsure how to get your motorized vehicles ready for a safe relocation, your selected auto movers will gladly help you in that regard as well;
Bicycle. Bicycles are usually dismantled and packed in a special way and moved in dedicated shipment boxes designed specifically for that purpose. Refer to these great detailed instructions on how to pack a bicycle for moving. The proper packing of your bike is a must when shipping it long distance by air or land. However, if your move is within driving distance from your current and soon-to-be-old home, then your bicycle can be loaded directly into the moving vehicle;
Grill and barbecue. If your grill is equipped with a propane tank, the latter is not permitted to be loaded into a moving truck regardless of whether the container is full or empty. So, it’s best to leave it behind and buy a new one at your new house. Unless you’re performing a DIY move, you can’t take with you the charcoal from your barbecue either, so give it away to your neighbors;
Satellite dish/TV antenna. Call the company that installed the antennas in the first place and ask for some useful guidelines on how to pack them in the best possible way.
Did you know that there are 5 golden rules when packing a garage for a move?
Still thinking that packing a garage for a move is a piece of cake?
Don’t skimp on your black marker pen. Do label each box with GARAGE or FRAGILE, including a detailed description of the contents of the moving container.
Before disassembling a certain item that you suspect you might have a hard time putting back together, take a photo of it for problem-free reassembly after the move.
No matter what you’ve just disassembled, keep the small elements and auxiliary or spare parts in sealable plastic bags and make sure they travel in the same box with the main unit they came from.
Do not underestimate the time it takes to pack your entire garage area. Many moving experts believe garages and tools sheds are the hardest and most time-consuming premises to pack for a more. Start early and call a friend or two to help you during this transitional period.
When things get really tough, keep in mind that top-rated movers are always nearby.
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