12 Tips for Packing a Kitchen
You have found your new home, booked Aaron Bros. Moving System, Inc. as your premier Chicago movers, and decided that the time has come to start packing. Of all the rooms in your home, the kitchen is the one area that takes time, effort, and perhaps a glass of wine to accomplish! Below are 12 packing tips to help get you started:
1.
Collect more boxes than you think you’ll need. Once you finish wrapping and re-wrapping all the glassware, dishes, pots and pans you’ll find the real estate inside of the boxes is suddenly cut in half. Equip yourself with an arsenal of boxes, old newspapers, bubble wrap, and tape to get yourself started. Another helpful tip is to reinforce boxes with tape on the outside. When stacked together, kitchenware can become heavy.
2.
Sort through your pantry and cleaning products. Discard open bottles of cleaning products or seal in a heavy duty Ziploc bag for transport. Non-perishable goods can be set aside for our partnership with “Move for Hunger.”
3.
If you have a table in your kitchen, we recommend dismantling it first to give yourself the space to organize and store boxes before your move. Remove any removable parts such as table leaves or legs and wrap in padding like old towels or blankets. Wrap the top of the table in soft material and secure with double-sided tape on the bottom-side.
4.
Begin by packing non-breakable cookware first since these boxes can be the base of your stack while you wait to move.
5.
Next, move onto items that are not used on a day-to-day basis like waffles makers, crock pots, and/or large griddles or serving platters. They may require a bit more creativity to pack because of their odd shapes but do the best you can without damaging the items or over-packing the boxes. Make sure to bind and wrap all cords and secure to the wrapped appliances themselves.
6.
Set aside enough dishware for your family to use as moving day approaches. If you find you are doing a lot of takeout before the big move, request extra plastic utensils and stock up. Also, reuse the plastic food containers as plates.
7.
When packing silverware, leave the forks, spoons, and knives in their divider tray and wrap the whole thing in bubble wrap to save time and packing materials.
8.
Wrap glassware separately. Use several sheets of paper and start from one corner, wrapping on a diagonal angle and tucking the paper in as you go. Next, take 2-3 wrapped glasses and wrap them into a bundle. Use old newspaper as padding within the box by crushing extra paper and placing it on the bottom. Arrange a layer of glasses and fill in extra space with crushed paper. Once the bottom layer is filled with glasses, top the bundle with more crushed paper and repeat the above step creating a tier of glassware until your box is full. Make sure to fill extra space with crushed paper to absorb any movement while en route.
9.
Plates should be wrapped in the same manner. Do one plate at a time, using 2-3 pieces of clean paper. Begin at one corner and wrap on a diagonal angle and tuck the paper in as you go. Make sure to pad the bottom of an empty box with old newspaper sheets. Plates should be placed inside of the box standing on edge as opposed to being stacked one on top of the other for better protection during transit. Surround the wrapped plates with crushed paper and fill all empty space.
10.
Wrap bowls the same way as glassware and plates. If you have different size bowls, you can nestle one inside of the other before wrapping. Wrapped bowls, like soup bowls, should be placed inside of boxes on their edge like plates. Larger bowls, such as mixing bowls, should be placed in boxes upside on their rims. Again, fill extra space within the the boxes with crushed paper.
11.
Label boxes as clearly as possible with “kitchen” and their exact contents to help ease unpacking.
12.
Pack a special “unpack first” box containing enough plates, glasses, and silverware to get the family through the first night in the new home. Include essentials like dish soap, a roll of paper towels, and a new sponge as well.
