Tips to Prepare Household Appliances for a Move

Relocating to a new place is never an easy task. Wouldn’t you get all stressed and tired worrying about planning your move all through those sleepless nights? Right from packing the largest of your possessions like your furniture to the smallest of items like shoes and books, you have to take care of everything. To add up to that, packing your different appliances surely isn’t an easy task.

Packing and moving your appliances can be really tedious as they have to be handled with care. Any teeny-tiny carelessness can cause your appliances to break or may even ruin and damage your house. Don’t know how to pack and move your household appliances? Well, that’s what we’re here for. So keep reading as we’ve listed out some tips that will help you prepare your household appliances for a move.

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What Should You Do Before Moving Your Household Appliances?

Before you start panicking about moving your household appliances, you first need to get an accurate count of the total number and different types of appliances you possess. That’s when an inventory will help you sort and list down your appliances according to their usage and importance. Whether it’s your fridge, stove, dishwasher, dryer, or iron, you have to list down everything on your checklist. Once you have your checklist, you can plan and organize your move efficiently. Here’s what all you need to do before you start packing your appliances:

Decide And Discard Unwanted Appliances

One of the most important things you need to be mindful of is knowing what all things you want to take along with you. If yours is a big move, it can get really confusing and that’s when your inventory list will come to your rescue. Just glance through your inventory and mark all the appliances you want to move to your new home while discarding unused and unwanted ones.

If you have recently purchased some appliances, you can consider moving them to your new home. Check each and every appliance and see whether it’s in a working condition, and if you think you’ll be needing it in the future, add it to your moving list. If your landlord doesn’t allow you to keep anything behind, there’s no other option but to get rid of all your appliances either by donation, recycling, or moving them to your new home.

Speaking of appliances which are old or not working properly, they can either be donated or recycled. You can approach various organizations like The Salvation Army, Goodwill Industries, Habitat for Humanity to donate your household appliances which are in good working condition. Otherwise you can check the local retail shops in your area or approach your appliance manufacturer and ask if they can recycle your item. If you’re lucky enough, they can even give you a discount on a new appliance for your new home.

Hire Professional Movers

Moving appliances is not an easy task and can really be nerve-wracking. First of all, you’ve to sort out all your appliances and then discard the ones you don’t wish to take along with you. To add to that, you also have to pack each appliance individually as your appliances can be of different shapes and sizes. All of this can get really frustrating especially if you’re planning to do it by yourself. That’s why it’s best to hire professional movers and let them do the job.

One of the perks of hiring professional movers to pack and move your appliances is that they already have experience in doing so. They may even suggest to you what precautions you need to take while packing household appliances. Also, most moving companies offer special packing materials for household appliances like specialty moving boxes to accommodate different kinds and sizes of items. Having said that, hiring professional movers to get the job done may come with an extra cost especially if you’re seeking packing services, but a huge burden can be lifted off your shoulders, and so, it’s definitely worth it.

If at all you’re on a tight budget and can’t afford professional moving services, you can always consult local movers or brokers who can provide you with partial moving services. You can either ask for packing services or essential supplies. For DIY moves, you can ask your family members or friends to help sort and pack your household appliances. Whether you hire movers or seek help from your friends, make sure you inform them beforehand just to confirm their availability.

Also See: Hiring Movers Vs. DIY Move

Essential Supplies For Packing Household Appliances

Before you pack your appliances, there are certain things you need to take care of, like cleaning each and every appliance. You don’t want to reach your new home just to find out none of your appliances are working, right? That’s why you need to be extra careful when it comes to cleaning and preparing your appliances for a move.

Ensure you have the following things with you when you start sorting and cleaning your appliances:

Clean Cloth: You obviously wouldn’t want any dirt or dust in your new home and so it’s important that you clean all your appliances before moving. You’ll need a clean dry cloth to wipe off all the dirt and dust off your appliances. If there are any fingerprints, smudges, or stains on your metal appliances, then you can use a clean microfiber towel or cloth to wipe it off.

Screwdriver: There are certain appliances like your lamps, kitchen appliances, etc. that will have to be cleaned and disassembled before you can pack them. So keep a screwdriver with you as you’ll need it to disassemble certain parts of your household appliances.

Hand Gloves: A lot of things can go wrong, especially when you’re packing your household appliances. That’s why you will need to wear hand gloves to protect yourself from any kind of injuries during your packing process.

Moving Blankets And Straps: Moving blankets can act as an added layer of protection to protect your appliances from any kind of damage during the move. Speaking of moving straps, you’ll need them to secure your appliances when you place them on your dolly.

Appliance Dolly: You’ll need the assistance of an appliance dolly to move and load your appliances onto the moving truck. So depending on the number and size of appliances you need to move, choose a dolly from your moving company. Otherwise, you can also rent a dolly from U-Haul.

Moving Boxes (Small, Medium, Large): You’ll need different types of moving boxes to accommodate your different types of appliances. Just go through your inventory and then decide how many boxes you’ll be needing. You can always ask your moving company if they can provide you with specialty boxes to pack your appliances.

Packing Paper: Make a mental note of purchasing plain packing paper instead of a printed or colorful one to avoid any stains on your appliances. You’ll need packing paper to wrap your appliances and fill in the empty spaces in your moving boxes.

Packing Tape: When you pack your appliances in their respective moving boxes, you’ll need packing tape to secure their flaps. Also, certain appliances like lamps will have to be wrapped in packing paper or bubble wrap and then sealed with packing tape before placing them in the box.

Twist Ties: There are certain appliances like your lamps, kitchen appliances, etc. that have cords. To secure these cords you’ll need twist ties. You can also use packing tape as an alternative instead of twist ties.

Labeling Materials: To help your movers load the appliances and separate the most delicate and fragile items from others, you’ll have to label all your boxes. Make sure you have a permanent marker and stickers to label all your appliances, that way unpacking becomes much easier when you reach your new home.

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How To Prepare And Pack Household Appliances For A Move?

Now that you have cleaned and prepared all your appliances, it’s time to get started with their packing process. If you want your appliances to reach your new home in one piece, you’ll have to take certain precautions while packing. Just take a deep breath and follow our tips for preparing the major household appliances for a move:

Preparing Your Refrigerator

First and foremost, disconnect your refrigerator from the main electrical supply. To be on the safer side, do this at least two to three days before your moving day. Also, the refrigerator should be completely empty when you’re packing it. If there are any food supplies still stored inside, make sure you use them and clean the refrigerator inside out. Use a clean dry cloth for cleaning and let the refrigerator dry for some time. Once it’s dry, you have to carefully take out all the removable parts of the refrigerator like the compressor, refrigerant, condenser, shelves, etc.

When packing the refrigerator, use moving blankets or furniture pads to wrap it up and don’t forget to secure it using ropes or moving straps. With the help of your movers or friends, carefully load the refrigerator onto the moving dolly and in a vertical position. While moving the dolly, keep an eye on the position of the refrigerator, as any slight movement or tilting might cause the compressor oil to leak.

Tip: After you’ve settled in your new home, make a mental note of keeping the refrigerator unplugged for a minimum of 3 hours to avoid the compressor oil from causing any damage.

Preparing Your Washing Machine, Dryer, and Dishwasher

For packing your washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher, you first need to unplug these appliances, keeping in mind that they are clean and dry. For that, you’ll have to switch off your water supply, disconnect and turn off all the hoses of your appliances. As the cords, hoses, and wires can easily get damaged during the move, you have to pack them separately in a small moving box. Otherwise, you can keep them secure with the appliances themselves, just make sure you are careful while handling these small parts.

Speaking of packing your washing machine, you’ll first have to take care of the drum so that it doesn’t get damaged during the move. One of the best ways to avoid that from happening is by reinstalling the drums. That way there is no room for any kind of damage while transportation.

While packing your washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher, wrap the appliances first in a moving blanket and secured them with packing tape. Ask your movers or friends to keep these appliances in an upright position on the moving dolly and don’t forget to secure the appliances with moving straps or ropes.

Tip: You can go through the manual of your appliances and check for any kind of specific instructions and precautions to be taken with respect to moving these appliances.

Preparing Your Stove

The first thing you need to do is make sure that the gas is turned off before you start packing or cleaning it. Since this is one of the riskiest tasks to do, we recommend you leave it to professional movers. After you’re certain that the power is off, remove all the detachable parts of the stove like the burner gates, rings, etc. and pack these parts separately. You can first wrap them in moving blankets and then place them in the box.

Clean your stove inside out and be careful of the knobs and power cord. You can tape the power cord at the back of the stove using packing tape. Wrap your stove in moving blankets and secure it using packing tape. Remember to be careful while moving it from your house to the truck, we recommend getting help from movers as this is an appliance that needs careful handling.

Tip: When you relocate to your new home, it’s best if you seek help from a professional for reconnecting your gas supply. Since this is risky, we suggest you avoid doing it on your own.

Check Your Appliances Before Packing Them In The Boxes 

If you think that your job is done after cleaning the appliances, you’re wrong. Before you place any appliance in the box, you have to do a final inspection and check whether there are any loose cords hanging out from the appliance. Also, don’t forget to check the other small parts like wires, stove rings, etc., and see to it that they are properly sealed in their respective moving boxes. Make sure that the lids and doors of all your appliances are shut properly and secured with packing tape.

Before you place any appliance in the boxes, create a soft base for it using crumpled packing paper, newspaper, or bubble wrap. After placing the appliances in the boxes, check whether there is any wiggle room and fill up the empty spaces with crumpled packing paper or packing peanuts. Finally, don’t forget to seal the flaps of the boxes with packing tape.

Tip: The most fragile items can be labeled as ‘Handle With Care’ or ‘Be Careful’ as it will help your movers to keep these appliances separately from your other items.

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Things To Remember When Preparing Household Appliances For A Move

• There are chances that your heavy appliances like the refrigerator or washing machine can damage the floor of your house. So avoid dragging the appliances on the floor as that will not only damage your floor but also the appliances. That’s why it’s best to rent an appliance dolly that can help you move your appliances easily from your house to the moving truck.

• Your appliances are very fragile items, especially things like your iron, toaster, lamps, and therefore need to be handled with care. The best way to pack them would be using their original manufacturing boxes. So before you purchase any extra moving boxes, hunt your godown and garage and see if you have any original appliance boxes with you. You can always check your local retail stores and see if they can lend you boxes for free.

• Always pack the removable items of your appliances separately. Although that may seem like an extra task and disassembling your appliances may be really time consuming, it reduces the chances of your appliances getting damaged during the move. If you have a lot of appliances to be disassembled, we suggest you approach professional movers and let them do the job for you.

• If at all you have any glass appliances like your bulbs, lamps, chandeliers, etc, you need to be extra careful as they can easily break during transportation. You will have to wrap such items with bubble wrap to minimize the risk of breaking during the move. Don’t forget to secure the bubble wrap packing with packing tape.

Conclusion

Whether your appliances are small or large, you have to be very careful while packing them. Your moving company may charge you an additional fee for packing appliances, but it’s definitely worth it as they get the job done in a professional way. Regardless of whether you’re seeking help from movers or doing it on your own, if you’ve read our tips for preparing household appliances for a move, you surely are ready for it.

Also See: Tips to Move your Refrigerator

FAQs

How Do I Prepare My Appliances For Moving?

Clean all your appliances first using a clean or microfiber cloth and then take out all the removable parts like cords, wires, hoses, etc. You can pack the disassembled parts in a separate moving box. Since appliances are fragile and delicate items, you should seek help from professional movers to do the task.

How Do You Move An Appliance Before Damaging The Floor?

First of all, avoid dragging your appliances on the floor. The best way to protect your floor is by renting an appliance dolly and keeping your appliances on it with moving straps to secure them.

How Do You Prepare A Refrigerator For Moving?

Remove the power plug and clean the refrigerator using a clean cloth at least 24 hours prior to the moving day. Also, don’t forget to remove all the food supplies from the refrigerator. Place it on an appliance dolly in a vertical position and secure it with moving straps or rope. Be careful when you move it from your house to the moving truck and beware of doors and any other obstacles on your way.

How Do I Prepare My Washer For Moving?

The first thing you need to do is disconnect the power and water supply to your washer. Make sure that you empty the washer off any clothes inside and clean it inside out. Don’t forget to clean the drum and let it dry out before you pack the dryer. Also, check if the hoses that supply water to the dryer are drained off the water inside them and packed separately. Even the main drain hose has to be emptied and cleaned properly.

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