5 Tips for Avoiding Property Damage When Moving Out

By Julie DeLong, A-1 Freeman Moving Group 

Prepare High Traffic Areas

As you think about your move, consider the areas of your home that will become high traffic areas. If the main hallway is carpeted, consider putting down old rugs or carpets to help protect the rugs and avoid the cost of deep cleaning the carpets once you get ready to leave. If the hallways are hardwood floors, you may want to consider taping down cardboard to help protect the floors. If moving day brings with it lots of rain or bad weather, to avoid tracking in mud, a plastic sheet is probably the better option.

Measure Your Doorways

If you have larger items, be sure to measure your entryways to determine if your larger items will adequately fit. It seems like a no-brainer but if you have done renovations to your home that may affect the size of your entryways or hallways or if you assembled some of your larger furniture pieces once they entered the house, you may have trouble removing them. If this is the case, be sure to take a picture of the item before disassembling them so you can easily reassemble the pieces once they reach their destination.

Protect Your Valuable Items

If you have items like coffee tables or dressers that may have sharp corners and edges, protect them with packing materials or cardboard. This not only protects your furniture from damage but your walls from accidentally being punctured too. Wrap glass and mirrors in towels or old bedding to ensure that they don’t cause damage as they are moved from the home. Most professional movers will have these items on hand.

Equipment to Help with the Move

Some items require more than one person to lift or a crew to help direct the items exit from the home. Professional moving companies have several items on hand to help make the move easier.

• Moving Dolly. These carts are great for moving large items like beds, dresser and sofas. Movers can easily wheel the item out of the home without the worry of scratching hardwood surfaces and usually with less manpower. Dollies are most often used when the home is one level or if the moving company has access to an elevator.
• Hand cart. Hand carts are upright in appearance. They are great for stacking boxes. These carts help ensure that items are not dropped during the move.
• Floor sliders. Floor sliders help move large items like appliances and furniture across hard surfaces while protecting the floors. They are sometimes referred to as furniture glides or furniture slides.

Prepare Wall Corners

Corner guards can be attached to high traffic areas to ensure that the walls remain intact during the move. Corner protectors come in cardboard, foam, vinyl and heavy-duty rubber. Be sure to add them to bedroom wall corners and the wall corners of the home's entryway.

Many of these items can be supplied by your moving company, so be sure to ask your professional mover if they will be supplying these things or if you should add them to your packing supply list of things to have on hand on moving day.