"Moving? Cool!"
by Floyd Maxwell, BASc
Principal, http://www.just-think-it.com
"Moving? Cool!"
by Floyd Maxwell, BASc
Principal, http://www.just-think-it.com
Isn't that how it usually goes? You arrange "lots of help", that turns out to be several thirsty friends, and maybe one or two of *their* thirsty friends. Those who actually came to move things, as opposed to just talking about it and watching everyone else, each elect themselves as Straw Boss. Each Straw Boss *knows* how to do "it" better than the next. Arguments ensue, tempers flare, and a potentially wonderful process goes...straight down the drain.
"Yeah, that's about right. So what?" I hear you say.
Well, if you can't imagine something better than the usual moving fiasco, then I agree with you and you can stop reading right here.
For those who can allow the possibility that maybe, on a good day, with limited belongings, plenty of great food, clear skies and a trailing breeze, there just *may* be a better-than-average move in your future, read on!
A wise couple I know have a simple saying they use whenever someone they know comes up with a complicated solution to a simple health problem. You know that "cure" where they have to starve this, feed that, consume those nutrients, pop some drugs "of course" and maybe even try that herbal "stuff", cause you never know...
Without missing a beat they chime in with "It's always the exhaust system, not the carburetor."
My father used to say something similar, only he would be
referring to cars.
It is pretty understandable that, in a society built on
consumption, most of us are convinced that consumption is
the solution to whatever ails us. That is, after all,
just the first order "standard knee jerk response".
But what is a better one?
One that goes to the cause, of course.
Taking the easiest example above, the car, one eventually
learns (hopefully) that it is usually the *electrical* system
that is acting up. The reasons are many: (1) corrosion of battery
terminals is inevitable and entirely explainable by the basic
chemistry of dissimilar metals and electronegativity. So
check your battery terminals to see they are snug!, (2) the
12 volts DC is converted to something in the tens of thousands
of volts AC that is sent to the spark plugs. This high a voltage,
needed to literally "jump the gap" of the spark plug, is a
guaranteed cause of arcing in the distributor cap, and the points.
(Things are even more complicated, and electrically challenged in
a electronic ignition, but we are trying for simplicity here.) So
clean the cap's contacts, and the points!, (3) the leads to the
spark plug are carrying *very* high voltage, and so can arc (i.e.
discharge) into whatever if they are not in good condition. They
can also simply fall off -- one roadside cure I effected involve
plugging the main lead back into the coil -- a lead that went
*horizontally* across half the engine. The engineer in me wanted
to scream! So pop the hood of a sputtering car and look/listen
for arcing, or the characteristic misfiring that indicates a "bad
cylinder" (i.e. bad lead/plug!), (4) check the plugs. They have
to encourage a high voltage "arc" to happen tens of thousands of
times each car trip, so naturally they can get dirty or worn out.
Ok, enough of auto mechanics 100, you say, let's get back to that
exhaust system remark.
Well, their point is that we tend to consume ourselves INTO problems
and then try to eat ourselves out of them, without changing our
eating habits! In car terms, their solution is saying "You
want more power from your car? Well then do the first thing any
street racer does -- get rid of all that muffler stuff!" Of course
there is very little profit to the medical "profession" if people
start consuming 25 cents worth of herbal laxative (I use Senna)
each day so it is easy to see why no one ever suggests this one.
So, we return to the subject of moving now?
Yes! But you must open yourself to the possibility that it is
one of the most potentially life-upgrading things you will ever do.
Remember: exhaust system, not carb.
Ok, I admit this is an exhausting preamble, and we haven't even
lifted a box. But what I am trying to hint at is the *shocking
to a Westerner* concept that throwing stuff out is the *real*
first step in moving!
Of course, when I say "throw out", I don't necessarily mean "in
the garbage", although hopefully you will fill up several cans
for every year you have been planted in one spot, like a tree.
And I definitely do NOT mean "have a garage sale". I mean get
rid of, by giving it away. Haul it off to the Sally Ann,
Salvation Army, Value Village or the homeless shelter of your choice.
Just get rid of it pronto! You are moving -- a very expensive
thing to do, and not just in dollar terms. It is incredibly
taxing in energy, time and peace of mind to uproot oneself.
So do yourself a favor right off the bat and shed some pounds!
So sing with me now, "Throw out stuff before you move! Before
you pack! Throw out LOTS of stuff!"
Once again I turn to my close and most wise friends for their
wonderfully concise guidance. Their rule of thumb on clothes?
If they haven't used a piece of clothing for one year, out it goes.
Alright, so you've done that.
Right?
Ok, let's move on...so to speak.
Here are the tips that will change "moving" to "Moving!
Spring for professional moving boxes, especially if your move
is in the $2,000+ range. Professional quality moving boxes are
amazingly cheap, and don't bust open at the wrong time, if you
catch my drift. They can also be *very* easily re-used in future
moves -- just use a box-cutter knife to cut the tape and then
collapse the boxes to use the least space. You can fit about
20 flattened boxes in the space of a beach mattress.
Get two cases of Gator/Powerade. I mean, get at least two
bottles for each person that is helping with the move. I drank
half a gallon during one move. Keep the cases right by the
door, open and dip into them even during the packing stage.
I don't know if it is the dust unearthed during packing, or the
dry cardboard boxes soaking up the humidity in the apartment,
the extra labor, or all three, but thirst is definitely a
factor in moving!
No, trust me on this one. You aren't taping boxes properly.
No one does. Ever.
For starters, get good, strong packing tape. Not that brown
plastic stuff -- too weak. Definitely not Duct tape -- way too
difficult to work with, and VERY hard to remove from things you
don't want it accidentally stuck to. Also, it is annoyingly
hard to get off the roll, and you need to conserve energy during
the whole moving process.
Clear, about 2" wide, plastic packing tape is the ticket. Get
a thicker-ply (i.e. stronger) tape if you have two strengths to choose from.
On the bottom of the box, instead of just one dash of tape in the
middle, we are talking about a full amount of tape, with about 3
inches of "overflow" on each end. Try not to handle the sticky
side of the tape (weakens its grip) and push all of the tape swath
down fully -- "if it comes loose, you lose"...
Now, back to that bottom. We haven't finished yet! Two extra
swaths of tape are going to be used to tape the otherwise open
edges. This will bring a HUGE increase in box strength, and is
highly recommended for boxes that will carry books, VHS tapes or
other heavy items. It will also stop crushed, tossed, stored-upside-down boxes from disgourging their contents through the
bottom slits. Also, boxes reinforced like this can be stacked
higher without collapsing -- and stacking is what it is all about
for the moving companies, believe me.
Same thing when taping the top of the box. THREE swaths of tape,
all long enough and all pressed down afterward -- one in the
middle to close the flaps, but the other two like the bottom two,
giving the top a sealed-from-dust, strength suitable for
many people picking up, heaving and dropping your most precious
...err, whatevers.
Pack each box as though you will not be unpacking it for a year.
Label them! On at least 2 sides, and the top! And put the
room, in block letters on the top! And last but certainly
not least, label HEAVY boxes in big letters. And if it is
REALLY HEAVY, say so!
That way you will do a good job, and the contents will tend not
to become chaotic when you open it up later.
To help this, be sure that every box is full. But not full by
weight. In fact, if you have already half filled a box with books
then you should put, say, a big winter jacket in to fill the rest of
the box. A full box will hold more weight on top of it. It will
also keep things organized inside 10 times better!
If some of the potential packer-uppers are not systematic, then
try to do the more important things yourself and leave them the clothes
to pack!
Don't forget the Gator/Powerade. Take a drink after each box is
filled if you need a drinking guideline.
If you are in a tiny apartment with lots of stuff around then you
will need to pack the most bulky stuff first, hopefully into boxes
that get stacked near the door. You can also have boxes near the
door with weird bulky light things on top of them. Anything that
gets you more space or reduces your "working space" the least.
This is also when you should build an "essentials" box that contains
one of each thing you need every morning to get ready for work, each
thing for a basic meal, etc. Shampoo, shaver, tooth brush. Three
pairs of socks. Things like that. Label it REALLY well. Big
letters on ALL sides of the box.
If you are travelling from one city to another, with the moving
truck on a different schedule then this is a good time to get out
your suitcases, set them up somewhere and start adding. I do this
up to a week before I travel. As I think of something I go put it
in the suitcase. Even something like my shaver -- I can always
use it each morning and return it to the suitcase, but this way I
tend to remember everything I need. And, just as importantly, I
provide myself with daily positive reinforcement of both what I
am doing, and of my ability to do it correctly -- in other words,
little or no last minute panic.
If space is at a premium in the moving truck (or especially if you
are doing it all by car), do NOT box things that are weirdly shaped.
It is very space inefficient to do this, and it also makes the
weirdly shaped item even harder to move. It also wastes your time,
twice over, as you have to wrap/pack at one end and then undo this
at the other. Just wrap the thing in a moving blanket and...well,
see below for when/how to load it. [Capsule Summary: weird stuff last.]
This is really what moving is all about. And it seems hard to keep it,
when *you* are being uprooted. But a few basic principles will make
it a piece of cake. For starters, when you are packing, put all of
the boxes nearest the "moving" door of your old dwelling -- don't
leave them wherever they were filled up (unless they are too heavy
to move easily to the door).
In the moving truck, put all of the boxes in at the beginning. Try
to stack them across the whole back of the truck, and vertically.
Only stray from this goal if you need to fit some super long things
down one side of the truck.
Part of the disruption of moving is when you get there and boxes have
collapsed, spewing their contents randomly. This is very discouraging
and we are going to work to prevent that by putting the heaviest boxes
(the ones with the heaviest cardboard and the most tape, right?!)
on the bottom of each box pile.
And depending on the mix of stuff that you have, you can leave a bit
of room at the top of the box piles to be used later for "weird but
light stuff" (this will also decrease the chance of the stack of boxes
crushing the bottom ones)
Time for heavy artillery. I will assume here that it will all fit!
Just be sure you don't put furniture on first, or last, as both of
these *will* cause problems and losses in space/energy/time/cost
efficiency.
Have you got enough space? Will it take two trips in the cube van
anyway? If so, don't bust a gut trying to fit 94% of it in. Making
a trip and unloading some of the stuff, especially if you choose the
stuff right, can be quite time-productive because you can take along
an unpacker who unpacks all that china into the china cabinet.
You see, moving is a logistics problem. It is easy for the process
to have "choke points" and one of the most common is that people get
in each other's way. Setting up a "second front" at the new location,
if possible, is a great efficiency booster...and it can be a moral
booster as well. When the rest of you come along on the second trip,
the first wave of unpackers have (non alcoholic) beverages waiting.
And you get inspired by what has been unpacked already.
Sub-divide big jobs to help conquer them.
This can be a really fun part of the move, if you have done the
boxes and furniture stuff right.
It is fun because you can "lose" the nastiest stuff (from a moving
efficiency point of view) in the nooks and crannies that will exist
in the truck now.
But first...
Get people to just bring the weird stuff out and leave it right
near the truck. And station one person outside the truck who can
hand things to you as needed.
Ok, now grab one item at a time and *think* about where would be
the best place to put it.
Hint: the obvious places, like on top of the couch, are most
likely the worst.
Hint: try to "lose" the smaller weird-shaped items first. And I
mean lose them -- they will often go into spaces that nothing else
would go in, and once there are not in the way of anything else
going in.
Just don't do things half way. If there is a space under an office
desk for a weird item, plus 50% space left over, then look around
for another weird item to take up the slack.
And some things are more flexible than they appear. Those neat
little sleeping bag rolls can be unrolled and tucked into all kinds
of places -- providing a soft (and clean!) blanket, or just good
"top of the boxes" material that doesn't help crush the boxes.
If you have multiple people, and are just moving "across town",
this can be a good time for some to go on ahead to the new house.
This takes the pressure off, reducing the chance of packing arguments,
and gives them a chance to recharge. Even better, give each of
them some refreshment and tell them you will get there 20 minutes
after them and so they can take a lunch break. Obviously if you are
not sure if everything will fit in the last truckload then some
vehicles may want to wait so that they can take some of the stuff
with them.
This is the phase where you have to be the most flexible. There
are many right ways to do things, and many ways to gain space, for
sure!
Another thing. At this stage everyone is tired and there is a
tendency to "dump things" -- setting them down on top of other
stuff in unstable and very "sub optimal" ways. That is why just
one or two people, who are able to be patient and try several places
for each item (in their mind at least), will achieve the best result.
On the other hand, if you have quite a bit of space at the end,
then just concentrate on placing things so that they won't move
around. Put as much stuff as possible on the floor of the truck.
Again, heavier items lower. And butt stuff together -- each will
help keep the other from tipping over. On one occasion I rode
*in* the truck on the drive over so that some of the more fragile
items would not fall over during the drive. This is, of course,
not a very safe thing to do, so I am not recommending it. But
I felt the need once and may do it again in the future if I think
it is necessary.
Ok, back to the verbal coaching stuff.
Repeat after me.
D R I V E S L O W L Y !
I think I have ridden with a total of one person who drove too
slowly in the moving truck. The rest? Too fast, or just barely
slow enough most of the time.
Look, if you go slow you will use less gas. You will be less
likely to get in an accident. You will put less wear and tear
on your friend's truck.
And you will damage less stuff!!!
Oh, and this is a great time to break out the fluid-replacement drink.
Gatorade, Powerade, whatever. Drink as much as you can -- and
don't worry about calories as these drinks are *very* lightly
sugared compared to colas.
Here, fatigue is the word.
The goal is pretty clear now. The toughest pieces have been
identified and are now easier to imagine fitting into that
ridiculously small elevator.
But don't overdue it.
You are only human. Flesh and bones. And some of them may
have already gone through quite a few decades of abuses large
and small.
Things like unpacking can be deferred -- if you have too few people
to unpack, then just put the boxes where you would like them unpacked
and close the door to that room for now!
Prioritize. Rather than freaking about every thing being brought
in, just sweat the large stuff and assume that the rest will not
drop through the floor if you leave it wherever it gets left today.
And hydrate! I guarantee that every single person involved in the
move will be dehydrated at this point. So dig out that second case
of "wizz bang" fluid-replacement drinks -- they work! You will drink
more fluid, and the light amount of sugar in them will be just what
your body needed in the short term. After the move, or as people
"pack it in", offer them something like yogurt. It is *incredibly*
easy to digest, full of protein nourishment, and requires zero
cooking, table setting, dish finding, and/or clean up.
Once the truck and the helpers have gone, treat yourself. Go out
to dinner. I would suggest a salad bar, because you might be surprised
both at how hungry you are, and how your body is asking for different
(more healthy) foods that usual.
After your away meal, take a little drive. You have moved to a new
area, after all, and might as well see what it looks like. That way,
when you get home your mind has something other than blank walls and
brown boxes to think about.
This can be a great time to do a SMALL amount of unpacking.
Putting it another way, there are probably a half dozen essentials
that you would very much like to locate right now. Hopefully you
built an "essentials" box as I suggested above. If not, just hunt
around for your shaver, shampoo, and dishes.
Then stop!
Put some time between you and the move. Sleep, even just a few hours,
will greatly recharge you and is definitely what your body and mind
need.
If you are not great at sleeping at a time like this, then just walk
around and make mental notes. "Oh, that box should be moved to the
kitchen." "I wonder where the other bedroom clothes box is. Oh,
here it is." Just don't talk out loud -- this kind of "busy work"
can be very tiring to those who are trying to recharge on the couch
or mattress.
Every one is an "expert" when it comes to moving. But the simple
approach is invariably the best -- watch the most energetic yet quiet
movers, rather than debate with the talkers -- the quiet energetic
ones know the best way, I guarantee it. But don't always settle
for "the first right answer". Think fluid, versatile, Plan B.
It is easier to optimize (and delegate!) stages. So maybe the first
stage is to carry boxes to the elevator. Boom! Off go two helpers
with a simple task that will take 10 to 15 minutes...giving you that
time to plan the next stage or delegate more work to other helpers.
They finish moving the boxes to the elevator (you have the elevator
key, right?) and they start loading it. You send a third person
with them -- at the main floor all three unload, with two of them
now taking the boxes to the truck while the third returns the elevator.
You have more than one hand truck/dolly, right?
Meanwhile, other helpers have been taking furniture and appliances
to the elevator. In it goes, and you notice that one or two "weird"
items can fit in on top. They are just put to one side at the truck,
of course, but you gained a bit in elevator efficiency by that one
timely addition.
You are trying for, let's say, 80% efficiency. But not 100%, for sure!
So that means if 80% of the people are working, great! If 80% of the
truck gets filled, great! If 80% of the moving process is smooth, great!
So express how great things are going. "Wow, I wasn't expecting to
carry so much in each elevator trip!" Lots of little encouraging
phrases, but easy on the "I can't tell you how much I appreciate..." stuff.
These are your friends and they need just a little sugar, and even less
sacharine praise. You are the coach, they are the pros, and just turn
them loose 'cause they know what to do! But nudge them a little in
the direction of increased efficiency. The person overseeing the move
is in the best position to see where little gains can be made.
If things are going good, don't change things.
Don't try to get cute.
Don't get caught up in the speed of things
and start throwing boxes to each other. And if a pile of weird items
is building up around the truck, do NOT start carrying them into the
truck!!!
As Einstein said, everything should be made as simple as possible,
but no simpler.
If some people are not good at what they are doing, re-assign them.
There is such a range of activity in a move that you can re-assign
someone to anything from packing to lugging to "holding the elevator"
to unpacking to "preparing the beverages", etc.
Some people are great pack horses. I have to keep a straight face
when I think of one of my closest friends helping me move twelve
70-pound boxes of books some years back. One of the strongest people
I know, and a most uncomplaining and true friend, I sure got him
huffing! Of course I was moving right along with him, but he really
did like being told what to do, in simple terms and proceeding to do
it. He told me just that on many occasions.
Some people like to give orders, but aren't good at it. Ask them,
as a special favor, if they could pack this box of kitchen stuff,
as you are so worried about it and stuff... Or assign them to some
part of the unpacking process -- again, a detail-oriented process
off in some corner of the kitchen or bathroom can keep them busy
and out of the way for an hour or more.
The most important position is the truck packer. If you have professional
movers then one of them will naturally do this job. If you have just a
few friends then try to find one who is likely to understand some or all
of the principles outlined here. Or just supervise this process yourself,
if possible.
To save energy, try to pivot or relay items rather than moving your
body. That saves 150 to 250 pounds per box! Of course, the deft use
of "hand trucks" and dollies is a huge energy saver as well. But look
at what you are moving and see if putting the boxes here, on the landing,
instead of ten feet past the landing, near the truck, saves you from
having to lift yourself up the landing stairs each time. You add a step:
"landing then truck" rather than just "truck", but you save 150 to 250
pounds up and down a flight of stairs for *every* box! Big gains in a
job that is "human energy limited".
Moving is, by definition, a thing in motion. It should be fluid.
Allow people to do things in different ways, especially if that suits
their age and/or strength limitations. Also, some of us love to "hoe
our own row" because we come up with efficiencies that way. Allow it.
Reward it! And share it!!! Send
me an email if you come up with something I've missed. I would
love to pivot around and move that idea along to others!
Oh, and have a great move!
(1) Get good boxes. And two cases of Gator/Powerade.
(2) Tape them properly
(3) Packing
(4) Order
(4a) Boxes first
(4b) Heavier, and stronger, boxes at the bottom
(4c) Furniture & appliances next
(4d) Sanity check
(4e) Weird stuff
(4f) Don't rush the last phase...
(5) The Drive
(6) Unpacking
(7) Now treat yourself
(8) Success!
(9) Do something else. Like sleep
Bonus tips for the keen, and the early preparers...
(a) Keep it simple
(b) Split the moving of items into stages
(c) Be happy with small gains
(d) Repeat already optimized steps
(e) Divide up the labor
(f) Share your own efficiency gains