Reserving parking is key as a distant spot means we have to carry items farther than necessary and this can add significant time and expense. A lot of clients underestimate this, but most of moving is just hauling possessions to/from the truck! If the truck is twice as far away, it will therefore extend the move commensurately.
Below we’ve listed the area sites where you can reserve parking with your city/county. We are not permitted to do this for you, unfortunately.
– DC – Charge is typically $50
– Arlington, VA
– Alexandria, VA
Elsewhere, you typically won’t need a permit. However, we recommend you confirm this for your particular streets before your move.
Reserve any elevators or loading docks that might be used. You generally do this by contacting the property manager of your building. Weekend and month-end dates are the most popular, sometimes getting fully booked weeks, even months ahead of time. Be sure to give us a heads up if you have a limited elevator, dock, parking, etc reservation window that could make things tight, or if there’re limited hours moves can take place within your building.
- Box up as many items as possible. Hiring us to make hundreds of trips back and forth with small, loose items is not a good use of our time or, more importantly, your money.
- It’s also recommended to use similarly sized and weighted boxes as much as possible. This makes stacking for hauling to the truck, and packing into truck much easier and simpler, and therefore faster and cheaper.
- Remove and box up items from any dresser, desk, file cabinet, wardrobe or armoire. This makes these items easier and safer to move.
- Disassemble large furniture items beforehand, if possible. Large appliances, such as washers, dryers, stoves, should be disconnected. Our crew can perform these tasks also, but please provide advance notice.
- We strongly recommend you disassemble Ikea and other particle board furniture. This kind of furniture is not meant to be moved in assembled form! We understand dis-assembly and re-assembly can be a pain, so we’re happy to help with this. If you want to leave particle board furniture in an assembled state for the move, we will be very careful, and it generally goes just fine, but please be aware that we cannot be held responsible if damage does occur. See our policies page for more detail on our limits of liability.
- Dense items like books and papers should be packed in small-sized book boxes. A large box with books my risk tearing apart and be difficult to maneuver.
- Make sure you have plenty of boxes and tape. You’ll probably need twice as much as you realize. We offer durable plastic bins for rent, with free drop-off and pick-up within DC and Arlington (minimum of 20 bins). We can also bring you cardboard boxes if you would like us to pack for you (must be scheduled prior to your move).
- Labeling a box’s contents makes a mover’s life (and yours!) simpler and helps us take better care of your possessions. It’s especially important to note if a box is fragile or extremely heavy. Also, unpacking will be significantly more streamlined if your boxes designate their new destination by room so we can take it straight there and you don’t have to face a Himalayan mountain range of boxes in your living room.
- Leave yourself enough time for packing. This usually takes far longer than you expect! We’ve had many clients still packing when we arrive, and it can really complicate the logistics of loading items into the truck in an optimal manner. We recommend trying to have it all done the night before to give yourself a cushion.
- Pack a box of things you will need imminently when you get to your new abode, such as your rental agreement, cleaning supplies, snack, trash bags, toothbrush, etc.
- If at any time you realize you have many more boxes or items than you initially thought, it’s good to let us know so we can judge if it makes sense to add a mover or send a larger truck. Having too small of a crew or truck can add time and therefore cost to your move, especially if we have to make two trips. It is also important to let us know of any unusual circumstances or particularly heavy or valuable pieces during the estimate process, not after we have arrived. This allows us to make special arrangements and make sure we are fully equipped for any situation.
- Take especially expensive or valuable items yourself, if possible. Be sure to pack and pad fragile items adequately. It’s very important to label fragile boxes “FRAGILE” so our movers are aware. We also recommend you group them in a corner, out of the way of moving traffic. Lampshades and globes must be removed and packed. We strongly recommend you move plants yourself. We strongly recommend you pack electronics in their original boxes. Antique clocks you may want to dis-assemble, and pack the various moving parts (chimes, pendulums, etc) separately. Please pack and pad picture frames adequately as well.
- We cannot move anything hazardous or explosive! (including propane tanks, paint cans, turpentine, gasoline, etc)
If you want help packing, let us know. We may be able to help depending on our schedule, and typically at a cheaper rate than we charge for moving services. We do need an accurate sense of the amount of items we will be packing for you, beforehand, however.
Make sure your new place is clean and that you have a sense for the arrangement of the furniture before your rooms get crowded with boxes and are harder to navigate with your larger items.
We do limited piano moving. We do not move anything that would have to be hoisted up through a window. But if you need these done we would be happy to recommend some other high-quality moving companies that do offer these services.
Lastly, here’re are two helpful resources from the gov’t site ProtectYourMove.gov
Ready to Move? Tips for a Successful Interstate Move
Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move
They’re a bit long-winded at times, but contain a lot of good information.