Keep Your House Move Hassle-free
By Sharon Hurley Hall, Fri Dec 9th

I've always been a bit of a nomad and with 20 moves in 25 years,I've learned a thing or two about moving myself and my stufffrom place to place. Here are seven steps you can take to makemove day go smoothly.

1. Upstairs, downstairs

Everything you move has to go through your front door, so itmakes sense to have your belongings as close to the departurepoint as possible. That means getting all boxes and items downfrom the loft/attic (or up from the basement/cellar) beforemoving day. Most of the stuff in there you don't use every dayanyway and can well do without for a few weeks. Put the boxes inroom you can do without for a while and stack them three or fourhigh, big boxes at the base, small ones at the top. (After all,you don't want anything to fall on you>)

2. Clear the clutter

When you're moving things out of the loft/attic orbasement/cellar, take the chance to clear out anything youhaven't needed in the last two years. Why move what you don'tneed? The same goes for the garage and for the garden shed. Beruthless, or you'll only have to throw it away once you'vemoved. This is also a good time to 'lose' that unwantedChristmas or birthday gift.

3. Plan your van

When hiring a van, avoid cutting corners to save money. Spend abit more and get a van with a tail-lift. That will cut down onthe backache and will be invaluable, especially for the largerfurniture items. Buy or borrow a heavy duty trolley of some kindand you'll have almost all the bases covered. When booking avan, look for a company that will allow you to either pick it upthe night before the move (to get a head start on the loading)or return it the day after (so you can collapse into bed atnight without watching the clock).

4. Box clever

Keep packing boxes small and manageable and your back will thankyou. The boxes that reams of paper come in (you can get a fewfrom your office) are perfect for packing books, CDs, DVDs,tapes, records (if you've still got them) and other small items.The ones with handles are best.

Check out your local shop and ask them to save the boxes thatsnacks and chocolates are delivered in. They'll need to bereinforced but they're a good size as well.

For all the mums out there, the Pampers multipack boxes arestrong and solid (and they have handles).

Finally, book boxes (the smaller ones, of course) from yourlocal bookshop. These are difficult to get hold of but when youuse them you can be sure that your stuff won't fall out mid-move.

5. It's a wrap!

To avoid

breakages, wrap your fragile items very carefully. Thebest packing items are newsprint and bubble wrap. If you can getit, beg or buy large sheets of unprinted newsprint or ends ofrolls from your local printer. If you can't you'll have to startsaving your Sunday newspapers (the bigger, the better). You'd beamazed how much stuff will need to be wrapped.

Bubble wrap is also a safe, clean alternative, and if you getbored, you can pop a few bubbles while you wrap. Electricalitems are best transported in their own packaging if you've gotit, or bubble wrap if you haven't. Sharp knives and toastingforks should also be wrapped so no-one gets hurt. All mattressesshould be wrapped, otherwise you'll be sleeping on dirt foryears. They're quite heavy, and you'll usually drop at least onecorner. Black garbage bags and packing tape are useful forwrapping large items such as these, but even better are big dustsheets from your local hardware store.

6. The name of the game

Label, label, label. Don't just label boxes by where they'regoing; label where they've come from as well. You'll have a muchbetter idea of where to find that elusive vase for the welcomeflowers the new neighbours have brought you, because you'll knowexactly where that was in the old house. Label boxes on the topand at least two sides (four if you can't be bothered to becareful about how they're put down). That means you won't haveto lift every box to find out what's in it. Make some signs forthe new house (Bedroom 1, Bedroom 2, Office etc) so yourmove-day helpers will know where each box should go.

7. Essential services

Get together a 'move day essentials' box. This should have akettle and enough mugs for everyone who's helping you move, aswell as coffee, tea and sugar (those packs you get at hotels areperfect) and a carton of UHT milk. A bottle of mineral water isalso a good idea, as are a couple of snack bars and a roll oftoilet paper. Another essentials box should have your hammer,drill, screwdriver set as well as a few nails, screws and wallplugs. A couple of light bulbs may also come in handy, as will aroll of bin bags and some large dust sheets in case it's a wetday (you Don't want mud all over the new carpet, do you?)

I've found that planning my move in this way makes it a surefiresuccess. Good luck!

About the author:Sharon Hurley Hall is a freelance writer, ghostwriter andeditor. Sharon has been writing all her life and loves thewritten word. She speaks French, Spanish and German and haslectured on journalism and media issues. Visithttp://www.doublehdesign.com to see how Sharon can help withyour writing, editing or design projects.