Insider Tip #4 – Packing Items and Loading a Truck

Hi, this is DD again, this time to discuss some of the issues concerning the packing of items in boxes, and the strategy loading of a truck. This if for those who have decided that they want to rent and drive a truck themselves, and who want to avoid the extra cost of having someone else do this service for them.

Anybody can unload a truck, but it takes a trained person to load a truck correctly so that 1) you and other people are safe on the road, and 2) your items are safe.

If you have a grand piano, a pool table, or a hot tub that you want to transport, it would probably be best to hire professionals.  Grand pianos can weigh up to 1200 pounds and they don’t take well to being dropped.  Pool tables are very persnickety about the way they’re handled, and hot tubs can be just plain gnarly.  Same thing with a gun safe, or a chandelier.

That being said, you want to use some basic strategies for loading your truck. But before that, we’ll need to discuss a little bit about packing.

            Packing Supplies

First of all for packing, everything should go in a box, even plants (U-Haul lamp boxes are good for tall plants). U-Haul has a whole range of box sizes and types, including short and tall wardrobe boxes which have crossbars from which to hang your clothing. These have even been known to hold chandeliers. And The Shipping Connection (Moving Connections’ sister company) has not only U-Haul boxes in stock, but also stocks more than 100 box sizes and custom types of boxes made by major brand name manufacturers. These include ski boxes, snowboard boxes, and guitar boxes, as well as a large number of boxes for paintings and mirrors.

U-Haul also has mirror boxes as well as special dish boxes and glass boxes (with individual cells for dishes and glasses with foam wrappers).

Moving Connections also stocks packing paper, tape, tape guns, stretch wrap, moving blankets and pads, etc. So if you need packaging materials, we have everything you need in our store.

            Packing

The idea in packing boxes is to isolate and cushion each fragile item, and to make certain each package is firmly packed in order to support any packages on top of it.  Of course, you always want to load the heaviest items on the floor of the truck, but most boxes will have to bear some weight of boxes above, unless they’re going on top.

There are a few things to keep in mind when packing items, some of which might seem counter-intuitive.  For instance, dishes should not be laid flat, but should stand on their edges with a lot of packing paper underneath and between each dish. Laying dishes flat will almost assure that some or many will be broken, even with packing paper between them and underneath.

Everything should be put in a box with the exception of your heaviest and largest items.

Your largest and heaviest items should be wrapped in professional grade moving blankets to provide cosmetic and structural protection for the items.  You can secure the blankets around each item with stretch wrap (some prefer to use tape).  This includes tables and headboards for beds, and similar items.

            Loading for Personal Safety

First, load your heaviest items along the sides of the truck and strap them in tightly to the rails that line the interior sides of the truck. Be certain to use ratchet straps, as rope or twine will begin to slacken and sag in a short time due to vibrations and bumps during transport. This will cause your heavy items to shift and jar loose, which will cause packages and other items to tumble and break. You’ll end up with a big, expensive mess when you open the cargo bay door (if you can) when you arrive at your destination. And if you can open the doors, you might very well be injured when the goods fall out on top of you because they have toppled. So make certain that your heavy items are strapped to the wall with strong ratchet straps.

The next consideration is to balance the load to keep the truck from swerving or tipping over on turns and curves or when braking fast.  The heaviest items should go towards the front, while the less heavy items can go behind them. Again, use professional grade ratchet straps (available at many U-Haul rental centers) to secure your items to the sides of the truck.  Each truck has wooden rails running along the interior sides for this purpose, so it is wise to use them.

 Make certain that you don’t have a significant imbalance on either the left or right side of the truck, as this could cause the truck to tip over. 

            Large and Odd Shaped Items

Large and odd shaped items that are not heavy should also go along the sides of the truck. The next section has instructions on building “walls”, and you will build your walls around these items. This might seem unwieldy, but it works.

            Loading to Protect Your Cargo

There are a few basic strategies and tactics to remember when loading a truck.  First of all, you want to build “walls”. A wall is simply a stack of packages from side to side and bottom to top. In their earliest training sessions, dock workers are taught that their packing should be so tight that you can’t get a credit card between your packages, and that includes between the top package and the ceiling of the truck. This might seem a bit far-fetched, but you get the idea. Pack ‘em tight, or as tightly as you can.  The main thing is not to leave any spaces between packages that might cause them to buckle, which would probably cause the wall to topple.

Start out at the front of the cargo bay at one side (most Americans are more comfortable starting from left to right) with a heavy, larger box that is well packaged. Then go along the floor from left to right placing other heavy packages of similar sizes as much as possible. Of course, packages are going to vary in size and weight. This is actually a good thing, because it pretty well prevents you from making what are called “columns”, which can be dangerous to your goods and to those people opening the door of the cargo bay, as well as to those unloading it.

                        Avoid Making Columns

A column occurs when you stack packages of the same size more than three high. This invites toppling, and toppling is what you want to avoid.  Of course, the shape of the box matters.  If you’re stacking exercise equipment that is long and flat, you might be able to go five high without a problem, but this situation is rarely encountered with household moves. On the other hand, if you have tall, narrow boxes (such as lamp boxes), you wouldn’t want to stack them even two high.

                        Tie Your Packages

“Tie” your packages to avoid making columns.  This is absolutely necessary.  Tying is where you offset your packages so that the middle of one box spans (is over the edges of) the two boxes below it. You want to continue this pattern across the truck and all the way to the top. Think of making a ‘T” with the edges of your boxes. If the sides of three or more boxes line up from top to bottom, you have a column, and you’re inviting disaster, seriously. So don’t stack boxes of the same size more than three high.

                        Securing Your Walls

You should secure each wall to keep its packages from shifting.  You can use different methods of securing your walls. You can use rope and tie it across the wall using the side rails as tie-off points.  You can use an “X’ pattern in addition to tying straight lines across the truck for each wall as you complete it. You can also use cargo poles or cargo nets to secure each wall, but these tend to be prohibitively expensive.

When used properly (make certain they are tight), they can be excellent for the situation in which you don’t quite fill the truck, leaving empty space at the back, and you need to secure the load to keep it from falling into the empty space.  And in this case, you only need to buy a few poles or one cargo net, but still use rope to tie off the last wall, and make certain that the poles or net are tight against the packages of your wall.

Some people and even professional movers like to separate walls with mattresses and box springs, but this can be very tricky as they leave a lot of space around the top and sides for packages to shift and topple. Mattresses are probably best placed along the sides of the cargo bay where they can also serve as buffers between pianos and packages or other items. 

In the end, each household can bring unique challenges to whomever is doing the packing and loading, so you have to use your own judgement at times. But make certain that each box is well packed so that it won’t crumple under the weight of boxes above it. 

Insider Tip #3 -- Lift Vans, U-boxes, etc.

Hi, this is DD again, this time to discuss some alternative shipping methods for your household items.  Hope this helps you.

Lift Vans (also called “Van Packs”) are large wooden crates that are used for shipping items.  They are used for international shipping as well as domestic. They are about 7 feet high by 7 feet long by 4 feet wide.  They hold about 200 cubic feet of goods. You can ship multiple lift vans if you need to (each lift van holds about 1 room of a typical household, but we would have to get more details from you in order to make more precise calculations of how many lift vans you might need). You probably won’t want to use more than two lift vans, as they can be very cost efficient up to that point, but after more than two vans, other more cost efficient options might be available.

If you want to use a lift van, give Moving Connections a call. Our movers will come to your residence or business and load the items directly onto a lift van in the truck, or they will load your items onto the truck and take it to the lift van warehouse, where it will be loaded, banded, and shipped.

Lift vans can be a cost saver for smaller shipments, so be certain to call us before booking a move.

Lift vans are a door to hub or door to door service. There is an extra charge for door to door service.

U-Boxes is a service provided by U-Haul and is a good option for storage or for moving small households. With a listed storage capacity of 257 cubic feet, U-Boxes will handle most students’ studio apartments. Their weight capacity is 2,000 lbs.

Their interior dimensions are 95” by 56” by 83 ½ “, (56 inches wide at the door, 95” deep, and 83 ½ inches high), so they can hold most of your goods. They are covered with vinyl in order to be water resistant.

If you just need to store some goods for a short or long period, these can be a good option, too.  U-Haul can store your items at your location or they can put them in their own secure storage facility. They also offer short term storage, such as between semesters, which can be very convenient for students. And they can store and ship to a hub or to your door.

To find out more about U-Haul containers (U-Boxes) or other U-Haul services, just type in uhaul.com on a URL line to go to their website, or call 1 (800) 788-3683. To make reservations, call 1-800-GO-UHAUL (1-800-468-4285).

Other Moving Container services: there are a number of companies that offer storage and moving options using larger containers (larger than lift vans or U-Boxes) and at least two offer three sizes. The construction and weatherproofing on these can vary, and some can be used for international shipping.

LCL (Less than Container Load) shipping to overseas destinations can be quite involved. Unless you’re prepared to pick items up at a port facility and pay the customs fees, you will want to get door to door service.  This is known as “door to door LCL service” and the rate you are quoted should include customs house broker fees and cartage fees.

If you have just a few items to ship overseas and none of your boxes exceeds 70 lbs. (for most countries) or 79” or 108” girth plus length (again, depends on the country), you can send your items via Priority Mail. This can be an economical way to send your items, but do be aware that a number of things might not be insurable.

Also, you cannot send anything via the mail that is liquid, flammable (including anything that has alcohol in it, and this includes perfumes or colognes, etc.), hazardous, perishable (such as foods), or lithium batteries.

Exceptions to the lithium battery rule are such things as cell phones that have the batteries in them. As this is posted, the U.S. Postal Service is not sending any Samsung Galaxy 7’s with the batteries in them, however. Lithium batteries not in a device are prohibited.

In addition, each country has a list of specific items that are prohibited and these can vary greatly from country to country. Cigarettes, unsigned credit cards, coins of any kind, and even unfinished wood can be prohibited (unless you provide a certificate of fumigation for the wood – this is to protect the forests of foreign countries from invasive pests such as pine beetles, termites, and diseases, etc.). So it’s best to check with the Post Office to find out what items are mailable to any particular country before packing them. 

You will also have to fill out “long form” customs slips that tell what the specific items are inside each package, the price for each, and their country of origin (where they are manufactured or made). It’s also best if you weigh each item with a postal scale because the weight for each item is also required on the customs form. 

You should use multiple forms for each package instead of trying to squeeze in multiple items on each line of a single form.

If you have any questions, you can visit your local post office, or you can go online and visit usps.com for further tips and specifics.

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Next Time: “Insider Tips” for packing items and loading trucks.

Insider Tip #2 -- Do It Yourself – U-Haul Services

Shipping Connection is an authorized U-Haul dealer with two cargo vans in its fleet. These vans are a bit larger than typical family vans that you’re familiar with. You can lay a queen size mattress between the wheel wells and stack a lot of other stuff on top, plus you have a few feet of additional floor-to-ceiling free space since the cargo bay is about 9 feet long and the typical mattress is about 6 feet long.

U-Haul cargo vans cost $19.95 per day to rent, plus $0.69 per mile, plus $11 per day for insurance if you want it. In addition, these vans get about 8-9 miles per gallon of gas, and you’ll have to bring the van back with the same fuel level as when you got it, so plan your budget accordingly.

If you’re making a short move within the city, as university students often do, then using a van and making a few trips with it can be a smart way to save money.

If, on the other hand, you’re moving a lot of items including some large furniture, then you might try looking at the other options that U-Haul has.  They have a fleet of box trucks from 10-foot cargo bays to 26-foot cargo bays (the largest you can drive without a commercial driver’s license). You can rent one of these, but the rent and mileage are generally higher according to the size of the truck you select.  Also, they get lower fuel mileage as they have larger engines hauling heavier vehicles and loads, so you’ll spend substantially more on fuel. Plan accordingly.

Another advantage of the trucks is that some are for rent on a one-way basis.  So if you’re moving far away, you can drop the truck off at the U-Haul dealer closest or most convenient to your destination.

This is probably the most inexpensive way to move your goods unless you happen to own a box truck that will handle all of your items. But do keep in mind motel/hotel expenses, as well as meals and other expenses when you budget.

One thing to make sure of, and that is that your “Do-It-Yourself” doesn’t become a “Destroy-It-Yourself” move. This typically occurs when you try to move a concert grand piano, or a large gun safe, or a hot tub, a glass table, etc., yourself. It’s best in such cases to let only experienced professionals with the right equipment do the job.

Also keep in mind the fact that you will be required to stop at every open truck inspection station as you cross any state line.  You will have to be certain to comply with every state law including not only weight limitations, plus firearms and hazmat laws, but also agricultural regulations that prohibit the import of fruit and certain plants into some states.

Hazmat laws can be tricky.  For instance, you cannot transport paint or paint thinner, etc., across state lines without special federal permits. In addition, you cannot have gasoline at all, not even in your lawn mower or weed cutter, etc., in your truck (except for your truck’s gas tank). So run the gasoline out of your mowers, etc., before you leave.

Inspection Stations can require you to remove every item from your truck for inspection if they so desire, and they will require you to unload items if your truck is over the gross weight limit for your truck until you’re within the legal weight limit.

You will then have to find alternate means to ship the overload items, plus you will have to pay a hefty fine. This could take days to resolve, so if there’s any doubt in your mind, it’s best to have a professional moving service transport your goods.

Another consideration when moving yourself is how to wrap or pack your goods and how to load the truck. We can discuss more on this in a future tip.  If you have an unbalanced load, it could cause the truck to tip on a turn or even careen out of control when rounding a curve in the road, etc.  So your items must be balanced with as low a center of gravity as possible and with as even a distribution (weight wise) as possible.

Next Time: more “Insider Tips” for small moves: Lift Vans, U-Boxes, and Other Moving Containers. .

Insider Tip #1 – Options for Small Moves

If you need to move a 1 bedroom or studio apartment with not much furniture or household goods, you might want to consider some options.

First of all, a moving company van will be prohibitively expensive, or you might have to wait weeks for your items to be shipped. But there are options, depending on how many items you have.

Before you select any service, you must understand pricing policies. There are two types of weight measurements in the shipping industry.  One is actual weight – how many pounds an item weighs – as opposed to “dimensional weight,” i.e., the size of the item or how many cubic feet it takes up. Then they round up to the next whole number. The shipping company will always select the larger of the two figures, actual or dimensional, to determine shipping charges.

Dimensional weight is calculated by multiplying the length times the width times the height of an item in inches, then dividing by 166. So if you had a 1’ x 1’ x 1’ box, you would have a dimensional weight of 11lbs.  (12” x 12” x 12” = 1728, 1728 divided by 166 = 10.4096, rounded up to the next pound would be 11 pounds).

            Shipping via “Small Package” Services

If you have only a very few items that you can fit into 10 or fewer medium sized boxes that weigh up to 150 lbs. each,, then your best bet would probably be to use a small package service such as UPS or FedEx.  Shipping Connections is an authorized shipper for both UPS and FedEx and has several pickups per day for these services. 

            Palletizing and Freighting

If you have to move just a few items (no furniture), Shipping Connections can palletize them and air freight them for a surprisingly low cost, about $1 per pound.  This includes the labor and materials for putting the items on the pallet and stretch wrapping them to stabilize the load according to industry standards. We can go up to about 4 or 5 feet high and still be safe and stable with most items once they are boxed (costs extra to have us box them).

This is a hub to hub service, not door to door. So there is a pickup charge on our end if we have to go to your residence or storage shed.  This is very reasonable, usually $25 for a pickup truck load. On the other end, you can pick up your items at the nearest major airport, or you can pay a cartage fee, usually 15 cents ($0.15) per pound for deliveries within 30 miles or so of the airport, up to 20 cents or more ($0.20+) per pound for more distant destinations.  Allow two days for pickup and 2-3 days for air transport to the hub.

           

Do It Yourself

Shipping Connection is an authorized U-Haul dealer with two cargo vans in its fleet.    These vans are a bit larger than typical family vans that you’re familiar with. You can lay a queen size mattress between the wheel wells and stack a lot of other stuff on top, plus you have a few feet of additional floor-to-ceiling free space since the cargo bay is about 9 feet long and the typical mattress is about six feet long.

U-Haul cargo vans cost $19.95 per day to rent, plus $0.69 per mile, plus $11 per day for insurance if you want it. In addition, these vans get about 8-9 miles per gallon of gas, and you’ll have to bring the van back with the same fuel level as when you got it, so plan your budget accordingly.

If you’re making a short move within the city, as university students often do, then using a van and making a few trips with it can be a smart way to save money.

If, on the other hand, you’re moving a lot of items including some large furniture, then you might try looking at the other options that U-Haul has.  They have a fleet of box trucks from 10-foot cargo bays to 26-foot cargo bays (the largest you can drive without a commercial driver’s license). You can rent one of these, but the rent and mileage are generally higher according to the size truck you select.  Also, they probably get lower mileage as they have larger engines hauling heavier vehicles and loads, so you’ll spend more on fuel. So plan accordingly.

Another advantage of the larger trucks is that some are for rent on a one-way basis.  So if you’re moving far away, you can drop the truck off at the U-Haul dealer closest or most convenient to your destination.

            Lift Vans, U-boxes, and Pods

Lift Vans (also called “Van Packs”) are large wooden crates that are used for shipping items.  They are used for international shipping as well as domestic. They are about 7 feet high by 7 feet long by 4 feet wide.  They hold about 200 cubic feet of goods. You can ship multiple lift vans if you need to (each lift van holds about 1 room of a typical move, but we will get more details from you for making more precise calculations of how many lift vans you might need).

If you want to use a lift van, give Moving Connections a call. Our movers will come to your residence or business and load the items directly onto a lift van in the truck, or they will load your items onto the truck and take it to the lift van warehouse, where it will be loaded, banded, and shipped.

Lift vans can be a cost saver for smaller shipments, so be certain to call us before booking a move.

Lift vans are a door to hub or door to door service.