Whether you are packing every day dishes or your great-grandmother’s fine china, packing dishes for a move is a delicate task, especially if you are moving a long distance and putting everything in a giant moving truck. To get your dishes, cups and glassware safely to your new location, here are 5 tips to help you pack.
1. Use packing materials you already have
While you could go out and invest in giant rolls of bubble wrap, why not use materials you already have to move anyway? T-shirts, linens and towels make excellent wrapping for dishware and socks make excellent cushioning to place between each plate. Glasses and stemware can be placed in clean socks for extra cushion as well.
2. Use small boxes
While it can be tempting to pack dishes in giant boxes, this is a bad idea. First, dishes get heavy and larger boxes are both more likely to break and harder to lift. Your best bet is to pack dishes in small, flat boxes that are approximately the size of the dishes you are packing and only put 10-12 dishes in each box. Place wadded up paper or padding in the bottom of the box and socks or other padding between each plate.
When packing china cups or glassware, be sure and use a box that is relatively the same height as the cups or glassware you are packing. You don’t want to stack china cups or glassware too high in a box or you risk breaking the cups or glasses on the bottom. If you have very short glasses and a very tall box, you can pack your glasses in layers if they are sturdy and of roughly the same height. Pack a single layer of glasses with adequate padding on the bottom, then use a piece of cardboard to create a new base and pack another layer of glassware on top.
3. If you use a large box for dishes, stack them vertically
If you don’t have smaller boxes and need to pack dishes in a bigger box, make sure your box is thoroughly reinforced with heavy packing tape. Rather than stacking dishes in the box, slide them in vertically. This puts less stress on each dish and means you will most likely arrive at your destination without all your bottom dishes being cracked or broken. If you are going to pack dishes vertically, be sure and use plenty of packing and padding and place adequate padding between each dish. Again, you want to be sure you don’t overload your box and make it too heavy to carry or cause the box to break.
4. Wrap glasses individually
While it can be tempting to just place cups and glasses in a box, this is a bad idea. Cups and glasses should all be individually wrapped before placing in a box. Also, be sure to fill each cup or glass with packing material.
5. Alternate stemware and glasses upside-down and right-side-up
When packing stemware, your best bet is to alternate glasses right side up and upside down, with adequate packing in between. This is also true of glasses that are wider at the top than at the bottom. For fragile glassware, you might consider investing in boxes that have pre-made cardboard dividers to keep glasses and stemware from clanking each other and potentially cracking or scratching other glasses.
We hope these packing tips help all your dishes make it safely to your destination. Whether you’re looking for a cross country moving company or moving companies in Pennsylvania, Cheap Movers Philadelphia can help! Contact our team now for your free moving quote.