Everyone can load a moving truck. But do you know how to load a moving truck properly? The key is to maximize the space and at the same time minimize any possible damage to your items. That makes this task a little trickier than it may seem initially. To make this task much easier, here are some tips on the proper way of loading a moving truck.
When organizing your next move, there are several truck rental businesses to select from. Make sure to select the option that best suits your demands and budget. Penske, Enterprise, U-Haul, and Budget are a few truck rental companies to take into account.
Movers Corp has you covered if you still prefer the assistance of moving specialists. Check out our vast network of trustworthy and dependable movers.
First thing you should do
Start by getting rid of the broken and unused items, save the packing materials for when you really need them, and distribute the weight as evenly as you can from front to rear and side to side.
Get Supplies and equipment
Make sure to collect all moving supplies before starting to load. You will need a dolly to help load big pieces and furniture pads or blankets to give extra protection, in addition to boxes, plastic wrap, and packing tape. Make sure every item has been packed carefully and with lots of protection before loading a moving vehicle.
Lay out protection
Before you worry about how to pack a moving truck properly, a tarp or a plastic wrap must first be lain out on the floor of the moving trailer. This shall serve as protection for your possessions. The layer of tarp or plastic on the floor can protect your stuff from dust, dirt, scratches, or whatever possible damage may come in the process of moving.
Disassemble large furniture
Before starting to load your furniture onto a moving truck, disassemble it. This will help you make the most of your space and appropriately disperse the weight of any heavy furniture. This will make more room for your goods and allow you to distribute the weight of the table legs across a wider area of the truck.
Start with the heaviest and largest items first
In order to maximize the space available in the moving truck, it is a must that you start loading the heaviest and biggest items first. By putting the heaviest items out in the front of the truck, you also prevent the vehicle from dragging a back that is simply too heavy. And that can create an even more troublesome situation.
Among the heaviest items include the appliances. Your fridge, stove, washing machine, dishwasher and other heavy items must go in first. When you are loading these items, it is best to keep them in an upright position. Make sure to balance the weight as well. For instance, if you have both a washer and a dryer, place them opposite each other.
The next item that should be on your list includes the pieces of furniture. The chairs in the living room, the sofa and the rest of your entertainment unit shall go next. Keep in mind that the heaviest items should be on the bottom. Pack the items from the floor to the ceiling. Once you are finished with each layer, use a strap and wrap it around the items to hold them steady.
Protect the furniture
Having plastic wrap on the floor is not enough protection. It is a must that you use paper padding or moving blankets to protect the appliances and pieces of furniture, especially in the process of putting one on top of another. Surround the items with cushions. You can also use your mattress and place it in between the items. A box spring may also prove useful.
To save more money buying paper padding, use your blankets and sheets. Towels and linens may also be used for this purpose.
Place the long items against the walls of the truck
The long items including long mirrors, headboards and table tops should be placed against the longest walls of the moving trailer. Load and put them in an upright position. Once you are done, secure the stuff to the side of the trailer. As mentioned previously, long items such as mattresses and box springs may also serve as cushions for appliances and furniture pieces.
Load the boxes
When you are done placing the heaviest, largest, and longest items in position, you can now take the boxes. Again, start with the heaviest to the medium weight to the lightest of the boxes from the floor to the ceiling. Ultimately, the key to how to load a moving truck properly is proper space management.
Loading Art and Antiques
When performing a DIY move, careful planning and close attention to detail are required when carrying art and antiques onto a moving truck. Make sure you have a clear plan in place for how you will load and secure your stuff before you start loading. To minimize shifting during transportation, this can entail arranging your items in a particular order or layout and securing them with straps or ropes.
Loading everything else
There are things in your house that aren’t shaped to stack. These items will fill up the spaces that boxes and furniture left behind. Some household items are still missing, even though the majority of your larger stuff has previously been packed. Unusual-shaped goods can be secured in place by being tucked around furniture or other boxes.
To reduce the chance of crushing, lighter things and fragile items should be positioned last. Place any necessities you’ll need right away in the back of the truck so you can get to them quickly when it’s time to unpack. Use moving straps, plastic wrap, or packing tape to fasten everything before you leave so that nothing can move while you’re traveling.
Very helpful tips. I’ll make sure to remember this since we are actually planning to move early next year. It is very important to be systematic in the way things are when transferring to prevent waste of space and time.
I liked your tip for protecting furniture when moving. Using paper padding and moving blankets seems like a good way to make sure that my furniture will stay intact while in the moving truck. I was wondering about how to make the work go faster when I came across this article that has a few helpful tips for using a moving truck. It says that having a few friends have the task of loading and unloading boxes can be helpful. I also like that it said to be prepared with items like a dolly, furniture pads, packing tape, straps, and a tarp. It seems like they would be good to have to make moving things around easier and protect my belongings in the truck.
Great tips! Finding a good mover can be tough…even knowing when it is not a good idea to take the move on yourself, and actually hire a professional.
Thanks again, and keep up the good work!
Thanks for bringing to my attention the importance of starting with the heaviest and largest items when packing a moving truck. My husband and I are going to be moving in the next few months, and we’ve decided to just rent a truck instead of hiring someone to pack for us. We’ve never loaded a truck like this before, but we’ll keep in mind that starting with the bigger and heavier items is a better way to go about things.
Packing a moving truck can be almost as overwhelming as moving itself, and arranging your furniture in a way that maximizes your space and minimizes damage is a tricky endeavor. Thank you for your blog.
It’s great you that you talked about how you should protect your furniture by wrapping its furniture. That is good for me to be aware of because I will be moving soon. I have some really nice furniture pieces, and I don’t want them to get damaged during my move.
I like that you suggested using paper padding or moving blankets to make sure that your appliances and pieces of furniture are going to be protected while you’re moving. My parents are interested in renting a moving truck. They said that they wanted to make sure their high-end appliances are not going to be damaged during their move because they are their investments which they won’t want to lose at all. Thanks for sharing this.
My best friend is going to be renting a moving truck later next week for when she moves back in with her parents, and your tips are going to be really helpful for when I help her load up. Keeping the large and heavy things upright and put in first is a good thing to remember, and packing in layers from the floor up to the ceiling is a great way to avoid having to climb over furniture to stack things in later. I’ll be sure to let her know that we should be getting some paper padding and blankets to protect the appliances and furniture, as you suggest, and maybe we can use her comforters and other pillows and blankets for that instead of getting new ones.
Thanks for sharing these helpful and informative tips on how to load a moving truck. This is not an easy task to do, only professionals knows that how to and where to put things in the truck. Loading a truck in a professional way always left more space for more things to load.
Moving truck is full of luggage when we are moving. The load in the truck is very high. Then we should be careful about driving. Your blog gives a lot of information regarding safety moving tips. Thanks for such post and please keep it up.
Even if you try to organize your life ahead of time, things happen that are beyond your control. Moving doesn’t have to be difficult; with a little planning and consideration, you may have a reasonably stress-free moving day.