Moving in the Winter

Moving at any point in the year is difficult enough, especially when the weather is at its worst. If you absolutely have to move during the winter you may be able to use the weather/season to your advantage when it comes time to negotiation the contract.

Definitely schedule your move before or after the major holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Ramadan, etc... Moving just after a holiday can be convenient so you can bundle your holiday celebration with a bon voyage.

Summer is the best time to move because of the weather, kids being out of school, more day light hours and availability of friends and family to help out vs. the holiday season when everyone is booked with festivities. For these reasons summer is the peak season so winter rates should be lower; again be sure to check with your moving company.

One interesting difference between summer and winter is the level of service. In the summer months students replace full-time experienced movers which could mean the difference of expertise for specialized type moves.

It you have to move in the winter here are a few tips to help you out:

* Always drive a truck slower than you would drive a car. Keep on top of quickly changing weather conditions by staying tuned to weather reports while loading the truck and during your journey.

* Prepare for the worst. Make sure your points of departure and arrival have a path to the truck that's free of snow or ice. Keep shovels and other ice and snow removal tools handy.

* If you are driving the moving truck yourself definitely
- contact a road service club like AAA to get the latest on construction. Coupled with weather, your travel could be extra long.
- Check the weather websites in advance so you can prepare properly: snow chains, shovels, etc...
- Look-up the AM traffic stations for your route so you can get updates every 10 minutes.

* Snow often creates a slushy mess. Arrange for carpet and/or floor protection at your destination.

* Always have a supply of extra clothing accessible for adapting to climate changes and replacing wet clothes. Make sure you have sturdy boots, warm gloves, a scarf, and a hat to decrease the loss of body heat.

* Cold temperatures can hurt your plants. If you cannot accommodate plants in the passenger area of the vehicle, store them in plastic bags with holes punched for air.

* Items kept overnight in a truck under freezing conditions may result in damaged goods.

* When moving from one climate to another, water damage may occur when the moving vehicle travels from a cold environment to a warmer climate. Freezing and thawing causes the most damage if items are not properly sealed.

* Such severe and quick climate changes are hard on wood and even some plastics.

* If you have a lot of fragile furnishings that could be damaged from the changing temperatures, etc... you may want to pay the higher cost of moving in the summer.

* If rain is the biggest challenge you may want to consider moving with plastic crates instead of cardboard moving boxes.

* Get as much help from family and friends to minimize the time in the cold for everyone involved. Be sure to offer brandy, hot chocolate, etc..

Let me know if you additional tips we can add to the blog.

Thanks,
BoxQuester