How many boxes do you actually need?

The four box types, and what goes in each

Removalists use a small family of box sizes for a reason. The right box for the right contents is most of the battle.

• Small (book) boxes. For the heavy stuff: books, tools, pantry tins, records. If it makes you grunt, it goes in a small box. A large box full of books cannot be lifted safely by anyone.
• Medium (standard) cartons. The workhorse. Kitchenware, toys, shoes, folded clothes, most of your life. When in doubt, this is the box.
• Large (tea chest) boxes. For light, bulky things only: linen, doonas, pillows, cushions, lampshades. Never for anything heavy.
• Porta-robes. Tall boxes with a hanging rail. Wardrobes transfer straight across on their hangers, no folding, no ironing at the other end.

Where to get boxes

Three honest options, in order of effort:

• From us. We supply proper moving boxes, and when we do the packing, all materials are included in your capped price. Blankets, wrap, straps and trolleys already come with the truck on every job.
• Secondhand. Marketplace and community groups are full of once-used moving boxes, often free the week after month-end. Check they are dry and still rigid; a soft box collapses in a stack.
• Supermarkets. Free but inconsistent. Banana boxes are strong, but odd sizes stack badly in a truck, and a badly stacking load wastes space and time.

The packing rules that stop breakages

A box count only helps if the boxes are packed well. The short version of our room-by-room packing guide:

• Heavy things in small boxes, light things in big ones. No exceptions.
• No half-empty boxes. Part-filled boxes crush when stacked. Fill gaps with paper, towels or soft toys.
• Label every box on two sides with the room it is going TO, not the room it came from.
• Tape the bottom seam twice. The second strip costs ten cents and saves a smashed box of crockery.
• Start with rooms you rarely use and finish with the kitchen. It is the last room you stop using and the first one you need again.

Or skip the counting entirely

If the calculator number looks like a lost weekend, that is what our packing crews are for. They arrive with all the materials, pack a home in a fraction of the time, and everything they pack is covered by insurance in transit. Add it to your quote, or get a capped price for the move first and decide later. Either way, the price comes back within the hour, 7am to 7pm.