It might seems like a minor detail of moving, but we’ve found that packing can be made much easier depending on the box selection. We started with the random collection of boxes that our friends and relatives have had stored in their basements. Now that we’ve used all of those up, we started investigating the options for purchasing moving boxes.

What we’ve found from the mismatched assortment that we’ve used so far is that there’s value in having large quantities of boxes that are all the same size … it makes them so much easier to stack. Of all the different sizes we’ve used, the ones that would probably be classified as “small” have worked out the best since it’s pretty impossible to pack them too heavy and they’re just about the right size to carry comfortably. We’ve also found that boxes that required the bottoms to be taped together won’t hold as much weight as the ones that just get folded together. And, finally, we’ve figured out that we prefer the ones that have separate lids to the ones that get sealed with tape. (The lid makes it much easier to add a random item or two to the box after the fact.) All in all, our favorites of the donated boxes are paper boxes (ones used to ship reams of paper).

When we began looking for boxes to purchase, we started with the U-Haul website since they advertise a nifty buy-back program where they’ll reimburse you for any boxes purchased, but not used during the move. The more we thought aboutRecords Box from Staples it, though, we realized that this isn’t much different than returning unused merchandise to a normal store; it’s just advertised differently. And since the prices of moving boxes at Lowe’s seemed to be about the same (and we’re there all the time anyway), we decided to try there first. We bought a few of the “Dish & Glassware” size, but were disappointed in the selection they had in-store. (We could have gotten a lot greater variety if we’d thought about it in time to place an order on- line.) On a whim, we also stopped at Staples and found what we consider to be the best deal we’ve seen on boxes for moving. What we bought are actually called “records boxes” and they’re about the size of a paper box with a separate lid. They’re sold collapsed, but fold together into a really sturdy box that can be packed heavy with books or papers with no worries about the bottom falling out. The ones we bought were sold in packages of 4 or 6 and averaged about $1.75 to $2.00 a box, which we consider to be pretty reasonable all things considered.

So far, we estimate we’ve packed around 35 boxes … and between what we just bought at Lowe’s and Staples, we’ve purchased another 30. Hopefully that will be enough to finish packing our house, but I’m not holding my breath. For the size truck we rented, the U-Haul website estimated we’d need between 100-120 boxes! I just can’t imagine that we’ve got that much stuff … but, then again, we have already packed 35 boxes and it doesn’t feel like we’ve even gotten started.

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