As the mattress takes flight across I-95 from the back of my ex-uncle in-law's pick-up truck , my parents foresee an accident that may or may not kill someone, and even worse an accident that will cause hours of traffic behind us.
Luckily, no one dies, and there is no traffic back up, and we rescue the mattress quickly from the side of the highway, feeling like bandits that will be arrested any at moment for attempted man-slaughter. My dad shows Mike, the ex-uncle in-law, that you need to bungee-cord objects down, to ensure they do not become inanimate death birds. Later it occurs to me that Mike is a moron- it'll take his wife a couple more years to figure that out.
Now that I recollect this mattress incident, I think fondly of every time we've rented a moving truck instead of resorting to using our own vehicles. Yes, I am related to those people who shamelessly use up fossil fuels to have the utility of a pick up truck. These trucks do come in handy (sometimes annoyingly so) when our family, friends and friends of friends want to move. Sometimes one budget doesn't allow for a moving van or one rather spend it for post moving "thank god we got through that relocation" celebrations. However, once we're on what feels like the one hundredth trip, transporting my mom's house plants to their new home- it seems between everyone's time, costs of incidental damage to furniture and gas money it would have been a lot easier to spring for a moving truck.
There are a lot of things to consider when you choose a rental company to move- this site will tell you everything you need to know about that and more.
U-Haul trucks have cowboys, fish and other fancy stuff painted on their vans- but are they the best price and value?
One of the first actions you should take is comparing prices and quality of moving truck rental companies. Some popular ones are Budget Truck Rental, U-Haul and Ryder. While I do enjoy the decorations of the U-Haul trucks- I have found Budget Truck Rental to have the best value. They are open 24 hours for a day and you can get a quote and reservation online. This is nice for those of us who do not like dealing with customer service representative who span from surly to chipper to incompetent.
Where are you moving?
Hopefully by the time you are renting a moving truck you know where you are moving to at this point. Whether you are moving in-state, out of state or cross country will help you determine what type of rental you should get.
If you are traveling far I recommend a one way truck rental- this means you pick up your rental truck at one location then drop it off at another location. When doing this make sure there is a location near to where you are moving so you don't end up having to travel far after you've gotten through the misery that is moving.
If you are moving to a different state, you should get an out of state rental. You can get a portable storage container, pack it and then have a professional drive your belongings to your new home.
If you are moving across town, across the street or relatively close to your old abode you should get a local truck rental- that means you pick up the truck and drop of the truck at the same location.
Sentimental Stuff You Don't Want to Put in your Van
While I assure you that most of your stuff will probably be safe in a moving van, you may not want to put a couple things in. So you may not want to pack grandma's wedding dress, your children or other valuable in your van. Pack up this stuff and put it aside. If you are getting help or hiring movers- make sure that you make it apparent that this stuff is not to be packed in the van. When I was a wee one I had a tank of pet fish that traveled under my feet in a bucket from Colorado to Virginia. They remarkably survived, the 25 cents fish we'd gotten from our Petsmart made it cross country! They lived to make offspring that they may or may not consumed half of.
When packing the van you should keep in mind things can get damaged! The best way to avoid this is backing things in tightly as possible. Bigger objects towards the back while smaller objects are best suited for the front. The best way to pack is to make sure there is little wiggle room as possible. While this is a tedious process it will be better than having to replace damaged furniture, mirrors, etc. Also, as my ex-uncle in law Mike learned too late, bungee cords are awesome for securing things.
Which van will my stuff fit in?
If you can't figure it out which van to rent I would recommend talking to the people at the Truck Rental Service. My father wasn't one to bother asking the experts, and preferred to figure out things himself. Because of this we ended up making two trips for a single move in a small van from northern Virginia to North Carolina, a six hour drive. The worst feeling is seeing a moving van gradually get filled up and get that sinking feeling that not everything is going to fit. Then what is even worse is when, after packing in mostly everything, having to take stuff out and rearrange it all more efficiently, only to realize even still not everything is going to fit. So we ended up making the trip again for the sake of some 10 odd boxes, very unfortunately- wasting time and money.
So, if you are moving locally, a smaller truck with multiple trips will probably be cheaper than renting a large van to make one trip. The drive from your old house to your new home provides a nice break between the labors of loading and unloading. A labor that we all could do without, but unfortunately is necessary.
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