Home Renovation: If you’re planning a home renovation project, chances are high that you have a bunch of questions:
- Where do I find a good contractor? (We recommend Russ Robins and Associates.)
- How much will the home renovation cost?
- How long will it take?
- Is this even a good idea?
- Why did I buy this house?
If those questions aren’t quite enough to drive you crazy, at some point you’ll look around your home and mumble to yourself, “Oh god, what am I going to do with all this stuff? Where will it go? How will it get there?”
Home renovation projects such as finishing a basement, updating your kitchen, and even all the way up to a full house renovation are all situations that could necessitate temporarily moving some or all of your furniture and other belongings may need to be moved.
Hiring Movers for your Home Renovation
It may seem surprising that you would need to add the cost of a moving company to a renovation, but there are a few things to consider:
1. The job is likely to go faster and stay on budget with movers
During your home renovation, if the construction crew doesn’t have to spend time and energy maneuvering around all of your stuff, inevitably, the project will go faster.
2. Your items will be safer if they are stored away from any construction.
Let’s face it — accidents happen. Construction sites are often dusty, dirty, hot, and filled with all sort of dangerous tools. Also, if your construction crew has to move your stuff around during their work, your furniture could be at risk. They are not trained movers. Moving isn’t brain surgery, but it does require more training and expertise than you might think.
Knowing that your furniture will be handled by qualified professionals will give you peace of mind ahead of your home renovation project. By RelaxingMusic (Flickr: Meditate) [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
3. Peace of mind
If your items are securely stored away from the construction project, you can rest easy knowing that your stuff is safe from construction related dust, debris, and potential accidents.
4. Hiring movers may not be as cost-prohibitive to hire movers as you think.
Most movers offer discounted rates on weekdays towards the middle of the month, so you can structure your project so that you won’t be paying top dollar for moving help. Also, these kind of moves usually don’t require a large amount of man-hours, although there are exceptions if it’s a large project.
5. Once your renovation is done, your furniture will need to be set back up.
This is a job best left to professionals who know how to perform these tasks safely, and responsibly. Renovations don’t come cheap; you don’t want holes in your freshly painted walls or scratches on your new floor. You may ask yourself, “okay, I get that all this stuff needs to go somewhere, but where can it go?” Good question.
Doing some construction on your home? It may be a good idea to hire movers to help you safely store furniture during the renovation. Abbie Rowe [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
There are a few possibilities for storage:
– On-Site Storage
The most cost-effective option is storage onsite away from your home renovation. Depending on your situation, you might use your basement, garage, or an extra room. Bear in mind that home improvement projects often run longer than anticipated, so you shouldn’t expect to be able to use this space for anything besides storage in the near future.
– Portable On-Demand Storage
Often it isn’t feasible to store your items in an existing structure on site. In this instance, your best option is to go with a portable on demand storage service. PODS, ABF-Upack, 1-800-Pack-Rat, or Door-to-Door Storage all work well for this. These services can usually drop off large portable storage units for loading of your items.
If you have extra room in your driveway and the scope of the project allows it, you can store a locked container at your residence. This way, you can both allow yourself access to some of your stuff during the home renovation, and also keep your items safe from the elements.
If space is at a premium, most of the aforementioned services will be able to pick up your container, store it at their facility, and then drop it off to you once you’re ready to have everything moved back in.
Bear in mind that in most portable on-demand storage situations the containers are stored outside. Any reputable company’s units will be watertight, but it is possible that there will be temperature and humidity extremes during the summer and/or winter.
– Storage Supplies
With any of these options it’s important to keep in mind what you’ll need. Moving blankets can protect your stored items. If you have extra comforters, blankets, or sheets, those could be used as well. Of course, sheets and comforters aren’t as thick as moving blankets. Additionally, you likely won’t be able to use them again after the move.
If you’re using a portable on demand storage service, your company may be able to rent moving blankets to you. Prefer to own your own moving blankets? Check out our helpful guide to buying moving supplies.
If your storage container is not going to remain on-site, you should buy some some rope, bungee cords, and/or ratchet straps. That way, your furniture won’t shift around during transport.
– Off-Site Storage Unit
An offsite storage facility like Public Storage or Extra Space Storage can be a good option, too. Our fully trained staff can show up at your location, load your stuff into our truck, and transport it to your storage space. There, we’ll expertly pack your items to maximize space and minimize cost. Hesitant to use a portable on-demand service because of concerns about temperature and humidity? This might be your best bet.
Still have questions? Fill out a quote or email us today and we’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have.
