There are numerous different items and groupings that you might be considering during any move you’re taking part in, and one of these for people who have a large collection of them is the realm of books. Moving a few books here or there isn’t much to think about; moving a large book collection might take a little bit of doing in some cases.
At Tru Solutions Moving, we’re happy to provide a diverse range of both residential and commercial moving services to clients in Salt Lake City and surrounding parts of Utah, and we’ll assist with just about any item or group of items you need help with. Whether on your own with the help of our pros, here are some simple tips on how to pack and safely transport a book collection during your move.
Decide What’s Coming With You
Especially if you have a large book collection that you haven’t really evaluated much over the years as it’s grown, you might be surprised by how many duplicates or books you no longer want or need you actually have. Make a quick once-over of your collection and divide the books into two different areas: those that are coming with you, and those that aren’t.
There are a few specific things you might be thinking about while you do this:
- Do you have any duplicates of books?
- Do you have any books in poor condition that aren’t really worth packing and moving?
- Are there any particularly large or oddly shaped books that might pose a packing challenge?
Creating a “keep” and “donate/sell” pile will help you focus on those items that are worth your time and energy to move, and once you’ve weeded out the rest you can focus on packing them properly.
Pack in Sections
If you have lots of books, you don’t want to get yourself into a situation where you arrive at your new destination and simply have a giant, heavy box of books to unload and put away. Breaking your collection down into sections will help you keep things organized and make the unpacking process much simpler once you reach your destination.
One of the simplest approaches for many large book collection owners: Pack by individual bookshelf. Many such owners will have several different bookshelves with different genres or categories of books, so this can be a helpful way to keep things organized. Simply start at one end of the room and work your way shelf by shelf towards the door, packing each section as you go.
Another approach that works well for many: Pack by type of book. So if you have a lot of hardcover books, for example, you might want to pack all of those together in one or two boxes. The same goes for paperback books, children’s books, textbooks, and so on. This can be a helpful way to make sure you don’t overload any single box and make it too difficult to lift.
Either way – or even if you come up with your own approach – just make sure that you’re not throwing all of your books into a single box haphazardly. That will make the unpacking process more difficult and could potentially damage some of your books in the process.
Use Packing Paper or Bubble Wrap
In order to keep your books safe from damage during transport, you’ll want to make sure they’re properly cushioned and protected in the boxes you’re using. One way to do this is to use packing paper – simply wad up a sheet or two of packing paper and place it at the bottom of each box, then start placing your books on top of that.
Another approach that works well for many people is to use bubble wrap. This can be a bit more expensive than packing paper, but it offers an extra level of protection that could come in handy if your boxes are dropped or jostled around during transport. For particularly valuable books or those that are in poor condition, you might even want to consider using both packing paper AND bubble wrap to provide an extra layer of protection.
Label Your Boxes
Once you’ve got your boxes packed up, it’s important to take a few minutes to label them properly. This will help you keep track of which box contains which books, and will make the unpacking process much simpler once you reach your destination.
At a minimum, you should label each box with its contents and which room it goes in. So if you’ve got a box of hardcover books that goes on your living room shelves, you might label it “Hardcover Books – Living Room.” If you’ve got a box of children’s books that goes in your toddler’s bedroom, you might label it “Toddler’s Books – Bedroom.”
If you want to get even more specific, you can also label each box with a list of the contents. So if your “Hardcover Books – Living Room” box contains five particular books, you might label it “Hardcover Books – Living Room: The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, 1984, The Great Gatsby, and The Lord of the Rings.” This can be a helpful way to keep track of which books are in which box, and can also help you make sure that everything arrives at your new destination safely.
With these basic tips in mind, packing up your book collection for a move should be a relatively simple and straightforward process. Just take your time, pack carefully, and label your boxes properly and you’ll be all set. To learn about how we can assist you with any such needs, or for information on any of our SLC moving services, speak to the pros at Tru Solutions Moving today.
