Moving is always challenging, but it’s especially challenging in winter. Snow and ice can cause accidents, breakage of personal items, and stress in general. These tips can help make your winter move a better experience with less stress, fewer accidents, and less mess.
Ensure Utilities Are Turned On At Your New Home
It’s very important for you to have heat at your new home when you arrive. Contact the utility company a few weeks in advance of your move to ensure that the heat, electricity, and gas will be turned on for the day of the move. If you can, stop in at the new place the day before you move to ensure that the utilities are working.
Shovel Snow at Both Locations
Snow and ice can build up over the course of a winter, making your sidewalks treacherous to walk on. Shovel snow at your current home and your new home in the days and weeks leading up to your move. This can help prevent you and your movers from slipping when you’re moving into your new home. Salt the pathways one or two days before your move to prevent slips and falls.
Lay Down Mats and Sand
Spreading sand or laying mats on the sidewalk can help improve traction in areas that remain slippery. Inside your house, lay down mats in high-traffic areas to prevent the spread of salt or sand on your floors. If you’re working with a professional moving company, they may lay down mats for you, so check with your movers before doing this yourself.
Keep Towels Handy
Messy boots can drag in salt and mud, which can get your floors dirty. Laying down mats as already suggested can help, but you’ll still want to wipe down boots as often as possible. Keep paper towels or rags handy. Make them available at the front door and in parts of the house where puddles of water can lead to slips.
Maintain a Flexible Moving Schedule
The Fairfax area gets over 20 inches of snow each winter. Hopefully, you won’t be moving into your new house on the day of a snowstorm, but just in case you run into terrible weather, make sure you have a flexible move-in date. Work with your employer, your current landlord,and anyone associated with your new home to ensure that you can postpone or change your moving date as necessary.
Communicate with your moving company if you decide to change your plans because of the weather. Your moving company can reschedule your move to a time that will work for both of you.
Serve Warm Drinks
Serving warm drinks throughout your moving day can help keep you and your movers energized. To make this possible, don’t pack your Crock-Pot. Instead, leave it out in your old kitchen with hot apple cider inside. When it’s time to go to your new house, drive the Crock-Pot to the new house and plug it in there. Have disposable cups on hand to drink the cider without producing dirty dishes.
Work With a Professional
The best way to ensure that your winter move goes well is to work with a professional moving company. A good moving company will be prepared to drive a truck through ice and snow and will have tools to make moving in winter easier. Your professional moving company can help keep your belongings safe and ensure that your move will be successful. For more information about how you can have an accident-free and relatively low-stress moving day, contact Fairfax Transfer & Storage. We’ll be happy to answer your questions and give you suggestions for your upcoming winter move.
