How to Warp & Move Wood Furniture for Relocation: Tips & Expert Advice

• Getting ready to move to a new house can be quite exciting.
• It can also be rather scary, especially if you have lots of expensive and delicate furniture.
• It does not matter whether you are doing it yourself or hiring a team of professionals to do it for you.

That constant nagging feeling of worry will always be at the back of your mind, and you will always cringe whenever you watch your antique table being carried up the stairs, or when the movers fumble with your expensive sofa as they try to get it through a doorway.

Planning to Move Your Wooden Furniture?

At Just Wood Furniture, we know that wood is great, but small items are typically easy to transport, but the large, bulky wood furniture may be a challenge – especially if you plan to move them by yourself. Your priority should be to protect your items and deliver them to your new home in perfect condition.

However, this does not always have to be the case. There are ways to protect your precious wooden furniture for a safe house move and transport that will leave you stress-free. If that is your goal, these tips will help a lot to relocate smoothly.

Before you start to wrap, consider the following factors:

• Dust, dirt, and grime;
• Temperature fluctuations;
• Humidity/Moisture;
• Impacts.

Moving Supplies for Relocating Wooden Furnishing

Before you even think about calling a moving service, you need to gather all your packing supplies. The movies have led us to believe that all you need when moving to a new house are a bunch of cardboard boxes. In the real world, you need a lot more than that.

Besides packing tape, moving blankets, and cardboard boxes, you also need a whole set of packing supplies specifically for your furniture. Make sure to buy lots of bubble wrap, plastic stretch wrap, a set of sofa and mattress covers, corrugated cardboard sheets, and sealable plastic bags. Assemble all these well before the moving day.

Moving Supplies Checklist:

• Packing Tape;
• Moving Blankets;
• Cardboard Boxes;
• Bubble Wrap;
• Plastic Sketch Wrap;
• Fabric Covers;
• Corrugated Cardboard Sheets;
• Sealable Plastic Bags.

Treat & Prepare Furniture Before You Move

Before packing, there are several chores you need to do to the furniture to make them more travel-friendly.

• Empty furnishing all out if they contain your other belongings.
• Dust and wipe them down thoroughly.
• You do not want any dust scratching their smooth surfaces as you transport them.
• Remove any doorknobs or pulls, and take drawers out of desks or dressers.
• Put all the knobs in labeled sealable bags.
• Tape them shut to prevent them from opening up by accident.
• There is nothing as annoying as trying to open a drawer with a missing knob.
• Pack other stuff inside these drawers and in the cavities left by the drawers in the dressers for some extra storage space

Even if your to-do list is overflowing, be sure to add one more item to the agenda. If you have leather furniture, dissembling the piece allows you to wrap the leather sections properly and prevent any moisture from seeping in.

It is essential to treat wooden furniture before you store or transport it, especially if you have leather, comments Leather Sofa Cleaning. If there are cracks or dry patches on your furnishings, it is necessary to remedy them with a quality furniture polish. This will preserve your items and make them less prone to deep tears and cracks during transportation.

How To Keep Dust Off Furniture

Dusting furniture is crucial, and there are a few tips that could help make your dusting a lot easier.

• Firstly, start at the top and work down.
• Dust will fall from the top onto the bottom of the furniture, so if you start at the top it’ll save you having to do second dust!
• Use products that will help your dusting.

Why not try using baby wipes, it’s a surprisingly good way to dust wood furniture. Doing a combination of baby wipes and using a duster will make sure your furniture is dust-free!

How To Dismantle Furniture For Moving

First things first. If you have any assembled furniture, you need to dismantle it completely.

Leaving your furniture assembled will not save you time or make your move easier! Large, bulky items take up more space and are quite difficult to transport safely to the storage unit or your new home, comments Simple Assembly.

However, we do not advise you to disassemble antique wood furniture. It is far too fragile to go through the rigorous process of being unscrewed and screwed together again.

• Take bed frames apart.
• Remove the legs from tables.
• Remove cushions from sofas, and so on.
• Put all your screws, nuts, and bolts in carefully labeled sealable bags, then tape them shut.

If you can dismantle it, do so! It is easier to transport bits and pieces than it is to transport an entire, bulky whole. Smaller parts are easier to pack compactly and there will be a much less chance of damage from brushing up against walls and door frames.

How To Wrap Furniture For Moving

If you have delicate pieces of wood, protect them with bubble wrap. If you have upholstered items such as sofas, put a thick layer of plastic wrap over them or use plastic sofa covers. Always place corrugated cardboard sheets between any two pieces of wood.

Avoid Covering Wooden Furniture In Bubble Or Plastic Shrink Wrap

Bubble wrap also works great for glass and stainless steel or shiny chrome furniture. If you have a mirror, or a large plane glass surface, tape a large X across its face. This will prevent it from shattering in the event of breakage. Then wrap the glass liberally with bubble wrap. Be extra careful with corners, and give them some extra padding. Place the glass between two cardboard sheets.

Furniture wrapping is the most critical aspect of the entire moving process. It is vital to know how to cover different pieces so you don’t have your items irreparably damaged.

For example, the rule of thumb is to NOT cover your wooden or leather furniture with bubble or plastic shrink wrap, as they can cause shrinkage and damage to the piece, comments moving company What Removals.

Factor Moisture & Humidity

Another thing to be mindful of is humidity and moisture. Wood is a porous material and it can warp, rot, or weaken even from a small amount of water (not to mention the mold that is prone to set in).

Thus, it is best to plan and check the weather before moving.

Clear Doorways For Furnishing To Pass

The simplest way to ensure that your furniture makes it safely in and out of your place is to declutter the entryways and open the doors as wide as possible. Check the door sizes throughout your route. This will protect your possessions and ease your move.

Secure Drawers & Remove Handles

Most wood furniture, especially antique pieces, have fancy handles, knobs, and casters that are prone to get dislodged during transportation.

So, before you wrap:

• Remove said pieces gently.
• Pack them away.
• Pay attention to the smaller parts of your pieces i.e. screws, bolts, nuts, etc.
• Place them in Ziploc bags and label, label, label!

After all, you want to put your furniture together in your new home, right?

If your wood items have drawers or cabinets, wrap them with padding and keep them shut with twine. If you own antique furniture, do NOT use tape directly on the piece! When you remove it, it will either strip away the varnish or leave hard-to-remove sticky spots.

How To Wrap Furniture In Blankets

Instead, use blankets as padding for your wood furniture and cover them with an extra line of defense of bubble/plastic wrap.

1. Dismantle furniture as much as possible
2. Place smaller dismantled parts somewhere safe, for example, a cardboard box
3. Place a blanket over your large piece of furniture
4. Wrap the blanket around sticking out parts (for example, table legs) to make the blanket more secure
5. Optional: cover the blanket-covered furniture with a layer of plastic wrap too for a more secure piece.

How To Move & Load Wooden Furniture

After you finish with the packing and your possessions are secured, the next step is to load a moving truck. A lot can go wrong when transporting and loading your furniture, so it’s important to think things through.

Look at everything you have and try to plan how you will place them in the vehicle. Put together a plan for how everything will fit in the best (remember the game of Tetris?).

Ask A Friend To Land You A Hand

Don’t relocate heavy furniture by yourself!

You might find this tip silly, but it will surprise you the number of people that attempt to haul heavy pieces by themselves with no help whatsoever. This is not only a health hazard to the person who does the heavy lifting, but it can cause damage to the furniture or floors.

So, your friend owes you a favor? Well, it’s time to collect!

An extra pair of hands can make a difference, especially with bulky furniture. Wherever possible, lift the items completely off the ground and carry them in a manner that does not damage them. If a piece is too heavy, wrap it up properly and slide it on the floor.

To make the process easier and safer, use gliders, felt pads, towels, or cardboard to protect the floors and furniture from damage.

Turn To Moving Professionals

Moving, while exciting, is also nerve-wracking and time-consuming. If you struggle with wrapping or moving furniture because you don’t have the time or the manpower to do it, contact a professional. That way, trained experts will take care of every step of the process – wrapping, loading, and delivery. Moving companies also offer furniture storage options in case you are interested.

Furthermore, moving companies, especially specialized international movers outshine others, as they provide coverage and insurance options in case anything goes south, however unlikely, comments Asia Relocation.

Load The Items In The Truck

The large and bulky furniture should always go in first, but make sure they fit together well and cushion empty spots, so nothing falls out-of-place once the truck is in motion. To be extra safe, use tie-down straps to stabilize and protect your possessions.

• Create a wall of stable boxes at the far end of the truck.
• Use the same size, sealed shipping boxes, and preferably go with the heavier ones.
• Do not use fragile stuff for this wall of padding.
• Next, place the rectangular type furniture like desks and dressers.
• Pad everything with cardboard.
• The next thing to go in will be other boxes, small tables, and drawers.
• Then the mattresses will go in, before finally all the upholstered items.

When you pack this way, everything protects everything else, and there is a smaller chance of damage even when the truck shakes around. Just make sure that everything is tightly-packed and nothing moves around too much.

Pro tip: Do NOT stack items on your precious wood furniture, as the material is easy to scratch and even with a protective barrier, there’s still a potential for damage.

Loading a moving truck diagram:

 

 

Final Tips For Moving House Checklist & Conclusion

Moving wood furniture, especially antiques, is a bit tricky, no doubt. If you follow the tips above, though, the process will likely go smoothly. If you do not have the time or energy to relocate alone, feel free to contact a professional and enjoy a seamless move or risk having wood as good as ash and garden use

You should now hopefully have more ideas on how to pack your furniture for moving, I hope this article has helped and given you relief!

Here is a quick re-cap and checklist for you to double-check before your packing!

1. Gather your packing supplies (cardboard boxes, bubble wrap, etc).
2. Prepare your furniture for moving, clean them and take out drawers, etc.
3. Dismantle any assembled furniture.
4. Wrap your furniture carefully using blankets etc.
5. Arrange your items in the truck efficiently and carefully.

We really hope this blog has made you a lot more confident in moving your furniture. I wish you the best of luck with your move and hopefully, you’ve learned some new tips and tricks!

Read: Tips for Decorating a Wood-themed Home with Flowers