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We have earned the service industry’s coveted Angie’s List Super Service Award, reflecting an exemplary year of service provided to members of the local services marketplace and consumer review site in 2016.
To protect your fine valuables, Sterling Van Lines offers expert packing and crating services.
Our movers are experts at packing and crating. You should also know that when you buy coverage on your move, the packing and crating that the mover does is covered and the mover can assume liability for the pieces. When packing and crating are done by someone other than the mover, the question of who is liable becomes unclear. Make sure to ask your mover about packing and crating.
Packing
Packing means placing loose items into boxes. Dishes, clothes, towels, linens, bathroom items, etc. All items need to be packed properly, no matter the fragile nature.
Packing is a skilled activity. Dishes should be packed upright and wrapped in layers of tissue or newsprint. There should be packing material between them. The sides of the boxes should be layered with packing material such as newsprint also. The way packing is done can cause your fine items to break — or arrive intact.
One way to save money on packing is to pack all of your clothes, towels and linens (things that are not so breakable) yourself and leave the fragile items to the packing crew such as dishes, china, and pictures.
Blanketing and padding
Blanketing and padding on the other hand, are part of standard service in the moving industry. This service is performed for furniture and is not charged for — it is part of your service. The moral of the story: read the fine print and ask questions!
Packing does not mean wrapping your furniture in blankets! Some unscrupulous moving companies re-define the word packing to mean anything they do with boxes, tape and blankets. Standard moving companies do not do this. Blanket wrapping is part of your move and is not a charged for service. Make sure you find out what the company means by “packing.”
Crating
Crating means building a wooden crate to protect delicate items such as marble, pictures and chandeliers. Crating is part of packing — if it is necessary.
Small sections of marble may not need crating because it has inherent strength. Larger pieces do need crating. Larger pieces are more brittle and susceptible to breaking. The same rule applies to glass.
