When you can't afford to hire professional movers to move your things into a new home, you can instead rent a moving truck and pack it yourself. While it does take much more effort, you are able to work at your own pace and save a fair bit of money during the entire process. However, you need to take care that you are packing your moving truck properly in order to expedite the move as much as possible, to keep your belongings safe and in good condition while in transit, and to reduce your overall stress levels. The following are a few general guidelines that can help make your moving day a little bit easier:

Prepare First

Before you even consider moving things from your home into your moving truck, you'll want to make sure that you're completely prepared on moving day. This means that most of your stuff is already packed and sealed in moving boxes or plastic containers. In addition, you should have all of your packing materials, like moving blankets and dollies, already gathered in a single location to speed the process up as much as possible. Finally, once you get the truck to your house, you'll want to lay tarps or moving blankets down on the floor before you start loading to reduce the risk of your belongings becoming damaged as you load them.

Heavier Items

Once you start loading your truck, you'll want to make sure that you place the heavy objects, like appliances and large pieces of furniture, in the truck first. You'll want to evenly distribute the weight across the entirety of the truck to make driving it easier. Avoid placing large objects in the truck in such a way that they can shift or fall over, as this can cause damage to your other belongings. You should secure these large items to the side of the truck using straps or ropes to prevent them from shifting.

Everything Else

You can then put the lighter objects in the moving truck between the large appliances. Stack boxes as high as possible without creating a risk of them falling over: you can do this by placing several stacks of items the exact same height next to each other so that they all support each other. You should also try to squeeze moving blankets, comforters, or other soft items between columns of items to act as an extra layer of cushioning if something falls over, and to eliminate any open space which may allow for your packed items to shift and fall.

Contact a packing service in your area for more information and assistance.