How to Pack Your Kitchen

After speaking to our expert mover we discovered that the kitchen is one of the more difficult rooms in the house to pack for most people. This difficulty is different then having to move heavy furniture or pack the clothing in your bedroom. But rather it actually stems from the difference in items that need to be packed in a kitchen and how much they can vary in size.

In a kitchen you have utensils, appliances, dishes, coffee mugs, island chairs, pots and pans, and the list goes on and on. What this means is that a how-to-pack-your-kitchen guide is something that most people need some life hack tips on. For instance, something that our mover said he is constantly asked about is whether a person should pack up their food during a move, or if they should just throw everything out and start over. He told us that when it comes to imperishable foods (that has not already expired because they’ve been sitting in your pantry for 5 years) you should definitely pack them up and take them with you. However, a piece of advice that was offered that we hadn’t thought of was the fact that if you are going through and deciding what to take or throw out, you shouldn’t toss the food away, but rather donate it to a local food bank. We really liked this tip and have decided to work it into our next move as well.

With all of that said, let’s get down to it and take a look at our how to pack kitchen guide. We hope that the following information that was divulged to us will help you in your upcoming move and will answer any lingering questions you may have about the best way to pack your kitchen.

How to Pack a Kitchen

If you are currently reading this guide on how to pack a kitchen then you are more than likely the type of individual who likes to know the most efficient way to perform a task. You more than likely have moved before in your life and have probably realized how much of a pain it can be to pack your kitchen. Either that or this is your first big move and you are a little worried about packing up your kitchen and ensuring that everything gets to your new home in one piece.

Lucky for you we have some practical advice for how to pack a kitchen that will really go a long way in making this task completely manageable. Our expert mover after years of helping others move their belongings has discovered some great tips and we have broken them down below.

Dishes and other Dinnerware

Something that concerns most individuals who are about to move is ensuring that their dinnerware gets to their new home without breaking. Often times individuals will either have dishes and serving platters that have been handed down from one generation to another, or they simply have dinnerware that they have spent a considerable amount of money on. Either way, learning how to pack dinnerware is an important aspect of any move.

One of the main pieces of advice that we were given in regards to packing dinnerware was to actually place bubble wrap or other packing material at the bottom of the box that you are going to put your plates in. This extra layer of cushioning will allow your dinnerware to be more secure and will ensure that they do not move around too much during the move.

For dishes we were told that you should stack the plates individually, using a piece of packing paper (which we discuss how to get for free here) in between each dish. This will ensure that the dishes don’t clang together during your move and break. For items such as coffee mugs or more fragile and expensive items, these should be wrapped in packing paper or bubble wrap. Due to their fragile nature or awkward shape, items like this will need extra care when it comes to packing.

Appliances

Some of the larger items that you will have to move in the kitchen will more than likely be the appliances that you have. There is a toaster oven, the microwave, the blender, the coffee maker and the list can go on and on. In fact, if you really think about it, you probably have more appliances in your kitchen then you initially even realized.

Our expert informed us that the best way to move these items are in their original boxes, which some people actually save and store away in their basement, attic, or closet. If you are one of those individuals who saved the original box that your appliance came in, then the best thing to do is to get out of that box and put the appliance back in there. Although it should be noted that before you pack up your appliance you should make sure to give it a really good cleaning, as failure to do so could result in nasty smells or mildew growing while the item is in transit.

If you do not have the original box, as most people tend not to, you can simply disassemble the appliance to the best of your ability and pack up each of the pieces in a box. It is best to wrap these items individually as well in either bubble wrap or packing paper. For instance, if you have a traditional coffee maker, you should take the coffee pot and clean it and then wrap that separate from the rest of the machine.

Cutlery

When it comes to how to pack kitchen guides a lot of the times cutlery such as forks, knives, spoons, and other cooking utensils are oftentimes overlooked. The reason for this is packing cutlery seems pretty easy because you can’t really break these items. However, simply throwing your silverware in a box is not the right way to go about moving these items. Our mover suggested that the best way to accomplish this is by first cleaning all of the cutlery and then laying out a piece of packing paper on the counter. You should put your cutlery on top of the packing paper and place another sheet of paper on top of this. It should be noted that it is best to do this by specific utensil, so put all of the spoons together, etc. After you have done this roll the paper up and put a rubber band around it so that it will not come undone during the move. This will ensure that all of your utensils get to your new place and that they won’t damage anything else in the box with them.

Pots and Pans

Last on our how to pack kitchen guide are pots and pans. Moving pots and pans can be difficult because they are heavy, but actually packing these items isn’t so bad. For starters, you want to pack any glass lids separate from the pots that they go to, as you don’t want these items to break during the move. When it comes to actually packing your pots and pans you can simply put them in a box and stack them in a manner where they won’t move a lot. Make sure that the box is sturdy and taped securely at the bottom so that it doesn’t fall apart when it is being moved. You should individually wrap any glass lids you may have and pack them in a manner that makes sense so that you can easily match them up with their respective pot when you go to unpack your belongings.