Moving is not an activity generally known for considering the environment during the process. This article brings you some eco-friendly moving tips, to help you start thinking about the environment.

You can get recycled boxes, but the truck alone emits plenty of carbon into the atmosphere. Also the labor leads to wasting lots of materials and generating trash. Now consider the fact that the average American will move more than 10 times in a lifetime. this means we all end up impacting the environment significantly.

Fortunately, there’s more you can do now than ever before to get your emissions closer to zero. Thanks to the rise of eco-friendly moving services. Plus, if you plan ahead, you’ll make an even stronger impact. Do the world and your wallet a favor and start planning ahead now!

Planning ahead reduces impact

If you’re like most people, chances are you’ve experienced it.

A trip is around the corner. The thought of packing keeps slipping your mind until the night before. Quickly, you hurry and throw the clothes into your luggage. Fly off to your destination only to realize that you forgot half the things you wanted to take with you.

Packing for the big move at the last minute is much like this, but even more extreme. You’ll notice things that you haven’t seen or thought of since the last time you moved. So don’t wait until the day of the move to think about how to pack all this other stuff.

By starting a few weeks early, you give yourself enough time to get rid of the things that would simply take up space. Be realistic with this choice; if you haven’t worn that shirt in the last five years. It’s worth donating it to someone who will wear it. Have a yard sale for unwanted valuables,. Donate the rest to a charity. Not only will you spend less time on the move, but fewer items means using less fuel on the ride.

Look for containers you already have

Look inside your home first to look for containers you already have to help with an eco-friendly move. Grab the cardboard boxes that carried your Costco groceries. Use suitcases to store clothes, and use sandwich bags for smaller sundries. Other items you can look for include:

Plastic bins
Dresser drawers
Reusable grocery bags
Duffel bags and gym bags

In other words, if you have something in your home that can fit smaller items inside, fill it as much as you can before packing it away. You’ll save plenty of space if you pack the clothes in the dresser drawers. Or fill the items from under your sink into the garbage container. The more you can pack items within each other, the fewer boxes you will need.

Store boxes that you get throughout the year

We’d never suggest shopping online specifically to stock up on cardboard boxes. But if you’re going to make the orders anyway, set a place where you can store them for the next time you move.

Whether you know when the move is coming or you otherwise anticipate having to move again in the next few years. Keep the boxes whenever you make an online order. Formed boxes take up a lot of space. So break them down carefully and store them in a plastic box in the basement or garage. You can also put them under your bed if these other storage options are not feasible. They’ll be easy to form back into a box shape when it’s time to move. All you need is some packing tape.

If you must buy boxes, order them used

An eco-friendly move means you avoid buying brand new materials until there’s no other choice. This is especially true with cardboard boxes.

If you haven’t been able to get enough used boxes from other sources on your own, see if anyone you know has any they can loan you. Call up family members, friends, local grocery stores. Also head to retail stores to see if there are boxes you can have for free.

If that’s still not enough boxes, or if you come up short, look on sites like Freecycle or Craigslist. See if anyone else in your neighborhood or city is giving away boxes for free. Other websites sell or give away boxes that have flaws and cannot be used for manufacturing but still work well enough for moving.

Continue to reach out, and you’ll find plenty of opportunities to stock up on used boxes for an eco-friendly move.

Be creative when protecting packed items

Other packing materials, such as the ones used to protect your items when on the move, aren’t as easy to find used. Although there are special collection points that recycle these types of materials. They’re not always conveniently located and many people simply throw out the materials anyway. That doesn’t mean you’re out of luck, though.

Before buying new packing materials that you’ll either have to drive out to recycle or end up throwing out, look again inside your home for items that you can re-purpose. For example, comforters, linens, towels. Also thick clothes all can wrap around fragile items to protect them in the truck.

If that’s not enough, then you can move on to newspaper. This is a long-used packing material that you can easily recycle in your normal weekly bin. If you do find yourself wanting to acquire the plastic packing materials, be sure to know exactly where to recycle them in the future for reuse.

Donate excess items you no longer need

There’s hardly any better chance to get rid of items you no longer need or use than a few weeks before moving away.

As you organize your plan for the move, start sorting your items into Keep and Toss piles. Once this is done, divide the Toss pile into three sub-piles: Donate, Recycle, and Trash. The goal is to have as small a trash pile as possible. You shouldn’t put anything here unless it’s impossible to donate or recycle it.

The donation pile can go to numerous charities, like Veterans for America, Goodwill, local animal shelters, libraries, and schools. Everything in the recycling pile should be processed correctly. For example, electronics have a specific method of recycling that precludes tossing it with your regular recycling.

Keep the kitchen stuff out for a while

It may seem intuitive to start packing up the kitchen first because it’s so difficult to sort through. However, once all the utensils and dishes are packed away, you’ll end up with no choice but to buy, use, and throw out plastic utensils, cups, and plates. Instead, keep just enough kitchen items out to help keep yourself fed throughout the move. An eco-friendly move won’t be so eco-friendly if you use brand new plastics along the way.

Seek out a green moving company for an eco-friendly move

The governor of California recently revealed a plan to revolutionize how cargo travels across the huge state. Aiming to bring the industry down to a zero-emissions standard. If one of the largest states in the country can ship its cargo without emitting carbon into the atmosphere, certainly this is something that your average homeowner could achieve as well.

Eco-friendly transportation is crucial to a green move. As more companies realize the impact they’re having on the environment, they look to adopt a zero-to-low-emissions approach. You’ll find more and more moving services

Long-distance movers have the additional option of saving even more by sharing trucks with other movers. A compartmentalized truck separates everyone’s belongings. However, transports many at once via consolidated shipping. Since there is one truck for multiple moves, this makes consolidated shipping an excellent way to reduce your carbon footprint during the move.

Likewise, you can also use trains to ship your items across the country for less strain on the environment.

If possible, make a single trip with your move

The longer the engine runs, the more carbon the truck emits. In other words, plan your move so you make as few trips as possible back and forth between locations.

Avoid small trips to and from the two homes and instead focus on sending off as many items as you can manage in a single trip and day. If you intend to move some of the items yourself, fit as much as you can into your vehicle rather than making small deliveries. Simply put, the fewer trips you need to make, the less gas will burn away into the atmosphere and leave a larger footprint.

Box-n-Go Storage & Moving Company is your one stop shop for everything moving. We have a full supply of moving boxes, which we can deliver to you, so that you do not have to drive to the store. Box-n-Go offers portable self-storage that comes to you, so that you do not have to make multiple trips to storage facility. We can also arrange for the moving labor, if this is what you are looking for. All you need to do is to call us at 1-877-269-6461 or receive an online quote.