Sustainable Moving: How to Take Care of Nature as you Move

Moving a house is an expensive process for each and any individual but we hardly realize that nature pays for it as well. We tend to bring in a lot of packing stuff that ends up in the trash and is made up of hazardous material. Disposable materials like bubble wrap, paper, cardboard boxes, and tape, all go into the trash once the moving is done. We end up wasting a lot of stuff.

Though it sounds difficult we can have a cleaner and environment-friendly move. All we need is proper planning and resourcefulness. We can have a sustainable move by looking for alternatives and doing some research on using sustainable stuff.

Following are some tried and tested ways of a sustainable move which will help you to lessen the amount of waste during your moving process:

Accumulate Less Stuff

You have to be clear at the beginning of about accumulating less stuff. Don’t buy unnecessary stuff and avoid keeping extra stuff too. Don’t buy things for one time use, you can borrow or bring them on rent. Movies can be watched on online streaming services. You can use library services for reading books and can borrow tools for one-time use.

Recycle

Research for recycle options related to your waste stuff. Even electronics are taken by e-waste recycling companies. Check for all local recycling options and contact them and save the environment.

Reusable Moving Boxes

Packing material is the biggest waste that we come across during a move. Cardboard boxes sometimes break during the process so it is very much advisable to use reusable moving boxes. Many companies provide heavy-duty plastic boxes on rent. You just have to take them on rent and return them at the end of the moving process. These boxes are available in various sizes and shapes as per your need and requirement.

You can even take used cardboard boxes from retail or wholesale stores. These boxes are of good quality as they are made to deliver heavy items to stores. You can even get them for free. It is also recommended to give these boxes to other people for further use.

Find Alternate Wrapping Materials

Instead of using the conventional way of wrapping material, you can look for some alternatives. Consider using things at home in place of buying packing goods from the market. Even if you buy biodegradable packing material, it has an impact on the environment. Use newspaper, all kinds of towels, bed linens, sweatshirts, and socks for packing. This stuff already lying at home can easily replace packing paper and bubble wrap. Use tea towels for packing breakable items and newspapers as packing paper. Other clothes can be used as fillers in the storage boxes.

Sell or Donate

Donate or sell instead of throwing away things that you don’t need but are still usable. At the time of packing, we find a lot of stuff that we don’t need any further or are just fed up with. Many clothes, vessels, furniture pieces, and crockery come in this category. Don’t throw them in the trash. Just pack these things nicely and offer it to a friend, donate it, or sell it. For selling your unwanted stuff, you can even organize a garage sale before your move. This way you will not only make money but will also help people and the environment.

Avoid Plastic Covers

We generally use heavy plastic covers to save many things while moving. Mattresses and upholstered furniture need a wrap-around them to save them from any damage. Muslin fabric and a painter’s drop cloth can be a better alternative to heavy plastic covers. By using these clothes, we can save a lot of plastic. We can even get cloth shoe bags online to pack shoes instead of putting them in plastic bags. Whether you are moving your expensive artwork or any other item that needs extensive packing, there is always an alternate way to ensure safe and sustainable packing.

Make Rags Out of Waste Clothes

Avoid using paper towels and replace them with homemade rags. Making these rags out of old bed linens and used old clothes is a good idea. You can simply wash and disinfect these clothes before making rags. These rags can be reused as many times as you want.

You can make some rags before you start packing at your old place and can use them in cleaning and then in packing. They can even be used to clean hard stains from surfaces as they won’t get spoilt soon. Later leftover rags can be used in the house.

Takeout Cutlery

During the whole of the moving process, the one fix is eating out for days. We tend to pack our stuff a day before our move and then it takes days to open your kitchen at your new place too. For all these days we bring food from outside due to which we end up with a lot of plastic cutlery to throw. So instead of bringing in this plastic cutlery, it is advisable to keep a set of silverware, share plates, and travel bottles.

We all need to care about Mother Nature in every way possible and considering a sustainable moving process is certainly one important step. Use The above tips and tricks to have a sustainable move and payback to Nature.