Questions and answers

For a flat, three to four weeks ahead works well: first sort your things, then pack what you rarely use, and leave everything else for the final week. For a single small room, a week may be enough if you do not put it off.

Go through your cupboards and estimate shelf by shelf: one medium box holds roughly the contents of one tightly packed shelf. Get a few extra, because running out of boxes on the last evening is far more annoying than having some left over.

Divide them into four piles: give to friends, donate to charity, sell, and dispose of. Large furniture and appliances that nobody wants are removed according to the rules of your building and your local services.

It is well worth it. Measure the doorways, the width of the stairs and the size of the lift, and find out where a vehicle can park. That way you will know in advance whether the sofa will go through in one piece or has to be taken apart.

Keep the load as close to your body as possible, squat by bending your knees rather than bending over with straight legs, and do not twist your torso while holding the load: turn with your whole body. Carry heavy items in pairs. If your back hurts after the move, see a doctor.

In Russia, occupational-safety rules set maximum limits for lifting and carrying loads at work, separately for men and women, with lower limits for women. Other countries have their own workplace safety rules. For a home move, such limits are a good reminder not to overestimate your strength and to split loads into smaller parts.

First, large furniture and heavy appliances against the front wall of the cargo area, then heavy boxes on the floor, with light and fragile ones on top. Fill any gaps with soft items so that the load does not shift on the way.

It is best to take it apart in advance and carry it in pieces. If that is not possible, work as a pair: the person below takes most of the weight and the person above steers. Agree on short commands and stop to rest on the landings.

Describe the volume of belongings, the floor and whether there is a lift at both addresses, the start time and any possible waiting. Clarify what the job includes: taking furniture apart, packing, carrying upstairs. It is best to confirm the arrangement in writing, even just by message.

Take documents, jewellery, your laptop and keepsakes yourself, in a personal bag. If valuable items travel in the shared vehicle, make a simple inventory with photos of their condition before loading.

Lithium batteries and gas cylinders count as hazardous items in transit: they travel separately and under the carrier's rules. It is also best not to mix household chemicals with food and clothing.

While loading is under way, keep your pet in a separate room or leave it with friends. For the journey, bring a carrier, water and its familiar bedding, and at the new place set aside a quiet corner for it first.