How to Pack Pots and Pans for Moving to a New Bay Area City

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If you’re relocating to an entirely different Bay Area city, learning how to pack pots and pans will allow you to quickly set up your new kitchen as soon as you move in. Although most kitchenware is pretty sturdy, it’s better to be safe than sorry and adequately prepare it for shipping, and that’s precisely what this blog will enable you to do.

Although securing the kitchenware is not difficult, it’s only a tiny step in your overall relocation preparation. With so many other things to do before the actual move, it’s better to hire a professional mover to assist you than worry about doing everything months in advance.

Declutter Your Kitchenware Before You Start Packing Anything

The best way to start your preparation is to go through the entire inventory and get rid of all the kitchenware you’re not using. While it might be hard to give up some of the things you’ve kept over the years, there’s no point in transporting something you’re not even going to use. Decluttering also allows you to move efficiently, as you won’t have to spend as much money on supplies and local movers in the Bay Area. A good item could still find a new home, though. You can try selling it online, give it to a friend, or make a donation to one of the local charities such as St Vincent de Paul and the Salvation Army.

How many pans should a person have?

Acquire All the Necessary Packaging Supplies

After going through the inventory, getting all the necessary supplies should be the next thing on your to-do list. Fortunately, most kitchenware is pretty sturdy, meaning you won’t have to worry about getting expensive materials and equipment. More often than not, you’ll only need some pretty standard wrapping and padding supplies like:

While you’ll find these materials at one of the local supply stores, it’s also a good idea to get them from professional San Francisco moving companies in the Bay Area.

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Is There a Way to Find Supplies for Free?

Considering you’ll be using these supplies for everything from boxing up glasses to furniture and large items, your relocation expenses will quickly pile up. Thankfully, you won’t have to buy tons of brand-new materials to secure your kitchenware, as there are several ways to acquire some of the most common supplies for free. Besides checking in with friends and family members, some of the best places to look for paper and boxes include the local supermarkets, bookstores, and liquor stores, as they most likely have these materials in large quantities. Lastly, you can always try looking at Freecycle or posting on social media. You never know who’ll be willing to help out.

Can I Wrap Kitchenware With Some Everyday Items?

If you didn’t get enough padding materials, don’t panic. Many everyday household items can be used as alternatives to standard packaging supplies. For example, towels, linens, and old clothes are easily some of the best options everyone has at home. Considering they are excellent for wrapping and padding, you can also use them when packing glasses and other fragile items. Newspapers are another solid alternative, but be aware that you’ll have to wash the kitchenware before using it.

How do you pack pots and pans to move? By securing enough packaging supplies

Make Sure the Kitchenware Is Clean and Dry Before Packing It

Dishes tend to become dirty even when not used, so unless you’re relocating in a hurry, it’s better to wash all the kitchenware before boxing it up. Despite being one of the more important things to do before relocating, many tend to leave this task for much later. However, this means you’ll have to wash them as soon as you move in, and you certainly won’t have the will or the energy to clean so many things right away.

Remember, dishwashing can be very therapeutic, relieving some of the relocation stress you’ve accumulated from all the preparations. Lastly, make sure that every item is completely dry before you start wrapping. Otherwise, the packaging might get dampened, creating perfect conditions for mildew to form, and that’s certainly not something you want to bring to the new home. If you plan to clean the cookware spotless, the video below explains how to remove even some of the most stubborn stains.

Setting up and Padding the Box Is a Crucial Step in Securing Your Kitchenware

Before you box up even a single item, you’ll have to ensure the container is appropriately set up and padded. Firstly, considering you’ll be using larger boxes when packing pots and pans for moving, it’s good to reinforce the bottom with several layers of tape. This will prevent you from losing any kitchenware when relocating from one Bay Area town to another. When it comes to padding, most San Francisco movers recommend you place a thick layer of crumpled-up paper on the bottom of the container. Once the box is full, fill all remaining space in a similar fashion, ensuring nothing can move inside it.

Tape the boxes to ensure no item can fall through the bottom

Learn How to Pack Pots and Pans for Moving Correctly

While securing your kitchenware is nothing compared to boxing up a computer, you should still take a few steps to protect it from any potential damage that can occur during shipping. As we already mentioned, these objects are pretty sturdy, so you’ll only have to focus on wrapping every item with a few layers of paper.

Start as you would when packing dishes and place a few sheets on a flat surface, then a pot or a pan on top, and fold until the entire item is covered, including the handles. While most folds are pretty stable, some tend to unwrap no matter how good of a job you did. The problem is easily fixable, as taping the fold on a few strategic spots should be enough to keep it in place.

Is it Ok to Stack Pots and Pans When Packing Them?

We already mentioned that securing your kitchenware will require large boxes, and for a good reason. A properly wrapped pot or a pan will easily take up almost all the space, meaning there will rarely be enough room to fit two of these next to each other. This is particularly true for kitchenware with long handles, meaning you’ll often be left with a half-empty box. Fortunately, you won’t have to waste any containers, as it’s completely safe to stack these items one on top of the other. After all, this is exactly how some of the best movers in San Francisco secure kitchenware.

To utilize this relocation hack to the fullest, start stacking by placing the largest item on the bottom of the box, finishing with the smallest one. Remember to add extra cushioning between every consecutive thing you add, and you’ll be good to go. Considering there would likely be some room left in the container, feel free to add some dishes. Don’t overstuff it, though, or you might have to pick up the broken pieces once the bottom falls through from the weight.

Pack Some Essential Kitchen Items Separately for the Moving Day

If you set aside a few essential things before you start boxing up everything left and right, unpacking the entire kitchen won’t have to be the first thing you do after relocating. While you could still order take-out for the evening, you shouldn’t have to eat with plastic utensils. Just like with personal essentials, it’s good to prepare a few containers with everything you need to set up the kitchen, including a few glasses, plates, some cutlery, and a small pot or a pan. This kitchenware should be more than enough to keep you going for the first few days. Remember to bring some cleaning supplies as well, as you could quickly end up without a clean dish in the house.

Stacking the kitchenware will help you save a lot of space in the containers

Don’t Forget to Prepare the Lids Too

Last but not least, you also have to secure all the pot lids. Most are usually made out of the same material as the pot, or in some cases, out of glass. The latter type is significantly more prone to damage, meaning you’ll have to be extra careful when handling it. It’s precisely why we mentioned bubble wrap in the supply list, as you’ll need it to secure these more delicate lids.

How Do You Package Pots’ Lids?

Most Bay Area movers keep a wrapped lid on top of its paired pot, as this ensures there are no mix-ups, which is particularly useful for anyone who owns tons of these. Simply turn it upside down and cover the set with another sheet of paper, and it’s good to go. However, if you’re planning to stack the kitchenware, place all the lids on top in reverse order, from smallest to largest. Alternatively, if there’s no room on top, keep each lid in the same container with its paired pot. If there’s little to no space left, feel free to place them vertically.

Use bubble wrap to secure a fragile glass lid

Label Each Container as Soon as You Pack it With Kitchenware

Despite being an essential part of the preparations, labeling is still one of the more common things people forget to do before relocating. Unless you can remember where you’ve placed each item on the fly, try to label each container as soon as it’s packed. Depending on your preferences, you can write down the contents with a sharpie, place sticky notes that say “Kitchen,” or use stickers. This will allow you to find everything you need as soon as you move in.

Labeling Will Help You Prevent Potential Container Mishandling

Besides saving you from having to unpack right away, labeling prevents all potential mishandling of your containers. This is particularly important when hiring a Bay Area moving company to transport the belongings, as you’ll want each mover to immediately know what he’s carrying and how fragile it is. A container holding stacked kitchenware can become pretty heavy, meaning it could easily crush your more delicate belongings when placed on top of them. Fortunately, a well-placed label will easily prevent accidents like this.

Labeling the containers will allow you to find all the kitchenware almost immediately

If You Don’t Want to Pack Kitchenware Yourself, Hire One of the Best Bay Area Moving Companies to Do it for You

As you can see, securing the kitchenware is not that difficult. Just get enough supplies, and you’ll be all set up. However, remember that this is one of the most straightforward tasks you’ll have when relocating to a different Bay Area city. You’ll still have to organize important documents, finish the rest of the packing, change your address, and transfer utilities, which will keep you busy at least for a while. Thankfully, hiring Golden Bay Relocation will make the process significantly easier.

Operating since 1992, our moving company in the Bay Area offers one of the best residential relocation services on the market. No matter what your reasons for moving might be, our experienced packers and movers will ensure your kitchenware and all other belongings are perfectly packed and ready for shipping anywhere in the Bay. We also offer commercial moves, which are perfect for relocating your business. To learn more about these and many other services we provide, contact us today and request a free quote from one of our representatives.

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