Most of us use glassware so regularly that we don’t even notice it, but we’d miss it if it wasn’t there. The common household kitchen contains over a dozen different types of glassware, from jugs to carafes to special glasses for cocktails, wine and champagne. Elsewhere in the home, glass vases and bowls hold flowers and other decorations, while glass cabinets display our treasured possessions. Glassware helps make a house a home. So when it’s time to move house, you want to protect it.
Moving fragile and heavy furniture is stressful at the best of times, and moving glassware can be even more so. Nobody wants to deal with broken glass on top of the usual stresses that come with moving, especially when it’s your favourite vase or wine glass getting broken. With moving house already commonly considered one of life’s major stressors, it pays to make things easier for yourself in any way you can.
Ready Movers specialises in moving all kinds of household items, from the very common to the exceptionally unique. Here are our tips for packing and transporting glassware safely to your destination.
How to Pack Smaller Glassware Items
Small, fragile items of glassware are everywhere throughout the home, serving both aesthetic and functional purposes. With a little preparation, you can carry them to your new home without incident. When packing glassware that’s on the smaller side, follow these tips.
Glasses
Packing glassware and ceramic mugs safely starts with the right materials, including sturdy boxes and soft materials like packing paper, newspaper or bubble wrap—anything that can be easily wrapped around each glass or glass set. If you’re using newspaper or packing paper, crumple up enough sheets to cover the entire bottom of the box.
Wrap the biggest and heaviest glasses first and place them on the bottom with the smaller glasses on top.
Take each glass or mug and place it at an angle in the corner of the packing paper. As you roll, stuff the wrapping paper into the glass and keep wrapping until the glass is fully covered. Sort and pack glasses by similar size.
For wine glasses, use a half-sheet to wrap the stem first, then place it on the sheet of paper and roll it around the rest of the glass. You want to make sure the steam is well protected. Pack glasses by type (e.g., wine glasses with other wine glasses), and don’t mix them with non-glass items.
Vases
Vases are elegant, beautiful pieces of glassware that contain the flowers that brighten up our homes. They’re also extremely delicate and need to be relocated with extreme care.
To move a vase, make sure you have all the necessary supplies, including sturdy small-to-medium moving boxes. Use bubble wrap or packing paper that’s soft and smooth enough not to scratch the vase’s surface, and tuck into the vase’s opening as you go.
For extra protection, wrap the vase in packing paper and bubble wrap and place tape all around it to hold the wrapping tightly in place.
Jugs
Jugs can be oddly shaped items of glassware that require careful consideration when you’re wrapping them. Place some bubble wrap both in the top and bottom, measure out a piece of cardboard to ensure it can wrap around the jug and tape it in place to secure it.
Jars
Always pack jars individually. Avoid packing glass rim on glass rim as this immediately increases the risk of scratches or breakage. Use cushioning material to fill in the gaps between packed jars.
Bowls
Glass bowls are very heavy but also very fragile, so they require the strongest boxes and the most careful packing measures. Place the glass bowl in the centre of a sheet of packing paper, pull the corners over the bowl and tuck them inside it, wrap in a second layer of protection like bubble wrap and place them in a sturdy padded box. Be careful not to overpack each box!
Tips for Moving Large Glass Items
Not all household glassware items are small and dainty. Here are some tips on how to move larger units.
Glass cabinets
First, remove the shelving from your glass cabinet and lay it on your moving blanket to help prevent scratches and chips. Place small pieces of cardboard on the corners of each shelf before bubble wrapping it individually. You can follow the same approach for the cabinet itself. Make sure you use plenty of packing tape so the cabinet and shelving don’t slip out of place.
TVs
Many of today’s televisions come with fragile LCD screens. Often, a box is your best option for transporting a TV. If you don’t have the original packaging or a specialised TV box, there are other methods for safely transporting a television. Bubble wrap can do the job, but it’s important to purchase a high-quality kind that won’t scratch your screen. A TV screen protector, gentle, high-quality bubble wrap and a handful of moving blankets are the perfect combination when moving a TV. Place corner pieces on each corner of the TV, secure them with packing tape and make sure there’s enough padding to stop the TV shifting around in the box.
Glass top tables
Clean the glass table before moving it so dust and dirt don’t cause scratches. To wrap, place the table face down on the moving blanket so that the legs are pointing at the ceiling. Remove the legs and wrap both sides of the tabletop in packing paper, making sure the tape doesn’t come into contact with the table itself.
Ultimately, the best method for packing and moving glassware is to hire the right removalists. Removalists are skilled at packing glassware of all kinds, large and small, and can offer the highest level of protection while transporting it to your destination.
Why Hiring a Removalist Is a Good Idea
If you’re serious about offering the highest level of protection to your valuable glassware, your best option is hiring a removalist. Removalists are experts at packing delicate items that require special care and are skilled in safe handling procedures. A good removalist is more likely to have high-quality equipment and insurance options. They can save you time and energy by taking control of your packing duties so you don’t have to take time away from other responsibilities.
Protect Your Glassware While Moving With Ready Movers
Ready Movers’ packing services are tailored to meet your needs. A fully insured and AFRA-accredited moving company, we can pack and unpack everything from a single room in your house to your entire home. We handle all items carefully, avoiding double-handling the fragile and expensive ones to reduce the risk of damage.
Our ‘no-damage written guarantee’ gives you peace of mind on local moves: If anything happens to one of your possessions under our care, we will pay for its repair. In addition to removals, we also provide storage services if you need a secure place to keep your valuables between houses.
To find out more about our glassware packing services, contact the Ready Movers team on 1300 787 934 or request a free quote.
