As if the stress of moving weren’t enough, organizing a house move is an expensive affair too!
While working on your moving checklist, you’ll soon notice that most move-related tasks require money to be completed, and thus the moving expenses will pile up more quickly than you and your budget can handle them. As a result, it’s only normal that you’ll be desperately trying to use every chance to lower your moving costs.
One proven way to cut moving costs is to secure cardboard boxes without paying for them. That’s right – the idea of finding free moving boxes for your packing needs often pays off handsomely in the end, for it can save you a few hundred dollars from having to purchase all your packing boxes brand new.
It should always feel nice to get something for free and thus save money in the process. Also, reusing old cardboard boxes is an environmentally-friendly way to move house as it keeps boxes out of landfills.
However, using second-hand boxes when packing for a move can also prove to be risky both for your items and for your health – sometimes much riskier than you think.
Here are the top 5 risks when using old moving boxes that you got for free.
Risk 1: Dirty boxes can soil your items
One thing to remember is that not all free moving boxes are the same – some boxes are very lightly used and almost indistinguishable from new ones, while other cardboard containers are exactly what you’d expect from something that’s been reused over and over again, traveled thousands of miles, being stored in all kinds of places and handled countless times by too many hands.
Free moving boxes can be rather unsanitary – dusty (the fine black dust from spending too much time in dirty vehicles and warehouses) and grimy (various spills, oil spots or other unpleasant stains). Sometimes second-hand boxes come with that unmistakable musty smell that is characteristic of mold or mildew growing inside them.
All in all, the risk of getting free moving boxes that are not clean enough is relatively high. As a result, you may end up damaging your clothes, bedding or other delicate items packed in those second-hand cardboard containers.
See also: How to pack moving boxes properly
Risk 2: Used boxes are weak and can break easily
Also, it’s risky to use second-hand packing boxes to pack up your things because old cardboard boxes lose their strength and structural integrity with each subsequent use. Even a single move may weaken boxes too much and leave them unreliable for reuse, especially of those containers help heavy items during a long-distance move.
It’s easy to guess that all free moving boxes have already seen action, so it’s fair to assume that they have already been weakened compared to their original condition. As a result, old moving boxes with compromised cardboard integrity may easily break under the sheer weight of what’s inside them.
And when the bottom of a weakened box breaks in the middle of a move, then there will be three possible outcomes:
- Damage to any fragile and breakables items when they hit the ground;
- Floor damage of some sort: scratches or dents in hardwood floors or broken tiles on tiled floors;
- Personal injury when something heavy breaks from a second-hand cardboard box and drops straight on your feet or toes.
It’s simple, really – used moving boxes cannot possibly be as strong as new ones.
Good to know: How many boxes will you need when packing?
Risk 3: Bug infested boxes are the worst
When you purchase your packing boxes new, then you know that you’re the very first person to be using them, and that gives you the peace of mind that all those cardboard containers that you’ll be using to store your things will be strong and reliable, with no pre-existing damage of any kind. And no bugs of any kind either!
The worst thing that can happen to you when using second-hand moving boxes to pack up your home is to get ones that are infested with bugs, bookworms, spiders, roaches or any other nasty critters that may have nested inside. You may not realize it but taking those pests inside your new home through second-hand boxes may soon turn into a nightmarish experience for you.
Of all creepy crawlies that could inhabit some of your old cardboard boxes, bedbugs can cause the most serious problems for you. Those tiny blood suckers cause serious skin rashes and severe allergic symptoms, and can stay alive without any food for a whole year and survive temperatures ranging from 14 °F and up to 115 °F. To make things even worse, bedbugs are extremely difficult to exterminate due to their increased immunity to chemical pesticides.
Interesting idea: How to move house without boxes
Risk 4: Free moving boxes often lack versatility
There is no doubt that using free packing supplies will enable you to save money when organizing a local or cross-country move. And, of course, you shouldn’t hesitate to grab any good opportunity to lower your moving costs as long as you don’t endanger your own valuables, your home or your own health.
Another problem you may run into when using free moving boxes is that you may not be able to find ones with the right sizes for your household items. In general, cardboard boxes happen to be very versatile and their rich assortment of sizes (small, medium, large, extra-large) and shapes (wardrobe boxes, dish barrel boxes, mirror and picture boxes, lamp boxes, file boxes, wine shipping boxes, etc.) do contribute to a much safer and easier packing task.
However, beggars can’t be choosers, so while you’re looking for free cardboard boxes, you’ll just be glad to get your hands on any boxes that come your way, regardless of their size and shape. As a result, you may not be able to pack up your things as well as you would have done with brand new boxes tailored to your specific packing needs.
And it’s not a secret that poor packing can easily lead to costly damage, which in turn can defeat the purpose of finding free moving boxes in the first place.
Read also: What specialty boxes you’ll need when packing
Risk 5: Free boxes come at a price: extra expenses and lost time
It must be satisfying when your mission of finding moving boxes for free has been successful – you’ve managed to save some cash and you’ve kept those boxes away from the landfill. However, lured by the notion of getting something for the best possible price of $0, you may not realize that you’ve also lost precious TIME and may have even incurred extra EXPENSES to find those free second-hand packing supplies.
Before you rush to search for free cardboard boxes and other packing materials at no cost, factor in the time you’re going to lose in the process. Ask yourself whether you can actually afford to lose many hours, possibly even days, while hunting for the packing supplies you’ll need. If you’ve got enough time before Moving day (at least 8 weeks), then getting quality used moving boxes for free should be worth it.
Also, driving around your town or city in search of free packing boxes will surely incur additional expenses for you in the form of gas money. And if you’ve found free packing supplies online, you may have to cover their shipping cost too.
See also: Where to find free moving boxes: The checklist
How to minimize the risks when using free cardboard boxes
As you can see, there are certain risks when you choose to get free boxes for moving instead of purchasing them new. Still, if you use caution, you should be able to cut drastically your packing expenses with minimal risks for your valuable belongings and your health.
Here’s what you should do to stay safe when using free packing supplies:
- INSPECT carefully the cardboard boxes you are about to take at no charge.
- MAKE sure all cardboard boxes you agree to take are perfectly clean, especially on the inside.
- REJECT any boxes with pre-existing damage, no matter how insignificant it may seem at first. Safety is more important than saving a few bucks.
- TAPE the bottom and sides of each used box for added safety. Use at least two rounds of high-quality packing tape.
- USE plenty of padding inside the second-hand boxes – wads of packing paper, crumpled newspapers or sheets of bubble wrap will do nicely.
- DO NOT make second-hand boxes too heavy – keep them up to the reasonable weight limit of 50 pounds.
- INVEST in brand-new moving boxes when packing fragile valuables that you’d hate to see broken in pieces.
Must-read: Should you hire professional packers?
