Microwave ovens are versatile kitchen appliances that are found in almost every home. They are usually quite tough and are designed for frequent use. In fact, a microwave is likely to be one of the most essential kitchen appliances you’ll have in your home.
So, when the time comes to move to another house, you’ll want to take the microwave with you unless that oven happens to be very old or has technical issues of some sort.
Packing a microwave oven for moving is way easier than packing up your fridge or cooking stove but it still requires some time and basic packing skills.
Follow these tips for packing a microwave and you should be able to complete the packing task quickly and safely.
What to do before packing your microwave oven
Before you can pack your microwave for a move, there are a couple of things you should do to get the small kitchen appliance ready to be protected for the road ahead: 1) cleaning the microwave oven and 2) preparing the box in which it will be transported all the way to the new home’s kitchen.
Clean your microwave
The very first step is to clean the microwave both inside and from the outside. The thing is that you don’t want to move the oven dirty, with food residue and stains all over it – it’s unhygienic and will make your job even harder after the move.
Here’s what you need to do to make sure your microwave is clean and dry before you pack it up:
- TAKE a microwave-safe bowl and fill it halfway with tap water.
- ADD 2-3 tablespoons of freshly-squeezed lemon juice to the water.
- PLACE the bowl in the microwave oven and heat it up for a few minutes until you see the water boiling and evaporating, leading to the buildup of condensation all over the interior of the oven.
- TURN OFF the microwave, open its door and take out the glass turntable plate.
- TAKE a damp cloth or a sponge and wipe clean the inside of the oven. The tiny mist of droplets from the water-lemon juice solution should make your cleaning job easier and you should have a fragrant fresh microwave in no time.
- WIPE the exterior of the oven as well using a damp cloth.
- SCRUB DOWN the glass turntable tray with soap and warm water or load it into the dishwasher, whichever makes more sense in your case.
- LEAVE the door open to let the kitchen appliance dry out completely before packing it.
Read also: How to clean an apartment before moving out
Find and prepare the right box
The moment you make up your mind to move your microwave to the new home is the moment you should start thinking about finding the right moving box for the kitchen appliance.
Ideally, you will still keep the original box that your microwave came in when you first bought it. Without a doubt, original packaging provides the best protection for small kitchen appliances and for any household appliance, for that matter. It’s because those original boxes are made by the manufacturer with the single purpose of keeping the unit safe until it reaches the buyer’s home.
So, if you have the original microwave oven box stored somewhere in the house, then you have little to worry about. But if you don’t keep it (and who does?), then you’ll have to find a cardboard box with a similar size, ideally slightly bigger than the kitchen appliance itself.
And when you do find a suitable box for your microwave, then
- DOUBLE-TAPE its bottom and sides to increase its sturdiness and minimize any chances of the bottom falling out during transport; and
- PLACE wads of crumpled packing paper or (torn) sheets of bubble wrap along the bottom to create a soft shock-absorbing layer that will protect the kitchen appliances during transit.
See also: How to pack a kitchen for moving
How to pack a microwave for moving
Now that you’ve cleaned up your microwave oven and prepared the right type of transportation box for it, it’s time to pack up the appliance and then move on to pack another kitchen appliance, maybe.
Here are the detailed steps that’ll show you the best way to pack a microwave for moving:
- MAKE SURE the microwave oven is completely dry inside, then CLOSE its door.
- UNPLUG the microwave from the electric outlet and SECURE the power cable with a zip tie, then tape it on the back of the appliance. That step will ensure that electric cable does not get packed underneath the oven where it may get damaged by the weight of the unit or it may poke a hole through the box.
- WRAP your microwave into several layers of soft packing paper, then SECURE the paper with packing tape.
- ADD another layer of bubble wrap over the paper one – it’s this outer layer that will provide the ultimate protection for your kitchen appliance. Again, USE pieces of tape to fix the bubble wrap in place.
- TRANSFER, carefully and gently, the kitchen appliance into the pre-arranged box – do it slowly and make sure you have a good grip onto the oven so that you don’t accidentally drop it on your feet.
- CHECK the position of the power cable – it should still be secured at the back of the appliance with tape and not crushed underneath it.
- PACK the clean glass turntable tray in wrapping paper first, then in bubble wrap for extra protection. PACK the fragile microwave oven accessory either in the same box (if there’s enough room) or separately in another box containing other breakable kitchen items.
- FILL IN any remaining empty space in the box with pieces of crumpled paper or torn sheets of bubble wrap. The idea is to immobilize the microwave oven so that it cannot shift during the transportation stage of the house move.
- DO the SHAKE TEST – lift the box and shake it slightly to feel if the microwave oven inside is shifting or not. If no, then you’ve done a good job and you’re now ready to seal the box. If yes, then add more padding materials to the sides of the cardboard container.
- TAPE the box shut by closing the flaps of the container and using packing tape to seal it.
- LABEL the box appropriately, write MICROWAVE and KITCHEN. Also, it’s a good idea to add This Side Up as a reminder for whoever gets to handle the box that the content inside it is breakable. It’s important to know how to locate the microwave oven quickly after the move – after all, you’ll probably want to heat up some take-out food or make yourself a bowl of tasty popcorn.
That’s it – you’re done! Now your microwave oven should reach the new home perfectly intact, ready to be used right away.
When packing a microwave oven for a move, here’s an idea that you can use to increase the available packing space: pack a few non-breakable kitchen items inside the microwave. After all, the idea is to utilize storage space in the best possible way, right?
Here are some example items that can be packed inside the oven: kitchen spices that have been closed securely, unopened or well-sealed packs of flour, rice, or sugar. In fact, you can store inside the kitchen appliance anything that is non-breakable and well-sealed so that it doesn’t break or make a mess during the move.
In general, packing small kitchen appliances for moving cannot be classified as a tough packing task by any means and you should be able to complete it all by yourself. However, if you don’t have enough time to pack your kitchen – one of the most challenging rooms to pack up for a move, then it’s best to hire professional packers to help you out.
