While this may be a seemingly odd topic to discuss, it really is an important task to consider for an upcoming move. Depending on if you make reservations or make weekly trips to a large food membership club, you have an investment of food items residing in your kitchen. In a similar fashion to packing up your clothes or household items, you need to determine what to keep, what to donate, what to toss and how to transport it to your new home. Here are 6 tips on preparing and transporting food for a move.
- Sizing up the new digs: How does your new kitchen size up to your old one? If you are moving from a one-bedroom apartment to a 5-bedroom house, chances are your kitchen will be larger and include more pantry space. If the situation is the reverse, you can pretty much bank on a smaller kitchen. Knowing how much space (fridge/freezer and pantry) you will have dedicated for food will help determine how much to keep, donate and/or toss.
- Clean out the fridge/freezer: Prior to the move, start decluttering your refrigerator and freezer. Toss out spoiled and expired items. Consider eating up as much of the food as you can in the days before the move to eliminate items being moved. The distance to your new home will determine what you should do with the remaining food. If you are on the road for days, you may want to donate or toss. If your move is less, grab a dependable cooler and ice your items down. If you are moving your fridge, it will need to be unplugged for at least 24 hours to ensure it is properly thawed prior to a move.
- Pantry purge: Decluttering is the key task with a pantry purge. As with the fridge/freezer purge, toss out spoiled and expired items. If space is an issue with transporting, donate dry and boxed perishable items to a shelter or soup kitchen. For items traveling with you, prevent spills by sealing boxes and lids with tape. You can also transfer items into airtight containers for extra safety measures.
- Eliminate glass: Consider donating, tossing out or transferring food contained in glass bottles or jars. If these heavy items were to fall and break, the mess won’t be pretty and could potentially ruin any dry and boxed items. If you must take these items, place at the bottom of moving boxes or coolers and surround with bubble wrap or softer items to cushion the glass.
- Pack lightly: Food items can become heavy quickly, especially with any glass bottles or jars on board. Store heavy items in smaller boxes and be sure and tape up boxes securely so items won’t fall out.
- Destination arrival: Unpack any items in ice-filled coolers immediately on arrival to avoid spoiling. Unpack dry and boxed perishable items when convenient. Create a shopping list to replace the items you had to donate, toss or eat to keep from spoiling.
Arrive at your new destination with your food items intact with these preparation and transportation tips. And remember, if you need to store some non-perishable items that aren’t making the move with you, consider a climate-controlled facility with Zippy Shell!