Office Packing 101

Don’t quite know how to pack your home office up?

We are here to help! Here are some helpful tips to keep in mind when loading everything up:

• The most prized possession in today’s home office is the computer. If you were savvy enough to save the original packaging which all of your components came in, then you are in luck! Then all you have to do is pack your computer back into the original box, which should be complete with Styrofoam molded to your computer’s shape to keep it from moving about.
• However, if you happened to throw out the original packaging, don’t panic! All you need are three separate boxes large enough for the tower (case), the monitor and the printer. And tons of packing material. That could be wadded up newspaper, bubble wrap, packing peanuts, or even pillows and linens from the linen closet.
• Pack each individual item in a separate box, and fill the extra space with your packing material. It’s a good idea not to pack anything else in the boxes which may potentially damage your electronics. The last thing a CD rom drive needs is a paper clip embedded in it. But it’s safe to pack the keyboard and mouse with the monitor.
• Be sure to label the boxes as “fragile” with a thick marker, along with arrows pointing upward to keep them upright. Do this on all four sides of each box.
• Pack books in smaller boxes to keep the weight reasonable. You can take up any little nooks and crannies in the book boxes with office supplies. Be sure that the office supplies are in small containers or zipping sandwich bags. It’s a good idea to tape the sides of the small containers to keep all those paper clips, thumbtacks and binder clips orderly. Of course, you can try to use a thumbtack injury as an excuse to get out of unpacking, but it probably won’t work.
• You can slide drawers out of filing cabinets to make the cabinet lighter to carry. Then the drawers can be slid back into the cabinet once it’s in the moving truck. This saves you from having to pack all those files!
• Calendars and paper can be packed together. Save any artwork to be packed with other artwork from throughout the home. Don’t forget to keep any urgent files with you in a briefcase or computer case.

Packing your office can make you feel like all your work has magically disappeared—but don’t worry, it will be waiting for you at your new office!

For more tips on packing up other areas of your house, refer to our pages discussing kitchen packing, bathroom packing, and general packing.