Hiring movers to load or unload a rental truck can be a good way to save money while still getting professional help with the hardest part of the move. You rent and drive the truck, while the movers handle the furniture, boxes, stairs and loading.
But there is an important difference between hiring a full-service moving company and hiring movers for labor only: you are usually responsible for providing the truck and making sure it has the supplies needed to protect and secure your belongings.
If you are renting a U-Haul, Penske, Budget or Enterprise truck for a Boston move, here are the things you should have ready before the movers arrive.
1. Rent Enough Moving Blankets
Moving blankets, sometimes called furniture pads, are one of the most important things to have inside the truck.
Professional movers use pads to protect dressers, tables, desks, bed frames, wood furniture and other items from scratches and damage while they are being carried and transported.
Do not assume a labor-only moving crew will provide blankets that can travel with your rental truck.
A moving company may have its own blankets for use on its trucks, but those pads normally need to stay with the company. Some movers may be able to sell you pads, but buying them individually on moving day can get expensive.
Instead, ask the rental truck company about furniture-pad rentals when you reserve the truck.
U-Haul, Penske and Budget all offer moving blankets or furniture pads through at least some rental locations. Availability can vary, so reserve them ahead of time rather than assuming they will be available when you pick up the truck.
And get more than you think you need. Six blankets may sound like plenty until you start wrapping a dresser, dining table, headboard, television stand and several other pieces of furniture.
2. Buy a Four-Pack of Ratchet Straps
Moving blankets protect furniture. They do not keep furniture from moving around inside the truck.
For that, you need straps.
For most apartment moves, a four-pack of decent ratchet straps is a good starting point.
Rental trucks generally have rails, E-track or other tie-down points along the walls. Movers can use your straps to secure sections of the load as the truck is packed.
This becomes especially important if the truck is not completely full. Empty space gives furniture and boxes more room to shift when the truck accelerates, brakes or turns.
Make sure the straps are long enough to span the inside of the truck and that the hooks or fittings will work with the truck’s available tie-down points.
3. A Pack of Bungee Cords Is Useful Too
Ratchet straps should do the serious securing, but a package of assorted bungee cords can be surprisingly useful during a rental-truck move.
They can help secure lightweight items, keep certain pieces together or prevent something from moving where a full ratchet strap would be unnecessary.
They are inexpensive, easy to store and useful to have around after the move too.
Bungees should not replace proper straps for heavy furniture or major sections of the load. Think of them as a supplement.
4. Consider Stretch Wrap and Mattress Bags
Stretch wrap is another inexpensive supply worth having available.
Movers can use it to help hold moving blankets around furniture, keep drawers or doors from opening and protect upholstered pieces from dirt during the move.
Mattress bags are also worth buying, particularly if your mattress will be loaded into a rental truck that has been used by hundreds of previous customers.
A mattress bag is cheap compared with replacing a mattress.
5. Ask What Moving Equipment Comes With the Truck
Do not assume every rental truck includes a hand truck, furniture dolly, ramp or liftgate.
Ask when you make the reservation.
A hand truck can significantly speed up a move involving stacks of boxes. A four-wheel furniture dolly can help with dressers and other large pieces, particularly in apartment buildings with elevators.
If you are moving something unusually heavy, tell both the rental company and the movers ahead of time.
The equipment needed to move a couch and 40 boxes is very different from what might be needed for a safe, commercial refrigerator, oversized exercise machine or 400-pound piece of furniture.
6. Make Sure the Movers Know What Size Truck You Rented
Truck size matters.
Before moving day, tell your movers whether you rented a cargo van, 10-foot truck, 16-foot truck, 20-foot truck, 26-foot truck or another size.
More importantly, give them a reasonably complete inventory.
Experienced movers can pack a rental truck efficiently, but they cannot create additional space. If the truck is too small for everything you own, finding that out after three hours of loading creates a much bigger problem.
Tell the moving company about furniture, estimated box count and anything in basements, attics, garages, storage areas or sheds.
7. Reserve Parking for the Rental Truck in Boston
This is one of the biggest things people overlook when planning a Boston rental-truck move.
Where is the truck actually going to park?
Parking a moving truck can be difficult in neighborhoods such as Back Bay, Beacon Hill, the South End, Fenway, Allston, Brighton, the North End and South Boston.
The City of Boston allows residents and movers to reserve street space for a moving truck. The reservation comes with signs that are posted before moving day so the designated spaces can be kept available for the truck.
Technically, a Boston moving-truck permit is not required for every move. But if legal street parking is limited, reserving the space can prevent a major problem on moving day.
Without reserved space, the truck may end up around the corner or several blocks away.
That does not just make the move harder. If you are paying movers by the hour, a long walk between the apartment and truck can make the move considerably more expensive.
Apply early and follow the City’s current requirements for posting the signs before moving day.
8. Have Everything Ready Before the Movers Arrive
Labor-only movers are most useful when the customer has the logistics ready.
Before the crew arrives:
- Pick up the rental truck.
- Have the truck parked legally.
- Have the moving blankets in the truck.
- Have ratchet straps and bungee cords available.
- Have boxes packed and closed.
- Reserve the elevator if your building requires it.
- Make sure the movers know about stairs, long walks and unusually heavy items.
If the crew arrives and still has to wait while the truck is picked up, parking is figured out or furniture pads are purchased, you may be paying hourly moving rates for problems that could have been handled beforehand.
Labor-Only Movers in Boston
Safe Responsible Movers provides labor-only moving services in Boston and throughout Massachusetts for customers using their own U-Haul, Penske, Budget, Enterprise or other rental truck.
The crew can help load or unload the truck, carry furniture and boxes, wrap and protect furniture using the supplies provided for the move, and organize the load so the available truck space is used efficiently.
Customers handle the rental truck and driving, while the movers handle the physical moving work.
When requesting a quote, provide the truck size, addresses, stairs or elevator information, estimated number of boxes and a list of the larger furniture being moved.
That information makes it much easier to determine how many movers you need and how long the job is likely to take.
