5 Tips for a Green, Money Saving Move
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Moving requires a lot of supplies, stress and back pain. Learn about these five steps to make a greener, money saving move that will lessen your footprint on the earth and not break the bank.
We’ve spent the last few weeks packing to move after living in the same house for the last 16 years. Moving and packing can be stressful emotionally and on your pocket book, but it doesn’t have to be money draining or environmentally-polluting that it tends to be. These tips will show you how easy it is to place only a little strain on your pocketbook and the planet by being conscientious of the environment if you just plan ahead.
First, start early. If you know you’re moving in August, for example, start paring down in June. Don’t wait until the middle of July to start packing. If you wait until the last minute, you end up throwing too much stuff out just because it’s easier. If you start early enough, you have time to figure out what can be recycled and where.
Follow these 5 TIPS for a GREEN, MONEY SAVING MOVE
1. Sort and Donate:
Think before you pack up and just throw everything you own in a box. Take the time to think about if you really want or need items. Do you have old clothes, electronics, books, or furniture that have no use or sentimental value or won’t fit in the new digs? Moving items you no longer need requires more boxes, and time. Instead, sift through your belongings before you pack and decide what can be donated or have a garage sale and donate what doesn’t sell. Freecycle is also a great way to lighten your load.
2. Get Moving Boxes for Free!:
Did you know you can call stores such as WalMart to get FREE BOXES for your move? Each store is different, so just call and ask them how you can get boxes for your move. I called the day before and went in at 8am the following morning where they had 2 carts full of boxes waiting for me to just load in my car!- I did that twice!
Check sites like Craigslist (the free section under for sale) and Freecycle. This is also a great way to recycle your boxes BACK after moving!
U-haul Box Exchange. U-haul has created a message board allowing you to search by location for free boxes in your area.
3. Buy New or Used Moving Boxes Made of Recycled Materials
You can often find used moving boxes at discounted rates from moving companies or places like Craigslist. It’s a great way to reduce waste. Companies like NorthStar sell used boxes made of 100% recycled materials for a 25% discount, then they will actually buy them back from you when you are finished for 25% of the original price. That’s 50% in savings and a lot less waste!
4. Choose Recycled Packing Paper
Newspapers isn’t actually the cheapest or greenest way to pack, once you’re done unpacking you will need to run the dishwasher several times to remove newspaper print from dishes and silverware. Purchase professional white packing paper made of recycled materials and you’ll save time, money and energy.
5. Go One Bag:
Use GLAD recycling and compostable bags to help you go One Bag, as well as bags that are stronger with less plastic. Make a small change that adds a meaningful difference in the world.
Even if you’re not moving, you can still Trim Your Waste! GLAD wants everyone to reduce waste with a few small steps!
Whatever you do, just do the best you can. Moving is stressful enough —- don’t sweat the small stuff, after all, there will be plenty of sweating on moving day! 😉
I’d love to hear how you reduce waste!
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Glad®. Take small steps to reduce waste. As always all views and opinions are my own.
Hi there, I'm Cheryl!
As a wife, mom, and caffeine enthusiast, my journey has taken me from bustling mornings with my family to sharing delicious recipes, home care tips, and heartfelt decorating insights with wonderful readers like you. My love for baking, photography, and tidiness shines through every post I craft. Dive into my world and discover the art of homemaking, one tidy moment at a time. Read more...
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LOL My husband calls m the recycling witch of Calif. We have two trash bins here, 1 for trash and 1 for recycling
My recycle bin is always over flowing and my trash has 1 bag in it. Yes, I wash jars, cans and tear up cardboard. I recycle plastic bottles and aluminum cans too. We even take old computers, from my husband company, batteries and light bulbs to a special recycling place here as it is against the law to place these items in the trash We can even put old clothes, with stains or holes in them, in the recycle bin. They make it so easy her in Calif. to recycle and I still have neighbors that say they are to busy to do it. Hello, you put it in one bin or the other. I have a lot of grandbabies and great grandbabies to clean this world up for and my husband says I’m trying to do it all by myself. LOL Thank you so much for this article. It is badly needed. Trish Butler
Great tips!
so many great ideas here, Cheryl . So excited for your move, now to settle in, right? 🙂
Great tips! I didn’t know you could get that many free boxes from Walmart. Good to know! Hope you’re getting settled into your new home!
Love these tips! I didn’t know Walmart gave out boxes but we’ve asked grocery stores when we moved in the past. I need to be better about cutting down on waste. It’d be smart and easy to start with the One Bags!
Wonderful tips! I’ve lived in the same house for 17 years and will likely die here (family home), but I will definitely pass these tips onto my friends because many of them move every few years.
Girlfriend, I used to call myself the moving queen! We moved soooo much over the years that I became an expert at it, not a fun thing to be good at LOL! Don’t think we’ll be moving from here anytime soon, I hope to host my grandkids here 🙂 These are great tips, thanks for the post!
I’ve already tried tips 1 and 2 when I moved out from my apartment. It’s always good to remove what one thinks would just be a clutter to his/her new place. Make someone happy by giving things out or by donating them. I will definitely try the rest of your tips once I move out of my current home. 🙂
Great post! I love that you said to find used boxes…it always makes me giggle that some people buy moving boxes when we have so much waste.
You could go to any retail store and ask for boxes. You could go to a local recycling center and ask if they have some available to you. You could ask your friends and family to save them up for you whenever they find one. Some moving companies give away free boxes if you hire them.Well thanks for the useful post!
Hi there to all, the contents present at this site are truly
remarkable for people experience, well, keep up the nice work fellows.
Lots of Great tips Cheryl!
Interesting set of green tips. However I think there’s more to green moving than just using old or recycled boxes. For starters find a company which uses bio diesel for their vans. We are all aware of the pollution we cause when we drive our vehicles around. So this is a small thing we can do.
As far as boxes go, you can hire plastic reusable boxes. Yes, they’re heavier than regular cardboard boxes, but at least they’re easy to stack and you can return them after your move is over. Some companies which provide these boxes even offers to collect them form your new address without you having to go to their office.
For everything else in your blog post, I agree absolutely.
Hi Cheryl,
thanks for the useful post. May I add another tip – instead of buying moving boxes, people can go to the local grocery store and take some used boxes. This way they will save some trees plus the boxes will be free.
thanks Jane – the posts does state that 😉
I think the most crucial part of an eco friendly move is downsizing that you mention in the section “Sort and Donate”. Once you get rid of the useless possessions, which often turn out to be a lot, the volume of packing materials and costs will drop considerably. Thanks for the helpful tips!
Thank you for the smart tips! I will send the link to my sister, because next month she will move to the capital in a tiny apartment and she will definitely need some ideas for money saving and downsizing.