Packing up shop in preparation for a move

[RedBob]

Bill Wilson said:

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[blockquote]RedBob said:

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I'm moving shop into a great big basement that has high ceilings(for a basement) and is reasonably dry. Even has a separate room that might be great to set up as a finishing room.
I've really enjoyed my current garage shop, but looking forward to the new digs. And the prospect of being half mile from the water? Very

Bob

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Sounds like a good set-up. Is it a walk-out basement? That would be ideal.

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[/blockquote]

Not a walk-out, Bill, but it does have a generous size staircase in the garage that leads to the basement. No bulkhead. Should make getting the machines down there reasonably easy for the movers.

Bob

[RedBob]

Dumb_Polack said:

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I'll bite.....where you moving to? North Shore???

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Heading down to Cape Cod. Marstons Mills. We spend a lot of time down there, so time to make the move.

Bob

[RedBob]

CLETUS said:

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A little late for you....


But I think the best way to handle a move is to have a dumpster outside your house or shop and start purging all of crap that you shouldn't have saved.


I was overwhelmed thinking about the prospect of moving. We purged the house, basement, shop and pole barn this summer. I felt so relieved afterward... Not to mention, I gained about 1,200 sq ft of space!

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We actually did start thinning down the past couple of years, but its amazing how much more there still remains when you actually start packing. We also got one of the "Bagsters" from the depot. Filled it in an afternoon.

Bob

[RedBob]

Good tip, adding name address to boxes. Thanks.
Agreed, moving is not something I ever want to do again.
To make matters worse, the sale of our current house went terribly.
Never again...
Bob

[Bill Lyman]

We are about to consolidate to one home and that means consolidating my shop. Thanks for initiating this thread. Great tips.

[AppleCreekWood]

We recently moved from one state to another. I am now just beginning to unpack.
One issue I had is the new house had no space at all for a shop. So I had to build a new one. I owe everyone pictures. I now have the shop enclosed, insulated, power, and ready to start getting the tools set up.
I packed them nearly 2 years ago. I followed the suggestions - put everything into ziplock bags, label, etc. But am still struggling to find all the pieces scattered across many boxes. I coated the tops with Boeshield T-9 which did keep the rust away - other than where sweaty hands touched it.
Tie up (or remove) any power cords or other items that dangle & can get snagged on something during the move.
I built boxes from a lot of my leftover sheet goods to move the hardware & heavy items. Made them about the size of a file box, all the same size, so they stack well. Now in the new space I turn them on their sides and create a stacked box sheving unit until I can build ongterm storage.
I found that the movers did very little to prep anything before placing in truck. If it was on wheels they just rolled it into the truck - no wraps or anything else. Even the clamp rack they just wrapped with shrink wrap to hold all the clamps on. I am not sure how aligned everything is. I need to check all that as I get back up to operating.
Since it has been so long since I had access to any of my tools or supplies - as we moved into the new house I needed a screw here to fix a door, or a washer there to repair a faucet, so any order I had quickly was lost.
Now I am in the new space - it lacks the storage (yet to be built) so I am still living out of boxes - and the urge to do it now to get it back to what I had is strong - and costly.

[daveferg]

In a similar situation---moving to a condo which luckily has a great 2 car garage attached. However, current shop is also in a two-car garage, but at the new place, I'll have to share space with washer and dryer and storage rack (and whatever else the wife can sneak in). Also, I want to be as economical with moving costs as possible. Here are the steps I've taken:

---parts, nails, etc.---like many I have WAY more than I will ever use in a lifetime. Giving much away and tossing other junk----after all, why carry an inventory of stuff that is waiting at the local hardware store---it's no like project hardware costs a fortune.

---Like many, with the kids grown and on their own, I indulged myself in every possible tool. I started looking at what I had and how often I used it-----sold a floor based drill press, drum sander and jointer----functions all of which I can do with another tool. Selling my dust collector as about the only tool that required it was my surface planer, which I sold in favor of one that has a built-in blower for chips. Other tools that I'm overloaded on also went-----so far, great success on Craig's List.

---Items too small or not worth so much (example numerous masonry tools) go to Goodwill.

---And vowed that on trash day, the trash can will ALWAYS be full.

BTW---if you want to get a jump on thing or are moving yourself, Home Depot sells heavy duty moving boxes in addition to standard weight boxes.

Good luck!

[BobW]

If your machines are on mobile bases, get them off before the movers get there...they will wreck them!

[RedBob]

Left the mobile bases in place. The movers left some in place and didn't take any care in handling them, but so far those appear intact. They removed the bases on a couple of machines to make it easier to dolly them down into the new basement.

Been in the new home for a week now. Only managed to get to the basement shop to assess the mess tonight. Got my work cut out for me to set back up in the new digs. Need to have some 20 amp lines run. Will require a sub panel, as existing 200 amp box is full.

Psyched about the space overall. Tons more room than previous shop. Warm and dry. Will share pics when I get it set up. I figure that it will take at least a month..... if I can dodge the ever expanding honey-do list.

Moving is hard work.

Bob

[handi]

I moved my shop last year.

Yard sale disposed quickly of "excess" tools.

You local Habitat for Humanity store will happily take opened cans of paint or finishing products. This was huge for me since I had no good way to dispose of them.

I long ago got better about ditching wood scraps.

Ralph