CUSTOM CRATING

Using Custom Crates for Unique Items During Your Home Move

When move planning starts, one of the first activities is to schedule a thorough walk through of the property with a reputable moving company and assess how many and what types of items require packing and transport.

At Suddath® , we offer a number of packing service options including full service, partial packing and DIY packing for general household and property items. For common items, your moving company can often rely on traditional packing materials. Some packing instances, however, require special custom crating options to account for items that need specific care and handling.

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7 Special Items You Can’t Trust Just Anyone to Move

When preparing for a move, it is necessary to plan on getting help with items that require special handling, packing, or storage. Many items in your home may not fare well with people who don’t have the training to move them, or in a facility without proper temperature and humidity control.

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custom crating for moving

Moving Checklist

When you’re planning a move, it can feel like there are too many steps in your moving checklist to prioritize, let alone accomplish. This moving checklist gives you the most important steps, prioritized with a suggested timeline. Don’t worry if you’re starting less than eight weeks before your move date. You can customize this list according to your own timeline and add steps or leave out ones that don’t apply.

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CUSTOM CRATING 101

Unique items or items that are particularly delicate, fragile or irregularly sized, may require their own “box within a box.” Tailored, custom crates are built to protect these types of items. Often, an expert within our moving organization will take measurements, and build a wooden box to spec to fit the item.

They will sometimes craft the box offsite, disassemble it to transport the crate to the packing site, and re-assemble the crate around the item, packing it with the necessary filling to secure the item in place and provide cushion from damage. Other times, the expert will build the custom crate from scratch on location. Some items may require specific stabilization methods, like molds or stands that cradle the item within the crate.

Some Items that Require Custom Crating Could Include:

• Specialty lighting fixtures, like chandeliers, especially with a lot of glass features
• Artwork and paintings, especially of high value to avoid tears, scratches, dings and marks
• Statues and sculptures and stand-alone large, fragile décor
• Musical instruments
• Tools with sharp items that could puncture through cardboard boxes
• Unique items that will not fit or may be too heavy for a cardboard shipping box
• Vehicles like ATVs, wagons, small motorbikes, etc.

More Than a Cardboard Box

Custom crating is also not as simple as nailing together some sides of wood to form a box. Attention is paid to the strength of its construction, with wood cut to proper size for a snug fit, reinforced braces for stability, hooks to be able to attach equipment that can push, pull, lift and move the crate and specially molded inserts and interior protective devices. Custom crates and materials are also weatherized to accommodate for climate changes and humidity.

Once your items are custom crated, your dedicated Suddath coordinator will work with you on the transport of the items as part of your move, whether they are being shipped to the final destination or to a temperature-controlled storage facility to protect the items.

At Suddath, we have moved every type of item from A to Z. Our trained professionals have perfected the best methods for packing fragile items and securing your valuables so that they arrive safely to your new destination.  

ADDITIONAL MOVING SERVICES

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Piano Moving

Suddath has trained experts who understand every piece of wood, ivory, and steel your piano is made from. We understand how damaging moisture and unnatural positioning can be to your instrument and know how to safeguard against them.

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White Glove Moving

Prefer a full-service, hands-free local move? Suddath is happy to provide white-glove service options that allow you to continue with your normal daily life while we handle every single aspect of your move.

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Automobile Moving

During a home move, time might not allow you to check a road trip off your list just yet. Suddath will make sure your vehicle gets to your new destination.

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Motorcycle Moving

If you need someone to carefully transport your motorcycle, Suddath can work with our trusted partners to ensure it gets to your new destination safely.

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CUSTOM CRATING FAQ

How much does it cost to crate unique items?

Cost for custom crating all depends on the type, size, materials used, destination, etc. Crates can sometimes be pre-sized to fit more common items that require extra protection, but often a crate is custom built to the dimensions and weight of the object, which then determines the final size. In some instances, the crate may be very large and heavy, requiring special equipment to load the crate for transport. And of course, the materials needed to cushion the inside can vary as well. Your Suddath coordinator will work with you to determine exactly which items are candidates for custom crating for the move and help devise the most cost-effective plan.

Will we need extra moving vehicles to accommodate custom crates?

In most instances, the size of the move will determine the number of moving vessels needed. Average-sized residential homes will often have standard items to pack and may have some crated items. There are some properties however, they may have an abundance of items that require custom crating, and the need for an additional vehicle to pack and move the crates may be a consideration. All details will be outlined in the agreement with the moving crate company you contract with and tracked during the process.

Will you crate and move my valuable items as a singular service?

Our service offering does not include building and transporting crates only as a singular moving service. We do, however, work with customers during a home move on the best options for custom crating valuable and unique items and transporting to the new destination.

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