Moving in a new house or apartment? Make a Day 1 kit, to have the essentials all in one place. I recently bought a house! Hoorah! When packing, I put together 2 large rubber totes filled with things I needed in the first day to be prepared in the new place.
Fast forward to moving day: Box #1 was exactly what we needed, and I used almost everything I put in there the first or second day. Box #2 was specific to our home, since we had things to fix right away. But even so, you may have furniture that needs to be taken apart and reassembled at the new place. Having tools in one place, for us, made this much easier.
Day 1 Essentials Box for Moving:
Box #1: Essentials
- 2-3 rolls of toilet paper (we went through the 1st one fast with contractors, friends, and family all stopping by to help)
- hand soap
- hand towel
- first aid kit (try this FAK for a start, or make your own FAK)
- bleach/cleaning solution
- sponge/rag/cleaning thing
- water bottle
- ziplock baggies
- trash bags
- work gloves (my new favorite True Grip gloves!)
- paper plates
- napkins/paper towels
- plastic cutlery
- notebook
- pencil
- utility knife (my much loved basic knife)
Box #2: Tools
- Hammer (removing old hanging nails)
- screw drivers
- allen-wrenches (for re-assembling some shelves)
- flashlight/headlamps (our favorite Black Diamond headlamp)
- More specific things:
- mouse traps
- measuring tape
- power drill (we have the fashionable lime-green Ryobi)