What's the best (cheap) way to move your stuff?

[angie007 0]

I went to UPS yesterday and ask about shipping my other stuff with them,,,the guy told me that I'll pay around $200 if I have 50 kg..but I made sure that the receiver doesn't have to pay anything...and he gave me a form to fill up for "free entry"..so, that's what i'm gonna do..the rest of my stuff I'll just take with me.I am flying and I want to make sure that my stuff won't exceed the maximum weight allowed, because they charge to much....

[DeadPoolX 9]

I wouldn't recommend U-Haul. The condition of their trucks are terrible. The trucks move slower than a lawn mower and turns about as well as brick. You might get lucky, but overall, I'd avoid them like the plague.

If you want to drive and use a truck, I'd suggest renting a van or SUV from Budget. That's what my wife and I did. Granted, we drove from Edmonton to Vancouver (which isn't nearly as far as you're traveling), but the vehicle we rented was very large, could fit a ton of stuff, and was much nicer to drive in than any U-Haul truck.

UPS and FedEx are expensive, but if you're shipping anything and want it there quickly (and intact), I'd go with FedEx. UPS broke some of my DVD cases, all of which were hard plastic. The DVDs themselves were okay, but the fact remains, it takes a lot of force to break one of those hard plastic cases.

Unless you sell most of your stuff or send only a few items by FedEx (or UPS, if you really want to), it'll cost more than $500 for the entire thing. Renting a vehicle, whether it's U-Haul or Budget, will be pricey.

[JillA 2]

I wouldn't recommend U-Haul. The condition of their trucks are terrible. The trucks move slower than a lawn mower and turns about as well as brick. You might get lucky, but overall, I'd avoid them like the plague.

If you want to drive and use a truck, I'd suggest renting a van or SUV from Budget. That's what my wife and I did. Granted, we drove from Edmonton to Vancouver (which isn't nearly as far as you're traveling), but the vehicle we rented was very large, could fit a ton of stuff, and was much nicer to drive in than any U-Haul truck.

UPS and FedEx are expensive, but if you're shipping anything and want it there quickly (and intact), I'd go with FedEx. UPS broke some of my DVD cases, all of which were hard plastic. The DVDs themselves were okay, but the fact remains, it takes a lot of force to break one of those hard plastic cases.

Unless you sell most of your stuff or send only a few items by FedEx (or UPS, if you really want to), it'll cost more than $500 for the entire thing. Renting a vehicle, whether it's U-Haul or Budget, will be pricey.

True, BUT Uhaul recently changed the regulations due to accidents/complaints. For long-haul trips, the truck cannot have over a certain mileage, for example 60,000. Once it hits that number, they retire the trucks to local moves. Usually the trucks being used for long hauls are in better condition.

I was scared of Uhaul too due to all of the horror stories but didn't really have another option for a one way move that we wanted to handle ourselves. It was a good truck though with no issues, maybe we got lucky.

[bluegreen 0]

I wouldn't recommend U-Haul. The condition of their trucks are terrible. The trucks move slower than a lawn mower and turns about as well as brick. You might get lucky, but overall, I'd avoid them like the plague.

If you want to drive and use a truck, I'd suggest renting a van or SUV from Budget. That's what my wife and I did. Granted, we drove from Edmonton to Vancouver (which isn't nearly as far as you're traveling), but the vehicle we rented was very large, could fit a ton of stuff, and was much nicer to drive in than any U-Haul truck.

UPS and FedEx are expensive, but if you're shipping anything and want it there quickly (and intact), I'd go with FedEx. UPS broke some of my DVD cases, all of which were hard plastic. The DVDs themselves were okay, but the fact remains, it takes a lot of force to break one of those hard plastic cases.

Unless you sell most of your stuff or send only a few items by FedEx (or UPS, if you really want to), it'll cost more than $500 for the entire thing. Renting a vehicle, whether it's U-Haul or Budget, will be pricey.

True, BUT Uhaul recently changed the regulations due to accidents/complaints. For long-haul trips, the truck cannot have over a certain mileage, for example 60,000. Once it hits that number, they retire the trucks to local moves. Usually the trucks being used for long hauls are in better condition.

I was scared of Uhaul too due to all of the horror stories but didn't really have another option for a one way move that we wanted to handle ourselves. It was a good truck though with no issues, maybe we got lucky.

I have to agree–our Uhaul was nice and new and didn't have many miles. But it was still a truck packed to the gills towing a car, so of course it was slower than a nice SUV:) Maybe we got lucky too, but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with the condition. And the mileage, considering we were carrying boxes of rocks.

[defunct 0]

If you're seriously considering U-Haul, I'd suggest that you call for a quote, as their prices can vary wildly depending on where you're renting from. For example, renting a trailer from Arkansas to Pasadena, California was around $300, while renting from Pasadena to Arkansas was over $1000. We found a better price in a neighbouring town, however it was nowhere close to $300.

[suzukiwookie 1]

Uhaul will calculate the size of trailer you can tow on their website. I doubt you'll be able to do it all for $500, but the time you get your hitch put on, the cost of the rental and then your gas. Have you checked into one of those plastic luggage compartments that go on your roof. They hold quite a bit of stuff. I think you can rent those as well at uhaul or maybe purchase on second hand on kijiji. Between that and your car maybe you'd have enough room. I'm not sure what I am doing yet. I am looking into a uhaul truck with a trailer to haul my car. Remember your going to need a letter stating that your car meets emission standards before they will allow it in, unless this has changed and you won't be able to sell it for two years without having to pay duty on it. Again this may have changed as well. I checked into the blue book value of my car here and where I am moving to in the US its actually 4 thousand dollars less in the US. Something to think about. GOOD LUCK!

Yeah I got the letter (both of them). Funny story actually - well, not really funny, but I'm all out of tears.. There was super cold weather here in Toronto in mid-Jan. I finally finished faxing in all the stuff to Honda Canada and American Honda, and I got my letter from American Honda in the mail. I neatly put it in my desk with the other one and thought, "Ok, one less fish to fry!". Then I got in my Civic and hit a runway of black ice on the 401 and wrote off the car So I had a nice funeral for the Civic, and now I bought a Honda Accord and had to do the letter thing again. Honda must be getting suspicious.. Sending me all those letters.

You can also rent a small U-Haul truck and tow your car instead. I would say that $500 isn't enough, however.

The U-Haul truck is a no-go. I calculated everything to be well above $1500 to have a truck towing my car. Not to mention the gas.

[ozone_1974 1]

Why don't you ask your car dealer what is the safe charge your car can pull ? I mean it is not like you have an entire house to move from what you describe. Then you can base your decision from there.

[suzukiwookie 1]

Pack as much as you can into your vehicle and sell the rest. You can buy new/used stuff here in Fla for the money you save in rentals and gas. You have mountains to drive through in order to get here. It's a beautiful drive but I wouldn't want to be hauling a trailer with an Accord. (I'm assuming you're going the scenic route and not the Windsor/Detroit route.) And that doesn't even take into account the fact that you might get hit with a snowstorm on your way through the northern States.

Now for the good stuff!..... I've driven that route a million times. Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration. But at least 40. If you want to know where the cheapest gas and the best places to stay are, let me know.

Have a great trip!

Yes, I think that's what I might end up doing. It's going to be really sad to leave so much of my junk behind. It took me a long time to collect that much stuff. But I guess that goes along with starting a new life - new stuff! I'm going to pack as much stuff into my car as I can, and then I'm going to put the rest in some large suitcases (purchased for $20 each in Chinatown!), and sending one suitcase with every participant who is flying down to my wedding - yes, it's cheap, I know.. but hey, "I invited you to my wedding man... you're my BEST MAN!" lol I've already practiced my sales pitch.

As for the trip down. I went down once to surprise my giflriend in 2007 driving a very rare 1991 Olds Toronado Trofeo. I broke down in Erie PA in the middle of the night, had to sleep in a Wendy's parking lot until the next morning (didn't want to ruin the surprise) and then got my car fixed at Bill's Atlantic (highly recommended by the way), then was on my way again. Tried to drive straight through and got to Georgia before I started to see things. Yep, actually seeing shadows and patterns. And I've never done drugs before. So I stopped in a truck stop and passed out for a few hours. Then i woke up suddenly and started to drive again, while trying to remember (in my dazed state) where i was going in such a hurry, so that was a questionable 5 minutes. Luckily I had picked the right direction before my memory came back... But needless to say, the trip was hell and I'm dreading doing it again.

This time, I just plan to take it easy with my girl, listen to some tunes, munch on some tim-bits and follow my trusty GPS, but if you have a good route with nice sights and cheap gas, hotels where we won't have to accidentaly sit on a prostitute, please, let me know! tyrred2@hotmail.com.

[suzukiwookie 1]

Why don't you ask your car dealer what is the safe charge your car can pull ? I mean it is not like you have an entire house to move from what you describe. Then you can base your decision from there.

Well the specifications for my car state that it can tow 1000 Lbs. However, my dad who has been a mechanic for 30-some years told me that Honda puts that number almost all the way across the line for most of their cars and it may not actually be accurate. And driving 2200-some-odd Kms's hauling 1000+ Lbs (the trailer already weighs 850 Lbs) is a sure way to over heat and wear down the transmission - especially going over the mountains. So I don't think it's worth chancing a transmission - they are not cheap to replace. So I think my suit case idea is much cheaper and safer for my car!

Plus the car dealer will just look at that spec sheet and glibly tell me that it will haul 1000 Lbs. They won't be able to factor in all the variables.

[suzukiwookie 1]

We just moved from CO to CA with a Uhaul towing my car on a transporter. Basically it kind of sucks and if there is a way to avoid towing anything I would do it. We did not fill up the entire truck so we "sold" space to someone on Craiglist, which paid for our gas (however, she had boxes that were literally full of rocks, so I suspect we would've spent way less on gas without her stuff. Another story though:). It took forever—we had to drive really slowly over the mountain passes. going downhill is much scarier and more dangerous than going up. I am so glad it was summertime.

One thing I will say, is that the UHaul price is always negotiable! My husband went to a few different Uhaul places until he found someone willing to negotiate. We got the truck for $100 less, including 00 extra miles, and the transporter for the price of a tow dolly. I think we saved about $300. It helped that it was the middle of the month—not "moving" week.

I might look closer to the Craigslist thing.. but I am leery about trusting someone with my stuff. They could very easily dissapear with my things. What kind of arrangement did you make with the Rock Person to guarentee them that their rocks would not be stolen?

[ozone_1974 1]

In that case yes that would not be a good idea .. lol

For your other question, last time I went to Tampa I just took the I95, drove 10 hrs or so the first day, stopped in a days in a little bit past Washington, slept there for the night and then drove the rest to Tampa (took approx 11 hours the second day). I actually enjoyed the I95 starting around North Carolina .. Starting from North Carolina is when I started feeling I was heading south

It was also nice to ride beside all the Canadians I saw on that highway .. lol

Edited February 19, 2009 by ozone_1974

[suzukiwookie 1]

In that case yes that would not be a good idea .. lol

For your other question, last time I went to Tampa I just took the I95, drove 10 hrs or so the first day, stopped in a days in a little bit past Washington, slept there for the night and then drove the rest to Tampa (took approx 11 hours the second day). I actually enjoyed the I95 starting around North Carolina .. Starting from North Carolina you start feeling you're heading south

It was also nice to ride beside all the Canadians I saw on that highway .. lol

I was just asking my fiancee the other day "At what point do you think we're going to hit that line where we cross from winter to warmth?" and she thought NC would be that point. So I'm glad you seconded that. That time I drove down it was July and it just went from hot to gross. And then when I got to Tampa it was a new level of gross. I love FL, but I'm going to have to get used to those African summer temperatures!

[ozone_1974 1]

Yes the weather in Florida is very different than in Canada and it definitely takes some "getting used to", but so far the Floridian weather did not bother me that much to be honest, I even actually liked it

[Carlawarla 1]

I'm soooo with not bringing much down with you if that's all you've got to bring in the first place. I'd toss the idea of a UHaul personally. I downgraded from a house, to an apartment, to a room in a friends house before finally making the move here. Having two adult kids in Canada helped me to dispose of things mind you, but Gene already had a house full of (nice) furniture, so there was little sense in bringing any of my junk! I brought 5 suitcases, and had two boxes sent down by courier after I arrived. Pictures and little momentos from my kids were the important things. Clothes were in suitcases, and I gave so many away and just bought new stuff. Took my laptop witih me on the plane...well, the rest is history. You'd be surprised how much you won't miss stuff that you didn't take.

It's hard, but if you take an honest look at what you have, and really really look objectively at it, you'll probably see that you could probably put most of your stuff in the car, and maybe send a few boxes down later.

Best of luck in your decision!

[Krikit 1,163]

Yeah I got the letter (both of them). Funny story actually - well, not really funny, but I'm all out of tears.. There was super cold weather here in Toronto in mid-Jan. I finally finished faxing in all the stuff to Honda Canada and American Honda, and I got my letter from American Honda in the mail. I neatly put it in my desk with the other one and thought, "Ok, one less fish to fry!". Then I got in my Civic and hit a runway of black ice on the 401 and wrote off the car So I had a nice funeral for the Civic, and now I bought a Honda Accord and had to do the letter thing again. Honda must be getting suspicious.. Sending me all those letters.

Oh wow @ the picture. Glad you're not hurt. PITA about the compliance letter, though.

Yes, I think that's what I might end up doing. It's going to be really sad to leave so much of my junk behind. It took me a long time to collect that much stuff. But I guess that goes along with starting a new life - new stuff! I'm going to pack as much stuff into my car as I can, and then I'm going to put the rest in some large suitcases (purchased for $20 each in Chinatown!), and sending one suitcase with every participant who is flying down to my wedding - yes, it's cheap, I know.. but hey, "I invited you to my wedding man... you're my BEST MAN!" lol I've already practiced my sales pitch.

As for the trip down. I went down once to surprise my giflriend in 2007 driving a very rare 1991 Olds Toronado Trofeo. I broke down in Erie PA in the middle of the night, had to sleep in a Wendy's parking lot until the next morning (didn't want to ruin the surprise) and then got my car fixed at Bill's Atlantic (highly recommended by the way), then was on my way again. Tried to drive straight through and got to Georgia before I started to see things. Yep, actually seeing shadows and patterns. And I've never done drugs before. So I stopped in a truck stop and passed out for a few hours. Then i woke up suddenly and started to drive again, while trying to remember (in my dazed state) where i was going in such a hurry, so that was a questionable 5 minutes. Luckily I had picked the right direction before my memory came back... But needless to say, the trip was hell and I'm dreading doing it again.

This time, I just plan to take it easy with my girl, listen to some tunes, munch on some tim-bits and follow my trusty GPS, but if you have a good route with nice sights and cheap gas, hotels where we won't have to accidentaly sit on a prostitute, please, let me know! tyrred2@hotmail.com.

Having others bring your items with them on the plane is a great idea. Thanks for the heads up about Bill's Atlantic. Always good to know. I've had the hallucination thing while driving, too. It's freaky. Someone I know had one while driving from Vancouver to Toronto. After about 16 hours he began to hallucinate he was driving on the seam of a couch. Thankfully, he pulled over.

I'll send you all the info, SuzukiWookie. I just wanted to let you know I'll put it together and send it next week. I've got visitors arriving in a couple of hours and don't have the time to do it properly at the moment. Sorry about that.