Still Unpacking

We started moving here September 1, 2011 with being fully moved in on the 15th when we took official possession as owners.  Here it is ten months later and we are still unpacking!  In fairness, we were at our vacation home for a total of eleven of those weeks.  Then the house was disrupted as we've had rooms being painted as well as various service people and our custom woodworker in.  My husband could not start unpacking his larger sports and music collection until the custom shelving was finished for the games room.  It was installed a couple of weeks ago so more boxes are getting emptied.

Summer is upon us so that has meant outdoor work to be done in addition to the heavier canning season starting.  We opened the pool which translates into more company.  Our boat is in the water but we haven't had her out yet.  So we have a lot less indoor time to unpack and get things organized.  Still we are plugging along trying to get a box or two unpacked each day.  As we unpack we do a bit of culling out.  Even though we did a lot of decluttering preparing for the move, clearly we still have too much stuff!  Not only that, we have cardboard boxes to crush and moving bins to store which tend to take up a lot of room until dealt with.  If we keep at it, everything should be unpacked and dealt with by the end of summer.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2012

A Few Things to Consider When Moving into a New Home

Moving into a new house is exciting.  The surroundings are different inside and out which takes time getting used to.  Some things may not be as you remembered or as they seem though.  In fact they more than likely won't be as you remembered.  Even if you buy a new built home you will be dealing with the remnants of anyone or anything including pets or animals that were in the house prior to you taking possession.   There are a few things to consider when moving:

• cleanliness - Regardless of how clean the house was when you viewed it or when you started moving in you will have to clean every surface to your standards.  You may need to hire a cleaning service, have carpeting steam cleaned or the exterior of the house power washed.  It is a good idea to use a disinfecting spray or wipe down all hard surfaces including door knobs with rubbing alcohol or white vinegar to kill off any lingering germs.
• allergen control - Allergens such as pet dander, mold and dust mites stay with the house meaning you get to deal with them.  This can be quite problematic for those with severe allergies.  All window treatment should be removed and washed.  Every nook and cranny should be thoroughly vacuumed (eg. under refrigerator, around baseboards, windowsills, and etc.).  If the house has carpeting it should be treated with a mitacide then steam cleaned.  Mold hides behind wallpaper, anywhere that it is damp (eg. bathrooms, anywhere there's a water leak) and around windows.  Clean these surfaces well with rubbing alcohol, white vinegar or chlorine bleach as well as remove wallpaper or wallpaper border.  Only use chlorine bleach as a last resort as it can cause respiratory problems.  Remove the vent cover and vacuum any heating vents.   Add vent filters on forced air system.  If you have forced air (HVAC) have the duct work cleaned.
• tobacco residue -  Tobacco leaves a yellowing residue on all surfaces although some show the residue more than others.  If the previous owners/tenants were smokers the ceilings, walls and all light fixtures will need to be washed thoroughly to remove the residue.
• odours - It is surprising how many odours can linger in your new residence from the previous homeowner or tenant.  You really need to get to the source of the odour meaning the vacuum cleaner is your best friend to rid your new home of odours.  Persistent pet odours can be neutralized with specialized spray combined with a good vacuuming.  Wash any window treatment left behind and wash the windows as well.  A bowl of white vinegar will help neutralize any recent cooking odours.  Change the furnace and range hood filters.  Clean the bathroom exhaust cover.  If a refrigerator is part of your purchase or lease, remove the bottom vent cover then vacuum under the fridge, wash the cover and replace it.  Clean the fridge drip pan if it has one too as this can be a source of odour sometimes.  Neutralizing sprays can be used on any carpeting but they really should be professionally steam cleaned to effectively remove odours.  Neutralizing sprays can be used on hard surfaces as well.  White vinegar will also help neutralize odours on hard surfaces.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Settling in Costs After Moving

There are always costs associated with moving.  These range from legal fees and real estate fees to utility connection charges.  What often is not mentioned is the settling in costs of moving.  You are tired from the move and everything is chaotic so for the first week or so after moving, you eat out more.  That's to be expected.  There's window treatment to replace, hooks to hang your pictures, as well as all those odds and ends that just pop-up.  For example, we needed to run a gas line for our dryer when we moved in.  We discovered the winter pool cover is beyond repair so needs to be replaced.   We also discovered both toilets needed the flushing mechansism replaced and one tub faucet is leaking.  These are things that are unexpected expenses yet are seldom seen during a home walk-through.  Some of our floor vent  covers needed replacing because they are in poor condition but that was hidden by the previous owners furniture.  There were several uncovered cable outlets because the previous owner had at least three satellite dishes feeding into each room but it was at best a very amateur intallation.  We intend to remove the boxes and cover in the holes as we prep each room for painting but there were a couple that needed covers to keep curious little hands safe.  All this is unavoidable, falling back to the associated costs of moving.

Then there are the extras.  There is no medicine cabinet in the main bathroom so we have a friend custom making one to match our cabinets.  He is also making a custom lighted shelf for the kitchen where some of my cookbooks can be displayed.  I replaced the kitchen cabinet pulls/knobs to something a bit more suiting to the kitchen.  I bought a new electric broom, refillable swifter style wet mop and dust mop to help care for the hard flooring.  We don't know if the grout for ceramic tiling (counters, entrance, bathrooms, half of family room) was seal so still need to pick up grout seal and we need to get marble floor restorer/sealer that is recommended for the proper care of marble floors.  I'm sure there will be a lot of little extras needed as we work on getting settled into our new house!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Silencing the Noise of Hard Flooring

Any room without carpeting is going to be a bit louder than a room with carpeting because it lacks the sound deafening properties of carpet.  Carpet absorbs sound waves but without that carpeting the sound waves have a chance to bounce around creating more noise.  Now in terms of health, a home with no carpeting is considerably healthier with better air quality and less allergens.  So the trick becomes toning down the noise level while enjoying a healthier house.  There are several ways to help reduce the noise level in homes without carpeting:

• volume controls - A large portion of noise making devices (eg. televisions, alarm clocks, signaling devices like timers, and etc. ) within our homes have volume controls.  Turn these devices down to a comfortable level.  Eliminate some like timers if not necessary.  For example both my washer and dryer signal when finished but the signal can easily be turned off if desired.
• furniture pads - All furniture should have some type of furniture pad for the feet.  Not only does this protect the floors it almost eliminates any noise from sliding chairs and other furniture over hard surfaces.  
• cabinet pads -  Kitchen and bathroom cabinets can make a fair amount of noise when closed.  Solve this by using felt or plastic cabinet pads on the two outer, inside corners of each drawer and door. 
• window covering - Window covering serves a decorative and functional purpose including privacy and light control.  However window coverings can serve as a sound deading barrier between the outside and inside as well as absorbing indoor sound waves.  Ideally those with asthma and allergies are told to not use fabric curtains or blinds.  In a home without carpeting the allergens especially dust mites has been reduced to such a low level that you can get away with using some fabric window treatment without creating a health problem.  Just be sure the window treatment can be washed on a regular basis.  The fabric will help soften the indoor noise.  
• decor - It is surprising how decor can actually quiet a house.   Anything textile like afghans, sofa sets, cushions, plants and that type of thing can really help with noise reduction.
• throw rugs - I personally want to keep throw rugs to a bare minimum and in fact am working on using indoor/outdoor carpeting on the porch to collect any debris before getting into the house that would eliminate a throw rug at the entrance.  I'd rather not have any throw rugs in our home but adding throw rugs in the bathroom and bedrooms can help dampen the noise and during the winter months a throw rug in the family room will warm the floors while dampen the noise. 
• appliances - Large appliances can add a considerable amount of noise to the household which is amplified in a home with no carpeting.  If you are in the position to replace any large appliance look for the ultra-quiet models.  Some manufacturers like Bosch take pride in how quiet their appliances are.  Try to run louder large appliances (eg. washer, dryer and dishwasher) when you are away from home. 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

No Carpets!

Aside of location, one of the main selling features for our new house was the fact that there was no carpeting anywhere in the house.  I was advised years ago by my allergist to get rid of all carpeting in the home.  Each house since then we worked towards that goal but with this house it has already been done for us.  Most of the house is wood laminate.  The two bathrooms are ceramic tile; the entrance and part of the lower family room are terrazzo tile; and the kitchen is marble tile.  The utility room has sheet flooring that we will be replacing likely with sheet flooring but possibly ceramic tile.  I have two things to master with all hard flooring:

• cleaning - Each surface has it's own care and maintenance recommendation.  I am adamant about not using toxic cleaners in our home.  It's important to stay on top of keeping these floors clean and dust free so cleaning once a week is not going to work.  Some specialized equipment is necessary but the good news is most of it is rather inexpensive.
• sound deadening - A house with no carpeting is naturally louder than one that has sound deadening carpeting.  All sounds in a house with only hard flooring are amplified.

I have a few methods for dealing with both the cleaning and sound deadening issues.  I will discuss those over the next couple of posts.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Being Unsettled

Regardless of how organized of a move you make there is a period of being unsettled.  Unfortunately there is no avoiding this adjustment period as you become accustomed to the new sounds and traffic flow of your new home.  We have a fair amount of adjusting to do because we have lived semi-rural and rural for almost the past ten years.  We have moved into an urban setting that will enable us to spend the three months of the year we want to spend at our vacation home.

I honestly think our adjustment period will be lessened in that neither one of us bonded to our previous house.  Don't get me wrong as it was a gorgeous house in a prime location just it wasn't for us.  We never put up any pictures or our original pieces of artwork.  We painted most of the rooms and did a small reno in the kitchen yet the house was not ours.  It was just the feeling both of us had so really it was our house, not our home.  The house was very isolating especially for me as we had to drive everywhere.  It cramped my cooking style somewhat because if I felt like making a dish and on the rare occasion I was out of an ingredient or wanted to make a dish with an ingredient I normally don't stock it involved pretty much a half hour drive one way either direction.  Friends that popped over for coffee didn't come out as much given the drive.  In short, as soon as we bought our vacation home I was itching to sell our permanent residence to buy something a bit more fitting with our lifestyle.

We moved from a fairly quiet house with the main external noise being boat and watercraft traffic mixed with an abundance of bird twittering especially in the early morning hours.  Our new house has little external noise coming in but it is a louder house because there is absolutely no carpeting!  Carpeting is sound absorbing though so despite the benefits of having no carpeting it means we need to take a few extra measures to tame the normal household noise.  Our last house was a bi-level as is this one but the traffic patterns are very different so that will take a bit of getting used to.  Our last house by design was a very dark house with heavy summer shading and little natural light especially on the lower main living level.  As a result I was accustomed to turning a fair number of 'daylight' CFL on each and every day - 4 in the kitchen and six in the family room and office area.  This house is naturally light and bright with good natural light so there is no need to turn on lights during the daytime. Our last house backed onto a beautiful natural waterway that we used for entertaining and sitting by but not swimming.  This house has a large pool with two decks, so we essentially traded the view for usable water.  It backs onto farmland but the view out of our front windows is that of neat, tidy homes something that is rather comforting after being so isolated where we were.  Unlike the bathrooms at our old house that were ancient and badly in need of updating, the bathrooms here are spacious, sleek, and modern with beautiful cabinetry and ceramic tile floors.  Neither have a window so even during the day a light is needed.  We are installing a solar tube in the main bath to eliminate using electrical daytime lighting.

So we are unsettled but quickly settling, a bit more each day.  My husband hooked up the main tv with surround sound last night.  My new gas range won't be installed until the weekend.  It's just sitting in the kitchen taunting me.  A friend is coming over tonight to help install the new dishwasher and change all the locks.  They are hoping to change out the guts in the toilets as well.  I've been working on unpacking and getting things organized.  By this weekend it will be hard to tell that we just moved in!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Those Little Details

It is virtually impossible to notice everything that may be needed in terms of repair, maintenance and decor when buying a house.  The reality is with most sales you the buyer sees the house once.  You may have two additional showings - the final walk-through and the house inspection.  These are optional usually written in as part of your conditions of the purchase.  Even if at best you have three walk-throughs before the closing date, the reality is you will not see everything that needs to be done.  Larger furniture can block a surprising number of flaws as we found in this house where multiple cables had been run for television service but there were just the holes with no cover.  We never pay attention to painted surfaces as that is easy to repaint and my husband has an issue with the older style light switches and outlets so it is a given one of the first things he does is replace all light switches and outlets in the house.  Quite often toilets are leaky which is something you more than likely won't notice with one or two walk-throughs.  Windows can be drafty again something you won't notice especially if viewing the house on a calm day.  Little things like window locks, door locks and quite often light fixtures go unnoticed.  Even the thermostat gets overlooked.  All of these things are easy to fix.  We got the keys to our new home on September 1 with a closing date of September 15.  I immediatedly started making a list and shopping for the necessary repairs.  Here's my list of what we have bought so far for repairs:

• toilet fill valve and flapper (both toilets) - The existing fill valves and flappers are in rough condition with one already leaking. 
• lock/deadbolt sets (four doors) - Regardless of the neighbourhood it is always a good idea to have the locks changed on a new house.  If the locks and deadbolts are in good condition, you can take them to the hardware store to have the cylinders changed.  The next option is to completely replace the locks and deadbolts.  Beware though as we found in our previouse home, newer locksets will not fit older doors and mobile homes present a special problem in the doors are thinner than normal so a simple replacement may present problems.
• outlets/switches - My husband likes the modern decora style so I bought enough of both to replace all outlets and switches in the house with matching covers.
• outlet/switches insulators - Many people do not understand that foam insulators should be used on all outlets and swiches located on outer walls.  These are cheap to buy and easy to install.
• tub/shower faucet set - The upstairs bathroom tub and shower faucet set is leaking horribly!  As it happens we bought a lovely Moen set for the intended bathroom reno at our previous house that we never got to so we can use that set here.  
• caulk - Sealing up a house is always high on our priority list.  I fully believe it takes a good three years to seal a house and it is always an ongoing process.
• floor protectors - We have all hard flooring here which means floor protectors to prevent scratches and reduce noise.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

The Move

The major part of our move is over.  We hired movers for the large items and moved much of the smaller items ourselves.  We still have about a pick-up truck load of stuff left at the old house and then the cleaning but we have until the fifteenth so that isn't too bad.  The only real casualty of the move was the movers tipping the deep fryer causing it to leak an oily mess.  In perspective that really wasn't too bad.  Oh and I'm not thrilled with the Bell internet installer that told me I had to delete Airport!  Umm that would give me no wireless anything, and so much for techs that know what they are talking about.  Other than that things have gone rather smooth with the move.  Stay tuned...

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

My Neighours are So Ticked!

We have had rather good neighbour relations here aside of the fact that one of our neighbours was actually stealing our hydro.  We disconnected that and life has been smooth.  When we moved here we did not ask for a survey because in our minds the lot was pretty much well defined with shrubbery and we weren't planning on erecting any fencing.  Well today the surveyors came out, hired by our buyer.  We discovered on each side our neighbours were using about three feet for a total of six feet the length of our property that we have been paying taxes on but they were using.  Now in all honesty it really didn't matter to us and still doesn't but apparently it matters to our neighbours.  They are suddenly losing that space to use as they desire.  The thing is it was the new buyer who ordered the survey, not us.  So our neighbours on both sides are not talking to us.  I'm scratching my head and saying hey what, we had nothing to do with it.  Our buyer is going to be going into a sticky sitiuation and even stickier since they are planning on fencing the property. 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

The Kitchen During the Move

One of my friends sets up a temporary kitchen including a specially packed box to get them started.  It takes her a week or two to get her kitchen up and running.  I cannot do that!  My kitchen is the last room packed up but the first one set up.  There are a couple of reasons for this.  First off during any move we have friends and family helping meaning I want a coffee station, cold beverages in the fridge and snacks.  I have good culinary skills so want that reflected in the moving day snacks so there is no way I'm going to offer bagged potato chips to those helping us move!  It is our way of thanking our family and friends for their very generous help.  I want to be able to make a proper hot breakfast the first morning in our new house.  This blesses the house bringing good karma and good fortune for your future in your new home.

I rely on the following to achieve this goal:

• slow cooker
• outdoor grill
• coolers
• a few pre-made dishes

Adding to the kitchen issues during this move is I have absolutely no choice but to process all of my tomato products between now and September 17.  I'm going to be tired from moving but have no choice.  That means I will be processing about 10 hampers (5/8 bushel) within that time frame otherwise we have not tomato products for the upcoming year.  My husband is brought home the first two hampers last Sunday making a long day even longer.  It doesn't help that I have an internal infection that is really sapping my energy. 

Here's my plans for dealing with canning tomato products while in the midst of the move:

• this kitchen - This kitchen will remain fully functional until the first week of September at which time the new kitchen will be fully functional.  We need to install a gas line for our new kitchen range.  All of my canning needs will be transferred over to the new house prior to that date.  I will spend the mornings canning here.  That allows me two to three runs of the pressure canner before lunch time.  I can then focus on packing and organizing for the afternoon then relaxing in the evening.  
• new kitchen - I anticipate canning in my new kitchen by September 10 if not sooner depending how fast we can get the gas line moved.  By that date my entire pantry including empty jars will have been moved to our new house by then and the new dishwasher will have be installed.  

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

The Economic Benefits of Our Move

Moving can be a costly venture.  In most cases, renters are moving to home ownership, home owners are moving to more expensive home or high cost of living areas.  You don't hear a lot about moves made with the intentions of economical downsizing.  That is precisely what we are do on so many levels.  Here are some areas where this move is going to save us money:

• mortgage - We are significantly decreasing our mortgage.  This is a big one!  The interesting thing is we are getting a new house with more square footage and increased entertainment potential.
• property taxes - Our property taxes will decrease by about a quarter yet we will enjoy more amenities.
• insurance - The will be a reduction in both house and vehicle insurance.
• travel - Gasoline is only increasing in price and thanks to last year's introduction of HST on gasoline it is even more expensive.  This move will save us on average 40 km driving per day!  It will save having to drive for groceries or to some restaurants.  It shortens the number of kilometres for essentials like doctor visits, hospital and pharmacy. 
• utilities - Our hydro use will decrease somewhat although we do expect to use the AC a bit more in the warm weather.  We will no longer need to have lights on everyday and the house lends itself nicely to installing a couple of solar tubes so we will have lots of light without the cost.  That should be more than offset by changing to use natural gas for cooking.  Natural gas is about a third of the cost of hydro here in beautiful Ontario, Canada.  We should not see much of an increase on our natural bill because we are going back to charcoal and propane for the outdoor grill that is used almost daily during the warm weather.  Our outdoor grill is currently natural gas.  We will be installing a natural gas fireplace because they are quite economical.  The new one will be more energy efficient than our current circa 1980's gas fireplace.  Our water usage will increase with the pool.
• phones - Our basic landline service will remain the same cost but we are switching my cell phone to a pay as you go.  We may check out ooma.com for our landline but haven't decided yet.
• television - Our satellite television service will remain the same.  Satellite is pretty much the same price as cable and there is little point installing an antenna any more.
• internet - Our internet service will be changing from the high priced faux highspeed of satellite to lower priced, real highspeed!  A bonus is we will no longer have to put FAPing or almost daily satellite internet outages.  I fired the satellite service yesterday effective September 14, the day before our official closing date. 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Hiring a Professional Mover

We are avid DIYers with an extremely good support system of family and friends who are more than willing to help us out at the drop of a hat.  They have helped us move multiple times over the years.  The last move we arranged to move most of the small things then hired movers for the large appliances and furniture.  The thing is we as well as our friends are not getting any younger.  Moving involves heavier lifting that is not the easiest on older bodies.  We were so impressed with this arrangement that we decided to hire professional movers for this move. 

Here are a few things to consider when hiring professional movers:

• price - Professional movers charge by the hour per man from the time they leave their home location until they return to their home location.   We are paying $90 per hour for two men plus truck.  We estimate we will be paying for about 8 hours of time.
• liability - You are allowing the movers onto your property to move your possessions from one property to another so it is very important that they are bonded.  Bonded means that they have been screened for criminal activitiy (eg. criminal background check, sexual background check) similar to those needed in any field working with many public sectors and children.  Do not hire anyone that is not bonded.  This is for your protection.  If your property is damaged in any way the movers are legally responsible.  If your property goes missing the movers are legally responsible. 
• timing - Ideally you want your movers to arrive as early in the day as possible.  By the time they are loaded up you should have the keys for your new house.  Keep in mind though that the normal closing time (aka you get the keys) for some lawyers is 4 PM.  In this case line up your movers to arrive with that unloading time in mind.
• be clear - Movers are not mind readers.  If you want certain furniture put into certain rooms in your new house have someone there to ensure the furniture gets put where you want it.  If you don't want them move a certain piece of furniture tell them.  
• make it easy for your movers - Time is money so make it as easy as possible for your movers to get in an out on both ends of the move.  If a door needs to be removed to get larger furniture out, remove it before the movers arrive.  Keep their pathway as clear as possible, doors open and floors protected.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Packing and Planning

We can start moving into the new house on September 1.  We have been doing a lot of packing with the hopes of being able to get most of the small things moved before the movers arrive on September 6.  Yesterday, my husband arranged for gas, electricity and water at the new house.  He still has to arrange for telephone and internet.  There will be an overlap of fourteen days of having services at both houses but in the big picture it should work out to be the same amount.  We still have to arrange to have a couple of natural gas lines run inside the house. 

Yesterday, we went shopping.  We bought a dishwasher, natural gas range and small breakfast table.  We looked at mattresses and bedroom furniture and have our eye on a dining room set so our purchases will be added to once we decide what we want that way.  What we did buy is being delivered on September 2.  We've dealt with this small, local Mom & Pop furniture and appliance store since being newlyweds.  Unlike the big box stores we get quality service from them and besides we like to support local business.  We still have to shop for televisions and bookshelves.

All in all things are going rather smoothly preparing for the move.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

A Change in the Closing Date

The is the sixth house we have sold so did not expect much in the way of glitches.  Wrong!  First the house sat on the market for sixteen months before getting an offer.  The offer was under what we paid for the house because the housing market has softened significantly.  So we had two choices.  We could leave the house on the market hoping for a better offer while continuing to pay the high cost of living associated with this house or we could accept the offer knowing the payback period on the loss would be less than two years.  We accepted the offer with a closing date of November 1.  I started packing that night!  My husband started packing up the games room the next day.  We must have had a premonition.

Two weeks after all the papers were signed for the sale of our house and purchase of our new house we get a call from the real estate agent asking if we would consider moving sooner.  Now we had pushed for an earlier moving date but the buyer would not budge.  Apparently she has changed her mind and wanted the closing date moved up to October 1 which didn't work for us so she came back with September 15.  We agreed to the change knowing there wouldn't be a problem with the house we were buying since it is 95% empty.  It is now official which means we have less than two weeks before we start moving!  We are going into overdrive mode with packing while still getting rid of what we don't want. 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2011

Kitchen Packing

I chose this cartoon by Jeff Bucchino of The Wizard of Draws because for the past few days I've been juggling in the kitchen trying to cope with packing kitchen items in preparation for the move in two days. Out of necessity the kitchen is the last room to be packed and the first to be organized at the new house. It is very important to me that we eat homemade meals as long as possible before the move. This move is different in that we have to do kitchen renovations immediately after moving in order for our JennAir to fit in the kitchen. That means removing and ancient built-in stovetop, built-in oven, and non-working dishwasher. This will free up counter space while replacing the countertop and dishwasher. The kitchen is top priority once moved as a month later we are having quite a large gathering for our anniversary.

Talk about a juggling act! I've been packing the kitchen for the past few days now. There is nothing like seeing a growing stack of boxes to realize you have too many recipe books, too many herbs and spices, too many gadgets and way too much food. It's a great time to purge but unfortunately besides a few outdated by my standards homecanned foods, very little in the way of food was tossed. As far as small appliances and gadgets goes, I purged those a long time ago so nothing went out the door from that category.

It's also a great time to rely on freezer, refrigerator and pantry stores. Not only does this save on the cost of eating out or take-out foods, it reduces what you have to move. It's surprising the meals you can come up with just shopping from your food storage. This helps rotate the foods as well. I'd just about kill for some fresh fruit or a salad about now! We used the rest of the salad fixings on Sunday so I haven't had my daily salad fix since then. We are pretty much out of dairy with the exception of a few cheeses Money I would have spent on these items is in an envelope so I can replenish after the move. We grilled filet mignons last night as a final toast to this kitchen. It's been good to us. From now until we move in two days, we will likely eat out. That gives us a break from the chaos as well.

This is the perfect time to clean all those appliances! Why move dirty appliances? As we are setting up the new kitchen, I want everything ready to use. I washed all the small appliances before packing them. Today the oven is being cleaned (self-cleaning), the fridge washed out and the microwave cleaned. The small freezer is being moved filled while the larger freezer is being emptied to fill the freezer the previous owner is leaving. The dishwasher will be run for the last time today so I can clean it good for the new owners. We'll use disposable from now on as the dishes will be packed today as well.

So that is how the kitchen packing is proceeding.

Garden Gnome
© 2007

Despite our best laid plans we found out the day our purchase was signed that the existing dishwasher wasn't working. The real estate agent wasn't very pleased but I wasn't concerned. While it would have been nice to have a working dishwasher in the new house, I had been struggling for quite some time with the dishwasher in our old house so buying a dishwasher was pretty much a given. I've been married a long time, raised kids, do a lot of cooking and canning and a fair amount of entertaining so I knew what I wanted in a dishwasher.

My wants and needs are fairly simple. I want a dishwasher that cleans the dishes, period. I want simple, easy to use controls. Sorry guys 14 dishwashing cycles does not impress me! Here's what I want to see: wash, dry, done. Simple, right? I wanted a stainless steel interior. Those white vinyl interiors stain to high heavens. I really don't want another dishwasher with a vinyl interior. I've heard all the hype about super quiet dishwashers and even though the new kitchen opens into the family room, this is not a real high priority. The reason being is quite often we run the dishwasher when we go to bed not while we are entertaining or watching television. I want/need an energy efficient dishwasher. During heavy canning sessions the dishwasher will be run two to three times in the day. I need that energy efficiency! The canning sessions have also dictated that I need a tall tub unit. Price is a factor as well. I want the best value for my buck, thank-you very much.

Thank goodness for online shopping! I narrowed it down to the Bosch SHE44CO5UC, Whirlpool GU2700XTS and Maytag MDBH975AWW. All are EnergyStar® qualified and all are reported very quiet. All are tall tub modes and they are in the approximate same price range. I really liked a lot of the features on the Whirlpool and because I'm a happy consumer of their other products that started swaying me a bit. Now this is a nice dishwasher but there were two things I found potentially problematic. First the inside finish was something called slate. I've dealt with vinyl interiors that turn orange as soon as anything tomato goes through the dishwasher. The slate to me just seemed to be a darker colour to mask this problem. This dishwasher also had an Anywhere silverware rack meant to be in the door. My husband didn't like this idea at all. Still the Whirlpool was in the running. The Maytag had a stainless steel interior and was in close running. Perhaps we would have considered it further if their website was just a little more user friendly. In the same price range, the Maytag offered a delay function not available on the Whirlpool. The Bosch offered everything we really wanted. It has the energy efficiency by using condensation drying so there is no heater. Why pay for a heater you won't - I never put my dishwasher drying cycle on! Then they eliminate both electricity and noise by using filters instead of a disposal. So all of a sudden I'm really liking the Bosch but my husband doesn't like the idea of no food grinder. Well after much discussion, the Bosch is going to be delivered just after we move in. It is the most frugal choice for our needs.

Dishwashers fall almost into a grey area as far as energy efficiency so you really need to shop wisely. They aren't like going to a front loading washer where you can do three loads in one wash. They aren't like a hot water tank where you can turn the temperature down. But they do use electricity to operate and electricity or gas or heat the water along with the cost of water itself. The problem is going to higher end models that promise savings may not warrant the cost in terms of pay back. Unlike other appliances with quicker pay backs, a dishwasher will maybe go from operational costs of $30 per year to $20 in electricity. Unless the newer model uses less water you will save nothing. Most dishwashers have a heating function to bring the water up to temperature so you are paying to heat the water regardless. The bottom line is a new dishwasher is likely going to save you at the most $15 per year total. At $800 that's 60 years and I doubt the dishwasher is still going to be working. So my advice is to buy as energy efficient as possible for that sake alone but only if you really have to.

Garden Gnome
© 2007

Ah Yes, The Organized Move

Is there such as as an organized move? I'd say it is more like organized chaos only because even with the best of organizational skills employed moving is disruptive. At best things go very smoothly with no glitches. That is the ideal situation but seldom happens. To minimize glitches, get organized. Don't forget you are the one that will be living in the disruption and you are the one that can minimize that disruption. It is best to find out early in the game the things that can go wrong and take steps to prevent the problem. Make lists and go through them according to priority. This is your plan of action for you to follow through to reach you goal of a smooth as possible move. Ok, so you are moving, what next?

Use a prioritized list system and as one item is checked up move other items up if need be. Remember, you are striving for a smooth, organized move so you have to stay focused. Here's the list for our move prioritized under the ABC, 123 system at this time:

• A1 - take one day to do a walk through with a notepad and write down everything that needs to be done for each room
• A2 - make a list of all must be notified of your move - phone, utilities, car insurance, home insurance, cable, banks, doctors, dentist, lawyers, associations
• A3 - gather all essential document's like wills, house papers, birth certificates, passports, insurance and etc - put them in one easy to access spot or a safety deposit box
• A4 - make a list of all friends and relatives that need to be notified of your move
• A5 - pack an weekend bag with essentials including baby and pet needs to last two days
• A6 - call the movers (or arrange help from family and friends)
• A7- notify everyone on the A2 list* by telephone**

*Do not discount how long this process can take. First you have to jump through the hoops by pressing all kinds of buttons to finally get a human on the phone then you have to go through almost the same process talking to the human. It took me close to 4 hours just to notify phone, hydro, water and gas because we hit a glitch where the new property was listed incorrectly for the hydro. Then we hit another minor glitch over a rented gas hot water tank. That took some time to work out.
**I do not recommend address changes being filled out online especially if it involves the sale of one place and purchase of another. The last thing you want to have happen is a glitch on either end so you end up paying more. It's best to call, jump through the punch the button game and talk to someone. It's one of the best ways of avoiding potential problems.

At this time packing is a B priority depending on your time frame but don't let it go until it becomes an A priority.

• B1 - designate a central point***
  
• B2 - start packing one room at a time - pack 15 to 30 minutes daily and be sure to label the contents and where the destination of that box is, (if you want to do more by all means but at this rate your house will be packed in no time)
• B3 - purge while packing - (this is very important, do not move anything you do not need to)
• B4 - arrange for anything useable purged to be donated or tossed
  

***Your central point is where filled boxes should be stacked. This should be an area out of the main traffic flow and not interfering with the removal of larger pieces of furniture.

• C1 - pantry/freezer cooking - depend on both for meals, remember do not move anything you don't have to
• C2 - email and mail notices to those from A4
• C3- take a breather - this too shall pass
  

This move is very organized with a lot of prep work being done while the house was for sale. But even with a short notice move, you can make it a smooth move using your organizational skills. Make lists then form a plan and act. Smooth and easy!

Garden Gnome
© 2007

The unfortunate thing of moving is it does involve at best organized chaos, a feeling of being unsettled and of course the dreaded packing. The biggest hurdle is where to start because at first it does seem overwhelming. The way to approach packing will very much depend on the type of move and the type of help you will have. Some prep work can be omitted for short distance moves or if you are using a moving service for part or all of the move. I'm going to break down my packing method into three sections.

Declutter: The very moment there is even a hint of moving start the decluttering process. There is no point moving things you aren't using and likely won't use again. The general rule of thumb is if you haven't used something in the past year, you likely won't use it so either donate or toss. Be honest and brutal when doing the declutter process. To keep this from being an overwhelming task, break the process into daily 15 minute sessions and focus on one room at a time. It is surprising how much can be accomplished in that time frame. It is also encouraging to see stuff you aren't using going out the door before you even start packing. This is all stuff you won't have to move.

So I've been declutter right from spring cleaning to when the house was listed. I started with the 15 minute daily sessions and thanks to my kids had a huge declutter weekend. All the stuff we are keeping is already packed and in the garage. On moving day the truck can back up to the garage, load up and will be ready to go without much effort. Daily decluttering is continuing inside as well. I am focusing on preparing meals from the freezers, canning rack and cupboards. Not only will this reduce what food we have to move it will bring out a little creativity. Some of the creations will be posted on my cooking blog if you are interested. This will also curb any desire for take-out foods saving us money.

Our moving date is June 28 and because of prior commitments couple with renovations on a specific time line once moved I want everything packed and ready to go by June 15th. The exception will of course be some of the food. A rough layout of the new house will get things where I want them with minimal fuss. A moving company is moving all the furniture, appliances and likely the contents of the garage. Family and friends are helping us move the remainder.

Packing: I think it is extremely important for a smooth move to be very organized with the packing. For this you need good containers and some type of labelling system.

1. containers - By far the most popular containers are boxes. They are usually easy to obtain and generally free. I like the boxes from the liquor store as they are sturdy and have removable dividers that come in handy for protecting items. My next favourite containers for packing are plastic totes with lids. These keep water out something really appreciated if you've ever had any type of flooding problem. Plastic totes are also great if you are using uncover pick-up trucks for the move and it decides to rain. Your things stay dry. They won't go moldy like cardboard can either. Unlike cardboard, plastic totes are an investment that will serve you well in your new home and for future moves. Of what we are packing for this move about 80% is in some type of plastic tote.
2. packing - Packing should be done methodically, room by room but before you start this process take the time to pack a weekend bag that includes everything you would need for a weekend away. This will go in your vehicle with you so when you arrive at your new place you have things right handy. Add a second bag with all your important papers and another one with pet essentials if you have pets. Once these are packed, I go through and pack room by room, labelling each box or tote with their destination at the new house. Some have pictures of the contents but others don't

Centralization - Early in the packing process, I set two areas of the current house to put the boxes and totes. This is what I refer to as centralization. As each room is packed the boxes are moved to the central area leaving the room stripped to furniture only. It helps streamline things going out the door for moving and eliminates a lot of unnecessary steps during the moving process.

I hope some of these tips can help you in your next move.


Garden Gnome
© 2007

The organized chaos has begun. I had been decluttering before as part of the spring cleaning previously mentioned. More decluttering will happen as part of the packing process as well. The number one key factor for a smooth move is organization. Two things I consider essential when moving are a Sharpie marker and a camera. In my case I'm using a digital camera. The first question is why a camera?

A camera can save you considerable time and frustration both during and after the move. Before you do any packing take a walk through your house and take pictures of the rooms. You've now created scrapbook moments and memories to be used later. There may be some elements you would like to recreate in your new home. A picture is worth a thousand words in this case. Next and this is important if you are hiring movers, take pictures of what they will be moving. In the event there is any damage during the move you have a pictorial of how that piece of furniture was before they moved it. This is a good idea to do even if you aren't moving for insurance purposes. There is nothing more frustrating than going to set up certain electronic equipment without some type of instructions for the wiring. Even more frustrating is trying to write this out then losing the instructions in the move. We solved that problem by taking pictures of the wiring layout for things like the receiver, VCR and satellite as it does have to be connected in certain layout for our set-up. One inventive use for a digital camera when packing for a move is to take pictures of what is in the box, print them off and tape the picture to the box. Once at your new residence you have a wonderful visual of the contents of each box to help you organize there. Images should be uploaded to your computer and a back-up CD made just in case. If printing the images for boxes, set the printer to draft or ink saver mode. You will still be able to identify the items but it will be cheaper to print. If you are using actual film, have it developed before you move and keep it with your personal papers.

Ok, so with camera in hand I did my walk through both inside and outside mainly for scrapbooking. This will be the final chapter on this house as it is right now so I want to do a nice layout of how our house looked before we moved. The next thing I did was take pictures of the layout of my bookshelves. I'm rather particular about this so could likely do the layout from memory but a picture will help just in case. I have an inuckshuck in the garden that I'm bringing to the new house. This is construction using only the physics and positioning of the rocks and while I could likely reconstruct it from memory, I decided to take a picture so reconstruction will only take a couple of minutes. I took several pictures of the electronic layout for the television equipment for both televisions. Our stove has a downdraft system so I took pictures of that just in case.

On moving day as soon as we get the word to pick-up the keys, I'll slip to do that as well as stop at the new house to take pictures. I'll go through room by room so that we have pictures of the inside without the current owners possessions and before we start putting ours in. This will serve as another scrapbook moment as well as giving us a pictorial of what the house looked like before we owned it. I am using the tip of taking pictures of what is in certain boxes but only on certain boxes.

When I started this post, I fully intended to discuss both packing and why to use a camera. However, the post is getting long so I'm going to break it into two posts. Watch for tomorrow's post dealing with my method for packing and cameras.

Until then,

Garden Gnome
© 2007

If you have read my other blogs, you will already know there is a possibility of us unexpectedly moving. We are currently on waterfront property as is the house we want to buy. The problem is with waterfront property you have to act fast! So in less than a week we have viewed the house twice and the offer was put in on Saturday and is tentatively accepted. We will know for sure before 5 pm and if accepted our house will be listed this evening. That means everyone from their firm will be doing a walk through tomorrow. Thank goodness I have been doing spring cleaning! If all goes well, this will be our fourteenth move since we were married. I've learned a trick or two about moving in general and those little extras to do when you are selling your house that I thought I would share.

Moving is stressful as it is but if you aren't organized, it will be worse. Reduce whatever you can. There is no point of moving stuff you never use. Donate, give away or toss these items. Do not buy anything you don't absolutely have too unless it is something like appliances that will be delivered to your new address. Eat from your pantry and freezers. The less food you have to move the better. Put your normal food budget money into an envelop and save that for restocking after you are moved. Start packing early, just as soon as you know you are moving. Pack daily if at all possible, fifteen to thirty minutes at a time. Label the boxes according to what room they go into in the new house or apartment.

The biggest tip I have for selling a house is once it is on the market, consider it not yours. Look at it through the eyes of a buyer. You have to do what it takes to sell it. Presentation is everything! Here are some tricks I've learned over the years for selling your home:

1. declutter - Buyers want to see space and potential. They are trying to visualize how they would used the space. If you can't get the clutter moved fast enough, hide whatever you can in dressers or storage containers but not in closets or built-in storage. Make your house a bright and spacious feeling as possible.
   
2. pets - Sorry, your pet might be the centre of your universe and a very pleasant critter but potential buyers might not see it that way. Many people have allergies to cats and dogs as well as just aren't really into other pets like reptiles or rodents. These need to be out of the home when it is being showed and there should be no evidence of any pet odour. The only exception to this is a well maintained, sparkling fish aquarium that tends to be rather soothing.
3. air fresheners - Gone! All you need is a potential buyer to have an asthma attack or chemical reaction because they are sensitive.
4. personal items - Most people realize that you still have to carry on your life while your house is on the market. They don't want or need to see all your hair care products, dental stuff, your favourite nightie and house coat, or even your dirty laundry whether in a hamper or not.
   
5. cleanliness - Buyers aren't expecting perfection but they are expecting clean. The kitchen and bathroom(s) should be spotless though. Potential buyers will be turned off by a sink full of dirty dishes or a dirty stove even it is not included in the sale. Clean the stove and if you don't have time to do the dishes put them in the dishwasher or covered tote. Shine those sinks using baking soda, rinse well and dry. Shine up the taps with a 1:1 solution of vinegar and water.
6. sparkle - Your house ideally should sparkle from top to bottom. Remember first impressions count especially when selling a house. Dust everything including light bulbs and keep it dusted while the house is listed. Wash all the light fixtures so they sparkle. Don't forget the mirrors and taps. Again, use a 1:1 solution of vinegar and water. Just before your house is being shown go through and turn on every light even if it is daytime.
   
7. appealing to senses - You really need to appeal to a buyer's senses with of course the most important being visual. However other senses come into play. Some real estate agents recommend baking something like a pie or bread. I can you we sold one house that way and because of the buyers lovely comments I left a plant and loaf of homemade bread for them on moving day. Quiet instrumental or classical background music can help too.

Garden Gnome
© 2007