Pugilation

Hi,

I'm looking ahead to my move to the US and would like to canvas the forum for advice on packing and shipping. I've got a small amount of stuff, and I'm not intending on taking anything resembling furniture (have been renting all my life and tend not to splash out on anything) however I do have some things that I want to make sure I take with me. Mostly kitchen equipment (dutch ovens, knives, nothing electrical), sentimental things and books which I expect will take up a reasonable amount of space and/or weight.

What would be a reasonable ballpark figure to budget for, and does anyone have any recommendations/do's and don'ts on this topic?

Pulaski

How long is a piece of string?

Sorry, but I can't envise how much kitchen stuff, books, and things of sentimental value you have. Is it 2-3 2ftx2ftx2ft packing boxes, or is it several pallets of stuff?

The cost could be as little as £300 or as much as £2,500 within what I would guess are the lower and upper bounds of the range of what one individual's kitchen stuff, books, and sentimental things would typically fall.

Pugilation

You're right there, I need to plan out exactly what I'm wanting to bring, it's tough tbh as while I'm used to moving (8 addresses in 10 years!) that's normally been an all or nothing approach.

I'd say probably somewhere between 15-20 2x2x2 boxes would be a good ballpark?

Pulaski

Sounds like a couple of pallets shipped by surface, so I'd guess around £1,000-£1,200 in a shared container, given that having a truck pick up and deliver your things will be a good part of the cost, which is a fixed cost whether your shipping 5 boxes or 50.

lizzyq

When I was packing up our stuff I could fit 30 standard banana boxes full of books on one presswood Europallet (1200mm x 1000mm) and still move it around on a pallet truck. I pallet wrapped them and then strapped them. All arrived safe and sound.

Pulaski

That's a funny shaped (non-standard) pallet.

The most common "metric pallet" is 1,200mmx1,000mm, and 24 of them fill a standard "40ft" (12m) international shipping container.

lizzyq

You are correct (of course ), it was 6 boxes at 400mm x 500mm x 240mm per layer on a 1200mm x 1000mm pallet. We used both sizes 1200mm x 800mm & 1200mm x 1000mm. I think I got the smaller ones when the larger ones were unavailable from my suppliers.

Must love dogs

I used upackweship 80 large boxes in a 20sq ft container cost was over $4,000
They do have cheaper options.

Pulaski

FIFY - 20ft is the length of the container.

It sounds to me like the OP has about one quarter of what you took/ the space you needed, which is why I suggested they're likely to get the best deal with a shared container.

Must love dogs

Yes that was the length.
I was told that this was the cheapest way to ship my boxes. As a shared contained would be more expensively.
They also offer pallets service.

Pugilation

Thanks all, v useful info and helps me set my budget properly. Time to wield the axe at my stack of possessions!

mrken30

It looks like shipping rates may increase in the very near future
Hanjin Shipping: One company with 2.9% market share roils global trade

Pulaski

The percentage of the cost of shipping personal effects from the UK to the US, or vice versa, that goes to the operator of the ship is pretty tiny. Most of the cost is in packing, unpacking, and collection and delivery i.e. the labour intensive bits.

Mangaboy84

Shipping Via Airfreight : British Expat Wiki

This was useful for my shipping planning but i was looking at 46x46x46cm boxes plus a pallet full of tools.

Pugilation

Very handy, thanks for posting the link!