How to move stuff to Florida?

Sorry, Kay- I was writing and didn't see last post of yours. That would be great and maybe park and stay in a motel where you can park right in front of your room -where you can see your stuff from the windows.

I am no security expert. All I can tell you is that I took certain precautions.

And the one time we had car break-in was when there appeared to be "vacation stuff" in the car at a hotel.

I don't have much advice. You can look for a 24-hour restaurant, or some comparable space where the owners or other customers might emerge at any moment. You can ask about the security monitoring at the hotel.

My guess would be parking in places that aren't targets like private homes or non-hotels.

If you rent one of those penske trucks just put a couple of homemade signs on the front doors that say 'leased to cry baby's diaper service, inc. a city 200mi away, state'.
remove the signs before you leave in the morning. i doubt if anyone will bother you. or you could tow a little trailer with some old peed on mattresses and a couple old soiled couches and maybe a broken table, but that might be too much effort and not necessary.

But it would be an interesting sight! LOL

kwanjin, it's probably not funny, but occasionally you will see those types of things and are certain that no one would spend the money on a rental trailer just to haul a load of junk to the dump.

Too funny, Len - I'm just the type to do that!

Kay,

Much has been said about the actual logistics of moving yourself and/or professionally. Lot's of info to draw from. When I moved here from Ft Lauderdale 3 years ago, I was already pleased with using the PODS system. I had used it locally twice so decided on it again for the long distance (5 1/2 hours) trip.

My grown son ramrodded the packing of it. We did take washer, dryer and fridge, beds, dishes etc. It would not have been economical to sell and re-buy those items. Whatever wouldn't fit went on the side of the road for curbside scavengers or bulk pick up. He managed to have that container packed from front to back, bottom to top. Pods picked it up the day after Thanksgiving and took it to Ocala for storage until they trained a driver to come to my rural area. (this was an unusual circumstance) When they brought it out, we kept it here for a week or so to leisurely unload it.

When making comparison of costs, it probably was more expensive than some wanted to pay, but we packed it, we locked it and they just moved and stored it.

The electronics and animals came in our personal vehicles.

The plants..........I made several trips up and back to arrange for wells, septic and mobile home transport so each trip I took plants with me. Probably a big mistake since this area is usually in drought all year except July. Then after we arrived in November we had no electric/water for a month. We bought water to drink and bummed water to flush with. The people and animals came first for this and consequently, most of the plants I brought, no longer exist today.

You were growing Trop. Hibiscus in Mo., then you can grow them in the Panhandle too, in pots in the house in winter. I will assume you are moving to a civilized established house. I would take cuttings though and bring them, the favorites. That way you are not overwhelmed with their care and can baby them properly while settling in.

Now as for plants you would like to grow up there, I have some ideas I am posting over in that thread.

Good Luck on your move and we look forward to welcoming you to Florida.

Molly

Molly, thank you for this information!

I'm going to chime in here...As to moving companies...mostly what you are looking for is SERVICE...as the rates "over the road" are controled by set standards by a govt. agency...(of course!)....so the person that comes out to give you an estimate of the weight of your shippment is the one that will determine your cost. They will give you and estimate and a percentage that the weight can be off...

They usually have 3..maybe 4 shipments in the same truck...going your way....and they give you an estimated time(days) that they can take to deliver your shipment. If they already have a shipment on the truck before getting to you...they go through a set of weight scales and get the weight of the loaded truck...and again AFTER they pick up your load...that is where they determine your final cost of the shipment.

Packing: Each van lines has an agent in your area that handles local things for them...most of the time...like they will arance for the packers...and some have their own that are very good and experienced packers...but if no agency is involved, the driver may hire some labors through something like Manpower...in which case I rather pack my own stuff.

Each box or piece of furniture that leaves your house and is put into a truck has a number placed on it...and it is noted on a "bill of lading"...at your destination you should be there to check off EACH number as it is brought into your new home...each number should be accounted for!!!

A hint to packing plates...stand them on end in a sturdy box...not laid flat in the box and stuff placed on top...this is where bubble wrap is so good...and available at Wal-Mart.

Oh....I forgot to say that I used to work for a Household Mover...and we were agents for a lot of moving companies.

No acholic beverages can be moved by a moving company....so have a party before you move and drink it all up! If I remember correctly...they don't move aresol spray cans either. LOL Jo

Thanks for your input. I have decided to move my belongings in a UHaul truck. We will tow my Tahoe and the dog and I will ride with a friend, who has agreed to drive the moving van/truck.

Has worked for me many times...

When we moved from Florida to Arizona we paid for our SIL to fly to to Orlando, visit his Mom...then drive our loaded truck to Az...we had little 2-way radios so we could keep in touch with each other. Jo

Hey, Jo - thanks from another Jo - we both have cell phones, but I will be in the truck with him, if we do it as planned right now. I am trying to figure out how long it will take to drive from KCMO to PCB, Fla. driving a UHaul - I am thinking 2 days of hard driving - am I close?

My DH and I (with him doing ALL the driving)...Left Crystal River, FL early in the morning...drove to Houston the first day...and on to Sierra Vista, AZ the second day...very long driving hours...and with out the truck.

When we left with the big truck...we went to Pensecola the first night so SIL could visit his sister...and we could get an early start the next day....then we drove for 2 more days....I would think you could make it to MO in two days...as Panama City is not too far from Pensecola. Good luck. Jo

We have done it both ways, too. Cell phones are a pain to use - we did it - but only until we could find a place to buy a good set of "cheap" walkie-talkies.

Less than $30 at Radio Shack - much more convenient, not to mention cheaper to operate. Even if you have unlimited minutes, the batteries go down a whole lot faster than the ones in the walkie-talkies.