Tips for Eco-Friendly Moving
For starters, the less stuff we accumulate in the first place the less we have to pick up and move elsewhere—so fighting the pack-rat urge and minimizing trips to shopping malls in the first place are good prerequisites.

Beyond what may already be too late to undo, though, one can lessen their environmental footprint when moving by first giving away or selling any non-essential items. Neighborhood yard sales and giveaways are one way to go, while websites like Ebay, Craig’s List and Freecycle provide virtual ways to unload unwanted stuff. Books can be donated to local libraries, and most schools will be happy to make use of old computers. And Goodwill and other charities will gladly take old clothes for resale in thrift outlets.

While all that’s going on, the environmentally-conscious mover would also want to be hoarding bubble wrap, cardboard boxes, padded envelopes and other packing materials instead of going out and buying them new. Many liquor, grocery, hardware and other retail stores are happy to give away large cardboard boxes they no longer need and would have to otherwise discard or recycle. Calling around first will save the headache and the emissions of driving around to individual stores one-by-one to ask them.

Move with Recyclable or Reusable Packing Materials
As to the move itself, if you’re fortunate enough to be relocating within Orange County, Los Angeles one green option is to rent “RecoPack” moving boxes from Earth Friendly Moving. The company, which has plans to expand nationwide over the next five years, provides five different stackable sizes of durable moving cartons made from recycled plastic bottles. The rental cost is just a dollar per box per week—and the company’s biodiesel-powered trucks will drop-off and pick-up the boxes before and after the move.

Not in southern California? Rent-a-Crate, which has 13 U.S. locations coast to coast, also rents re-usable (though not recycled) plastic moving crates that they’ll deliver to and pick up from any location. The company works extensively in the office relocation business, too, and rents other reusable accessories such as dollies for rolling heavy crates and crates for delicate items like computers and even medical x-ray films.

Don’t Forget Eco-Friendly Cleaning Supplies
And remember, there is more to moving green than just moving. Use only eco-friendly cleaning products when scrubbing down the old place. If you live in the Washington, DC or Baltimore, MD area, a crew from Green Clean will send a professional crew that uses only nontoxic, biodegradable cleaners. Otherwise, health food stores all carry green cleaners that you can use yourself or instruct the hired help to use.

After the Move: Cut Down on Junk Mail
A tip from the Care2 “Green Moving Guide”: File a temporary change of address with your post office rather than a permanent one to cut down on junk mail at the new place. The U.S. Postal Service sells lists of permanent address changes to direct marketers, but doesn’t bother doing so with temporary addresses.

GOT AN ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTION? Send it to: EarthTalk, c/o E/The Environmental Magazine, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; submit it at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/thisweek/, or e-mail: earthtalk@emagazine.com.

EarthTalk is a regular feature of E/The Environmental Magazine. Selected EarthTalk columns are reprinted on About Environmental Issues by permission of the editors of E.

Green Living at Home

Compact Fluorescent Lamps: Health Hazard or Environmental Benefit?Energy Conservation: A Free Home Energy Audit Can Help You Save Power and Money What Does “Biodegradable” Claim Really Guarantee?

Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products

Real Sponges or Artificial Sponges: Which is Better for the Environment?Eco-Friendly Drain CleanersEco-Friendly Wood Floor Wax

Recycling at Home

How to Recycle Different Types of PlasticCan You Recycle Your Toothbrush?Cell Phone Recycling: How to Recycle Your Old Cell Phone

Related Articles

New York City GREEN Moving Company
Call Us 1-800-311-9850

A ECO-FRIENDLY moving company! in New York City

Move Like A Celebrity is an ECO-FRIENDLY moving company that is changing the way you relocate. We are an experienced, professional company dedicated to our customers and to the environment. Our fleet is all new low emission trucks and Dodge Sprinter Vans that are powered by BIO-DIESEL. We provide carbon free moving, use recycled moving materials and plant 10 trees with every move.

Our Boxes, Our Blankets and We Donate your OLD Furniture that you leave behind to the NEEDY

SAVE TIME, SAVE MONEY, SAVE TREES™ – That’s the drive behind Move Like A Celebrity. We sell quality used and new cardboard boxes for moving and shipping. We are an earth-friendly company providing simple and convenient delivery of moving kits, moving boxes and shipping boxes at discounted prices

ECO-FRIENDLY Products

Being right in the middle of a rather big move myself at the moment, a blog post at The Budget Ecoist about recycling moving boxes struck a chord with me. They have 6 six great ideas about how to recycle moving boxes.

1. Take a box, leave a box: Moving companies such as ECO-FRIENDLY moving company now offer drop locations at stores,
allowing customers to drop-off their reusable moving boxes for other
customers to use, or pick up a previously donated box for their own
move. This is a way for customers to help one another while promoting
reuse of the product, which is always preferable to recycling. With
every reuse of a box, a new one is prevented from entering the cycle.

2. Go local with Freecycle and Craigslist: If you are unable to score free boxes at your moving company, try Freecycle or Craigslist.
We often see our local peeps posting offers to give away their
gently-used moving boxes. If you’re not a member of Freecycle, read this postrecycle
all of your unwanted treasures! Need a box? Post a wanted ad. Want to
recycle your boxes? Post an offer ad. It’s that easy.

3. The ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Box Exchange: If you can’t score boxes for free, your next best bet is to go to ECO-FRIENDLY moving company’s
message board, The ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Box Exchange, where you can trade, sell or buy reusable boxes and moving supplies from other like-minded movers.

4. Return for money: So you were unable to score boxes for
free, and unable to buy them used. OK. So maybe you’re going to have to
purchase them after all. If that’s the case, be sure you purchase from
a company that offers a buyback guarantee. At ECO-FRIENDLY moving company, customers who
provide an original receipt can recoup some money, while preventing
waste.

5. Kids’ castles: And now the fun comes…let’s face it,
some of the boxes just don’t make it through the move. For those boxes
that are mildly damaged and just can’t make it through another packing
cycle, might we suggest having a bit of fun? For anyone who’s ever seen
a toddler have at the box their gift came in (while ignoring the $30
purchase!), you know how imaginative children can be with boxes. Get
the kids outside, hand the boxes over, and see what they come up with!
Or go easy and check out these instructions on how to create the castle of boxes of your dreams!

6. Recycle: You’ve reused other’s boxes (for free!),
you’ve passed them along as well. You gave the damaged ones to kids to
use to their delight. Finally…these boxes are just plain worn-out!
The last refuge of the broken-down, beat up moving box: the recycling
bin.

From the NEWS

If BP can stand for “Beyond Petroleum,” what’s to stop the trucking industry from claiming to “deliver a cleaner tomorrow”? Not much, apparently.

In a story about the current practices of K Street lobbyists, the Washington Post reports that even the American Trucking Associations — a national trade group — is adopting an eco-friendly tone:
Record gasoline prices have done more than boost advertising budgets for worried energy lobbies. They also have turned long-held positions of significant lobbying groups upside down — and decidedly pro-environmental.

The American Trucking Associations last week did a 180 (or pretty close to that) on two key issues. In news releases notable for their use of the color green, the truck company lobby said it would accept a fuel tax increase — once its most hated policy proposal — if the extra revenue went toward reducing highway congestion. It also suggested tougher fuel economy standards for trucks, another shocker for the trucking industry.Guess the ATA might have to iron out some differences with Truckers and Citizens United, a more grassroots-style group that staged a gas-guzzling, street-clogging “rally” in Washington last month to protest the price of fuel.

To get its green message across, the ATA has launched a campaign called “Trucks Deliver” touting six steps to reduce the industry’s emissions. Their congestion mitigation strategy comes after the jump.

The American Trucking Associations advocates initiatives to improve highway infrastructure and reduce congestion.

Relieving highway congestion is a critically important strategy for reducing carbon emissions. Improving the nation’s highway infrastructure is a long-range challenge, and the American Trucking Associations has recommended a 20-year program, focused initially on fixing critical bottlenecks. Longer-range ideas include creating truck-only corridors which would permit carriers to further increase the use of more productive vehicles. The needed infrastructure improvements can be paid for with a dedicated fuel tax if necessary. If congestion in all 437 urban areas were eliminated, the reduction in truck CO₂ emissions would be 45.2 million tons over ten years — equal to the annual output of a population the size of the State of Colorado.

Whether the “Trucks Deliver” campaign is an exercise in green-washing, an adaptation to new economic realities, or a sincere effort to reduce the trucking industry’s carbon footprint, one thing is clear: They’d still rather not broach the subject of freight rail.

Residential NYC Moving Services | Commercial Moving Services | Long Distance Moving Services | Additional Moving Services | Storage Services | Buy Moving Supplies | Request | Feedback | Employment Opportunities | Go Green

ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City

ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City

ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City

Packing Tips

A few general things you need to know about packing:

	Keep boxes to 50 lbs or less. Put heavy items in small boxes and light items in big boxes.
	Pack non-breakables tightly in smaller boxes, so they’re not too heavy.
	Buy clean newsprint to wrap items, and bubble wrap for padding.
	Pack breakables loosely in plastic storage bins with lots of bubble wrap.
	Rent furniture pads.
	Mark your boxes by room, so you know exactly where everything goes. Color coding or using a number system works great (i.e., red stickers for bedroom or 1 for bathroom.)
	Write “FRAGILE” on all boxes with breakables and stack these boxes on top.

Packing the big things

Beds: Tie bed frames together with tape or rope. Then label the pieces so they’re easy to reassemble.
Bureaus: Fill drawers with clothes or fragile, well-wrapped items. Cover with a blanket or furniture pads and rope securely.
Tables: Remove legs, pad and tie together. Put nuts and bolts in a bag and tape under tabletop.
Big appliances: Empty, defrost and drain the fridge, freezer and dishwasher. Clean the interiors and put accessories in bags. Stuff towels between washer sides to prevent rotating and tape down moveable parts. Cover with blankets and tie.
Computers, TVs, & Electronics: Use original packaging, or buy electronic-specific boxes.

Packing the small (but still important) things

Small appliances: Put your microwave, VCR, etc. into boxes, and cushion with wadded paper.
Books: Pack them flat in small cartons, alternating bindings. Try to keep each box under 30 lbs.
Clothing: Pack hanging items, including drapes, in wardrobe boxes. Leave small items in drawers.
Collectibles: Wrap fragile items in bubble wrap and tape securely.
CDs: Pack upright and cushion with newspaper.
Kitchenware: Stack pots & pans, and cushion with paper. Put a few of these items in the “open first” box.
Dishes: Never stack them flat. Wrap each piece in bubble wrap. Pack plates & saucers on edge, with cups & bowls placed around them.

Packing the awkward things

Chairs: Wrap arms & legs with bubble wrap. Leave slipcovers on or buy chair bags for protection.
Bicycles: Loosen the handlebars and turn them sideways. Cover chains and pedals to keep grease off other items.
Mirrors, artwork & frames: Wrap small pieces in newsprint and pack in mirror boxes. Cover larger pieces with cardboard, tape securely and stand them along the truck’s sides or inside wardrobe boxes.
Lawn furniture: If heavy or bulky, disassemble. Put nuts and bolts in a bag and tie together.
Rugs: Roll up and secure with rope or tape.
Plants: Put in plastic bags with air holes, then in boxes. Water before you leave.
Power and garden tools: Wrap all sharp edges and use plenty of cushioning to prevent injury. Tape long-handled tools together and place small ones in boxes.
Lawn mowers/yard edgers: Empty gasoline from all tanks, and check for oil leaks.
Garage & attic stuff: Use medium-sized boxes for spray paints, brushes, car waxes, etc. Throw away oily rags or anything combustible.
Pets: Always keep them in a pet carrier up front with you. Ask your vet how to make their, and your, move less traumatic.

Free Moving Estimates (2)

New York City Moving Company
Call Us 1-800-311-9850

A ECO-FRIENDLY moving company! in New York City

Move Like A Celebrity is an ECO-FRIENDLY moving company that is changing the way you relocate. We are an experienced, professional company dedicated to our customers and to the environment. Our fleet is all new low emission trucks and Dodge Sprinter Vans that are powered by BIO-DIESEL. We provide carbon free moving, use recycled moving materials and plant 10 trees with every move.

Our Boxes, Our Blankets and We Donate your OLD Furniture that you leave behind to the NEEDY

SAVE TIME, SAVE MONEY, SAVE TREES™ – That’s the drive behind Move Like A Celebrity. We sell quality used and new cardboard boxes for moving and shipping. We are an earth-friendly company providing simple and convenient delivery of moving kits, moving boxes and shipping boxes at discounted prices

ECO-FRIENDLY Products

Being right in the middle of a rather big move myself at the moment, a blog post at The Budget Ecoist about recycling moving boxes struck a chord with me. They have 6 six great ideas about how to recycle moving boxes.

1. Take a box, leave a box: Moving companies such as ECO-FRIENDLY moving company now offer drop locations at stores,
allowing customers to drop-off their reusable moving boxes for other
customers to use, or pick up a previously donated box for their own
move. This is a way for customers to help one another while promoting
reuse of the product, which is always preferable to recycling. With
every reuse of a box, a new one is prevented from entering the cycle.

2. Go local with Freecycle and Craigslist: If you are unable to score free boxes at your moving company, try Freecycle or Craigslist.
We often see our local peeps posting offers to give away their
gently-used moving boxes. If you’re not a member of Freecycle, read this postrecycle
all of your unwanted treasures! Need a box? Post a wanted ad. Want to
recycle your boxes? Post an offer ad. It’s that easy.

3. The ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Box Exchange: If you can’t score boxes for free, your next best bet is to go to ECO-FRIENDLY moving company’s
message board, The ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Box Exchange, where you can trade, sell or buy reusable boxes and moving supplies from other like-minded movers.

4. Return for money: So you were unable to score boxes for
free, and unable to buy them used. OK. So maybe you’re going to have to
purchase them after all. If that’s the case, be sure you purchase from
a company that offers a buyback guarantee. At ECO-FRIENDLY moving company, customers who
provide an original receipt can recoup some money, while preventing
waste.

5. Kids’ castles: And now the fun comes…let’s face it,
some of the boxes just don’t make it through the move. For those boxes
that are mildly damaged and just can’t make it through another packing
cycle, might we suggest having a bit of fun? For anyone who’s ever seen
a toddler have at the box their gift came in (while ignoring the $30
purchase!), you know how imaginative children can be with boxes. Get
the kids outside, hand the boxes over, and see what they come up with!
Or go easy and check out these instructions on how to create the castle of boxes of your dreams!

6. Recycle: You’ve reused other’s boxes (for free!),
you’ve passed them along as well. You gave the damaged ones to kids to
use to their delight. Finally…these boxes are just plain worn-out!
The last refuge of the broken-down, beat up moving box: the recycling
bin.

From the NEWS

If BP can stand for “Beyond Petroleum,” what’s to stop the trucking industry from claiming to “deliver a cleaner tomorrow”? Not much, apparently.

In a story about the current practices of K Street lobbyists, the Washington Post reports that even the American Trucking Associations — a national trade group — is adopting an eco-friendly tone:
Record gasoline prices have done more than boost advertising budgets for worried energy lobbies. They also have turned long-held positions of significant lobbying groups upside down — and decidedly pro-environmental.

The American Trucking Associations last week did a 180 (or pretty close to that) on two key issues. In news releases notable for their use of the color green, the truck company lobby said it would accept a fuel tax increase — once its most hated policy proposal — if the extra revenue went toward reducing highway congestion. It also suggested tougher fuel economy standards for trucks, another shocker for the trucking industry.Guess the ATA might have to iron out some differences with Truckers and Citizens United, a more grassroots-style group that staged a gas-guzzling, street-clogging “rally” in Washington last month to protest the price of fuel.

To get its green message across, the ATA has launched a campaign called “Trucks Deliver” touting six steps to reduce the industry’s emissions. Their congestion mitigation strategy comes after the jump.

The American Trucking Associations advocates initiatives to improve highway infrastructure and reduce congestion.

Relieving highway congestion is a critically important strategy for reducing carbon emissions. Improving the nation’s highway infrastructure is a long-range challenge, and the American Trucking Associations has recommended a 20-year program, focused initially on fixing critical bottlenecks. Longer-range ideas include creating truck-only corridors which would permit carriers to further increase the use of more productive vehicles. The needed infrastructure improvements can be paid for with a dedicated fuel tax if necessary. If congestion in all 437 urban areas were eliminated, the reduction in truck CO₂ emissions would be 45.2 million tons over ten years — equal to the annual output of a population the size of the State of Colorado.

Whether the “Trucks Deliver” campaign is an exercise in green-washing, an adaptation to new economic realities, or a sincere effort to reduce the trucking industry’s carbon footprint, one thing is clear: They’d still rather not broach the subject of freight rail.

Residential NYC Moving Services | Commercial Moving Services | Long Distance Moving Services | Additional Moving Services | Storage Services | Buy Moving Supplies | Request | Feedback | Employment Opportunities | Go Green

ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City

ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City

ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company NYC Green moving company Manhattan ECO-FRIENDLY movers NYC ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City ECO-FRIENDLY moving company Green Movers New York City

Packing Tips

A few general things you need to know about packing:

	Keep boxes to 50 lbs or less. Put heavy items in small boxes and light items in big boxes.
	Pack non-breakables tightly in smaller boxes, so they’re not too heavy.
	Buy clean newsprint to wrap items, and bubble wrap for padding.
	Pack breakables loosely in plastic storage bins with lots of bubble wrap.
	Rent furniture pads.
	Mark your boxes by room, so you know exactly where everything goes. Color coding or using a number system works great (i.e., red stickers for bedroom or 1 for bathroom.)
	Write “FRAGILE” on all boxes with breakables and stack these boxes on top.

Packing the big things

Beds: Tie bed frames together with tape or rope. Then label the pieces so they’re easy to reassemble.
Bureaus: Fill drawers with clothes or fragile, well-wrapped items. Cover with a blanket or furniture pads and rope securely.
Tables: Remove legs, pad and tie together. Put nuts and bolts in a bag and tape under tabletop.
Big appliances: Empty, defrost and drain the fridge, freezer and dishwasher. Clean the interiors and put accessories in bags. Stuff towels between washer sides to prevent rotating and tape down moveable parts. Cover with blankets and tie.
Computers, TVs, & Electronics: Use original packaging, or buy electronic-specific boxes.

Packing the small (but still important) things

Small appliances: Put your microwave, VCR, etc. into boxes, and cushion with wadded paper.
Books: Pack them flat in small cartons, alternating bindings. Try to keep each box under 30 lbs.
Clothing: Pack hanging items, including drapes, in wardrobe boxes. Leave small items in drawers.
Collectibles: Wrap fragile items in bubble wrap and tape securely.
CDs: Pack upright and cushion with newspaper.
Kitchenware: Stack pots & pans, and cushion with paper. Put a few of these items in the “open first” box.
Dishes: Never stack them flat. Wrap each piece in bubble wrap. Pack plates & saucers on edge, with cups & bowls placed around them.

Packing the awkward things

Chairs: Wrap arms & legs with bubble wrap. Leave slipcovers on or buy chair bags for protection.
Bicycles: Loosen the handlebars and turn them sideways. Cover chains and pedals to keep grease off other items.
Mirrors, artwork & frames: Wrap small pieces in newsprint and pack in mirror boxes. Cover larger pieces with cardboard, tape securely and stand them along the truck’s sides or inside wardrobe boxes.
Lawn furniture: If heavy or bulky, disassemble. Put nuts and bolts in a bag and tie together.
Rugs: Roll up and secure with rope or tape.
Plants: Put in plastic bags with air holes, then in boxes. Water before you leave.
Power and garden tools: Wrap all sharp edges and use plenty of cushioning to prevent injury. Tape long-handled tools together and place small ones in boxes.
Lawn mowers/yard edgers: Empty gasoline from all tanks, and check for oil leaks.
Garage & attic stuff: Use medium-sized boxes for spray paints, brushes, car waxes, etc. Throw away oily rags or anything combustible.
Pets: Always keep them in a pet carrier up front with you. Ask your vet how to make their, and your, move less traumatic.

Free Moving Estimates (2)