Category Archives: McGuire News

Donate Food Before You Move

McGuire Moving & Storage would like to remind our St Louis Movers that as they are preparing for their upcoming move, food storage items can weigh a lot and increase the cost of your move. Why not lighten your move load and donate your excess food items to your local food bank?

This time of year it is easy for St Louis movers to find places to donate food. There are donation drop-offs in many area stores, churches, school etc. Also you can check out Feeding America to find a local food bank that may accept your food donation or direct you on where you can drop it off.

So why not pack up your food and drop it where it is most needed instead of loading it onto the move truck? Lighten your move load to save moving costs and help feed those in need. It’s a perfect match. We here at McGuire Moving & Storage wish all of our St Louis movers a warm and bountiful Thanksgiving.

The Benefits of Using Temporary Storage

How are you doing with your fall sorting and purging? Autumn is flying by. The busy holiday season will be upon us in a flash. This is the best time of year to take stock of what you have and what you will keep before a move. Your move costs will be based partly on the weight of your move load. You will surely save money on your move by purging unwanted items now. Throughout this fall season we have been sharing ideas and resources for sorting through the contents of the home with our future St Louis movers.  There are still a couple of weeks left before the bustle of the holidays takes front stage. Time to move more stuff!

As you looked through closets, attic, basement, garage, shed, you got a true sense of what you need and want and what you will be leaving behind.  McGuire Moving & Storage shared resources and ideas for recycling, donations, on-line selling, etc.  And do not forget the possibility of holding a yard sale.

So now you are left with everything you will definitely be taking with you on your move. Some St Louis movers may have used the sorting exercise as a time to start packing up items they will not be needing before moving day. Do you have furniture and boxes that are in the way of home showings? It is always best to show a home on the market that is free of clutter, personal items and abundant storage items. This helps the buyers “see” themselves living in your home. A great way to clear the way is to use temporary storage space.  As your trusted St Louis mover, McGuire Moving & Storage offers temporary storage space. Our facilities are clean, climate controlled, and secure.  Come moving day, we can load your storage items along with the rest of your household contents and move everything to your new residence.

Also, keep our storage space in mind if you will be moving to temporary housing before you can move into your permanent home. We offer many solutions for short and long term storage. McGuire Moving & Storage can provide for all your moving and storage needs.  Good luck to St Louis movers with all pre-move preparations!

 

Honoring Those Who Have Served

To all those who have served and who are currently serving our country, McGuire Moving & Storage would like to say Thank You!  We are proud of our Veterans and honor them through our remembrance, support and gratitude today and every day.  Your sacrifice is the ultimate sacrifice that protects our freedom and our great nation.  Happy Veterans Day!

McGuire Moving & Storage is an agent of Arpin Van Lines. Arpin has had one of the strongest industry reputations for providing the highest quality control and performance standards to the Military and the Government Services Administration, continually having high Customer Service Index (CSI) scores compared to our competition. We proudly serve St Louis moving military families.

McGuire Moving & Storage, as an agent of Arpin Van Lines, recognizes our active and veteran military service men and women by providing veteran discounts on interstate moves.  Read more about Arpin Veteran Moving Services Savings Program and contact us about your St Louis moving discount for veterans.

McGuire Moving & Storage honors our military service personnel. You work tirelessly to serve our country and we salute you!

 

The Batty Attic

Last week McGuire Moving & Storage brought forward the topic of cleaning out the “spooky” basement to our future St Louis movers. In keeping with the spirit of this last week in October, we would like to turn your attention to the batty attic!

For those of you in the St Louis area that are planning a move in the next year, it is never too early to prepare for that move now when you have the time. It will save you money and time later. McGuire Moving & Storage makes a point of sharing ideas and resources as well as offering our moving and storage services to make your St Louis move as smooth as possible. We have brought up the topics of sorting and purging all the areas of your home including closets, garage, shed, and basement.  What about the batty attic?! Don’t forget to go up there. Like the basement, the attic can be an area you want to put off and avoid but you will be so glad you dealt with it now and not when it is time to actually move.

Attics can be filled with spooky things like spiders and webs and THINGS that no longer serve you. Take this season to get up there and see what is what.  It is another great project to get the family involved in as you sort through possible heirlooms and family history. Be sure to have a safe way to get into the attic. If you have a pull down staircase, check to make sure it is working properly and remove all pets and children from the area when pulling it down.  Go up and inspect the flooring and area to ensure your safety before proceeding.

As in other areas of your home, you will decide what stays and what goes. You can beginning packing up many items for if they are in the attic, you probably will not be using them any time soon. In past posts, we offered ideas and resources for recycling, donating and yard sales. Another great way to lighten your move load and save you costs on your move is to sell items online. There are countless online stores where you can list your items for sale. There are companies you can hire to sell your stuff for you. There are also sites that allow you to build your own online store for selling anything you come across. Future St Louis movers may see this time (months before a move) as the time to sell on line and put some cash in your pocket.

McGuire Moving & Storage encourages our future St Louis movers to research the many options available for online selling. It is another great way to get rid of what you no longer need before your big move. Check back through our older posts for great resources and ideas for sorting through the contents of your home. Good luck clearing out the “Spooky” areas of your home and Happy Halloween!

 

Spooky Basements

Halloween Happenings are about! In our neighborhood, porches and lawns are decked out with fun and frightful greeters ready for trick-or-treaters. Spooky things lurk about as the days grow shorter. It is the time of year for apples, pumpkins, and haunted hayrides. Halloween is time for spooky fun.

In line with our fall sorting and purging posts, the next area of the home McGuire Moving & Storage would love to help our future St Louis movers tackle is the basement. Basements can be spooky indeed. They are dark and sometimes damp places where you have placed everything you did not know what to do with over possible decades.  What is lurking down there? It is time to venture down and deal with it. You will want your basement clear of clutter and looking clean and organized prior to putting your home on the market. You will also surely want to lower the cost of your St Louis moving bill by once again purging excess weight-the things you do not need or want to move to your new home.

We suggest that our future St Louis movers make this task part of your Halloween fun. If you have kids, get them involved. It can become a treasure hunt or trip down memory lane and yes, perhaps a little spooky when you look into dark corners. Perhaps they will find great items to use for their Halloween costumes. Plus their younger legs will not mind all the trips up and down the steps to the curb. Chances are during your sorting process that you will find pounds and pounds of things that are of no use to you anymore since you stashed them down there. With every arm load, you are saving money on your move.

Pick an area of the basement and dig in. Once you have determined what you can donate, recycle, or throw out and deal with it accordingly, you will have more clear space to organize what is left.  Check out Earth911 or Donationtown for countless resources for donating and recycling your unwanted items. Perhaps you have items you could sell on-line. Now is the time to do it. Months before you are too busy with the move process. What you want to avoid is the act of just moving useless piles somewhere else in your home. That will not save you time or money. Your goal is to eliminate useless weight now to lower the cost of your move later. Clear up the clutter and move it on out!

Future St Louis movers may choose to use this time to also start packing up anything they come across that will not be used before their move. Have packing material handy and save time later.  McGuire Moving & Storage can help St Louis movers with the packing tips found here.

Finish the day or weekend’s spooky basement clean-out task with the rewards of some hot cider, pumpkin carving and a spooky movie. Your basement will no longer be a spooky place and you can sit back and enjoy Halloween fun. Good Luck future St Louis movers! McGuire Moving & Storage is standing by as you St Louis mover ready to provide you with the resources and services you need throughout your entire move process. BOO!

Thinking About Relocating?

People move for many reasons.  They move to larger homes to accommodate a growing family.  People move so their children can go to the best schools. They move to smaller homes when the family grows up. Some people move because of a job change. Some move when they retire.  Others move when they get married. So many life circumstances can necessitate a move. And as many reasons as there are to move, there are countless reasons to investigate where you think you would like to go.

Gathering information about where you might plan to relocate is an important step in ensuring you will land in the best place for you and your family. McGuire Moving & Storage are all about moving. We are dedicated to providing St Louis area movers with support and resources for their St Louis area relocation. We have created a short list of things St Louis area movers might consider when looking for a new community.

  • Rural, Suburban, Urban? That’s the big question. Each type of area will be very different. Consider what is most important to you in terms of the type of community you want to live in.
  • School system-If you have children or plan to have children, then certainly this consideration would be high on your list. Check out
  • Convenience of shopping-For some knowing their favorite stores are right nearby is an important consideration.
  • Crime rate-there are plenty of resources on the internet to help you determine how safe a community is.
  • Cost of living-This varies from place to place all over the country. You will want to become familiar with what to expect in an area of interest.
  • Real-estate values-These too fluctuate greatly from place to place.
  • Life-style-What types of activities will you want to enjoy in your new location? You will want to investigate places where you can participate in your favorite hobbies, sports, arts, etc.
  • Dog friendly cities/towns-Check out dogfriendly.com for all sorts of dog friendly city information.

We know it is a lot for future St Louis area movers to consider. Here are some great sites where you can get much of the information you will need to narrow down your considerations from above.

Bestplaces.net

Neighborhood Scout

City-Data.com

Research is the place to start and from there you will surely find your way home. Have fun with your search. These days a lot of mystery can be taken out of the relocation process when you can find so much on the web including photos and reviews and ratings on all kinds of things in communities. So good luck St Louis area movers! McGuire Moving & Storage helps take the stress out of your St Louis area move.

Fire Prevention Week

Here it is again… Fire Prevention Week. This year it falls on October 6 and runs through October 12. McGuire Moving & Storage would like to recognize this important event and remind our St Louis area movers about the importance of fire safety.

Here are some important considerations for fire safety during your St Louis area move process:

Fire Safety while preparing to move                                                         

  • For everyone’s safety, gasoline-powered equipment, such as lawn mowers, motorcycles and snow blowers must be emptied of fuel and oil a few days before the move to assure complete evaporation. Propane tanks must be purged and certified before van transport. If your car is being transported, it should have less than a ¼ tank of fuel to allow for expansion.
  • By law, there are some items van lines are not allowed to move, so be sure you don’t pack them. Flammables, explosives and corrosives, ammunition and firearms, fireworks or flares, gasoline, kerosene, motor fuel and lamp oil, oil based paints, thinners and varnishes, lighter or starter fluids, fire extinguishers, nail polish remover, bleach, sterno, aerosol cans, propane tanks and cylinders, and matches cannot be transported.
  • Leave fresh batteries in all of your fire alarms and be sure they are in good working order for the next occupants. 

Fire Safety in your new home

  • Check that all fire alarms and carbon monoxide detectors are in good working order.
  • Plug in each appliance one at a time and ensure they are working properly and their power cords are free of damage or frayed wires.
  • Develop fire escape plans for each member of the family. Each member should have more than one option for escape in case of fire.
  • Have a fire drill to practice the escape routes.
  • Keep a fire extinguisher in places where fires happen most frequently such as the kitchen. This year’s Fire Prevention Week them is Prevent Kitchen Fires.  We invite our St Louis area movers to visit the National Fire Prevention Association website for more information on preventing fires in the kitchen.
  • For more tips on protecting your family and home from fire, visit the Fire Safety page at The National Safety Council.

McGuire Moving & Storage are your proven St Louis area movers. We encourage you to consult with the real experts on fire safety. Contact your local fire department to find out about Fire Prevention Week activities and resources in your community. Move with fire safety in mind. Keep Safe!

Autumn Garage and Shed cleanouts

Happy Autumn from McGuire Moving & Storage! We know that many St Louis area moving companies are beginning to slow down after the moving industry’s busiest time of the year. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our St Louis area movers for the opportunity to serve them and move them into their new homes.

McGuire Moving & Storage never thinks about slowing down. Moving is an all yearlong industry. We know that many future St Louis area movers are just beginning the entire process and thinking about their needs before their big move. Earlier this month, we provided tips for sorting and purging the contents of your home as you anticipate a move down the line. We hope that our future St Louis area movers enjoyed our tips and resources for doing that.

Fall makes us think about areas like the garage and shed when the daytime temperatures are perfect for the jobs. In fact, National Clean Out Your Garage Day is observed as the Saturday after Labor Day. No worries if you missed that or even purposely avoided it…..For many, the garage and shed are places they would prefer not to have to deal with. But deal with it you must so let us motivate you to get started!  Not only will you want to sort and purge those contents to lessen the weight of your move load and save you money, but if you are getting ready to sell your home soon, you will want these areas to be neat and accessible for showings.

It will be a lot easier to organize these areas and make them accessible after removing what you will not need or want to take with you when you move. We found this article on realtor.com “Don’t Neglect the Garage” to be particularly helpful to get you started.  This article has great ideas for getting your garage in shipshape and ready for a showing.

Don’t forget to keep a sense of humor. Play some motivating music while you move through the task. Get the family involved and helping. Most people can get the job done in one day or a weekend. Just think how good you will feel when the job is behind you. McGuire Moving & Storage are here as your St Louis area Movers with all the right resources to take the stress out of your move.

National Voter Registration Day

National Voter Registration Day is coming right up on September 24, 2013. McGuire Moving & Storage would like to remind our recent St Louis area movers to register to vote. If you have recently moved, you have a lot to do. Registering to vote could easily fall by the wayside as you are setting up utilities, updating accounts and accessing information about where you moved to ease into your new life.  That is why we are taking this time to help our St Louis area movers get the job down, so come November, their voices will be heard in our national election.

McGuire Moving & Storage like to provide resources our St Louis area need to ensure a smooth and stress-free move process. Voter registration is a simple and relatively quick process. Check out this page on the Election Assistance Commission website for a list of answers to questions about registering to vote after a move. On this page you will find a link to the National Mail Voter Registration Form and also a link for your local or state elections office. Easy!

Don’t be left out in the cold this November. Get your voter voice heard and register to vote in your new community. It is fast and easy.  McGuire Moving & Storage would like to welcome all recent St Louis area movers to their new neighborhood communities.

Future St Louis Mover? Time to sort and purge!

Happy September! The summer is winding down. It is the squirrely time of year where we tend to feel like getting ready or getting back to normal or getting organized. For McGuire Moving & Storage, the summer was and continues to be our busiest move season. But we are always looking ahead and preparing for the next one.

Many people in St Louis are just beginning the thought process about a future St Louis move and this time of year is perfect for planning and preparing. Future St Louis movers can take advantage of the change in the air and the fall clear out/clean out feeling and start sorting through the contents of their home.

We here at McGuire Moving & Storage like to get our St Louis movers thinking ahead to make a future move as smooth as possible. It is a great time of year to prepare and purge! You might not be moving for a while, but it is never too early to think about what stays and what goes if you know a move is on the horizon. Sorting and purging contents of your home can seem like an overwhelming task if you leave it down to the weeks or even a month or two before a move. It could almost be a second job if you have collected a ton over the years.

Start now and start small. Begin with just one cabinet. If you know you are keeping some of the items you sort through but won’t be using them before you move, you can even begin boxing them up and labeling the contents.  One rule of thumb is: if you use it regularly, will use it in the next year, or enjoy it in anyway, then it should probably go with you. Best of all, purging the weight of the contents of your home can help lower the cost of your future move. Remember, your move costs will be calculated based on weight so why not get your home skinny well before actual move day. Be sure to recycle and donate what you will not be keeping. Check out Earth911 or Donationtown for countless resources for donating and recycling your unwanted items.

Like the squirrels, McGuire Moving & Storage like to get ready for what may come. If you are one of the many future St Louis movers thinking of moving in the next year or so, prepare ahead and begin your move purge little by little over time. You will be so glad you do it come moving time and so will your wallet. Check back through this upcoming season for purging tips and resources.