Has anyone used plastic storage boxes for moving?
 

If so, what sizes did you find most useful? Any recommendations as to brand?

I have used a few but only for what I planned to store for awhile. I think it would be very expensive.

I got big cheap ones at Sams. they worked great

i happened to have a lot of them, so no extra expense. i had to tape the tops shut but they didn't break

I've used them, they work great. You do have to be aware on what you stack on top of them. I did find that I like the ones that have the locking handles on them. Being able to lock the lids on, keeps you from having to tape the tops on.

Ok for moving yourself but moving companies won't take them. They shift and break too easily. United won't even take the rubbermaids. They will put them in a box. Also helps to keep the box sizes more even for better packing. The last time we moved (retirement) we moved ourselves and I used rubbermaid alot. You do have to be careful of stacking them. They are not even.

I love them for moving and over the years have collected many - never had a problem with the movers not wanting to move them either. I mostly have the midsize Rubbermaid type - agree locking tops are preferred. We had no problem stacking them 3 or 4 high, after that, too far for me to reach. When empty you can put lots inside each other, tops on top so they don't take much room. Highly recommend - just collect them when they are on sale.

Same here. OK if not a lot of weight is on top. Ditto on the locking lids.

I have moved out of boxes and into Sterilite 4 drawer units.

I used the large plastic totes (don't remember the sizes but they were the largest if not next to the largest - 40 gal) Anyway I put my entire sewing room into plastic totes to have them put into what I was told was an A/C unit by the moving/storage company. Thought it best plastic instead of boxes as I lived in Florida with lots of humidity and bugs. It was 4 years before I got my house sold, moved, bought another house, remodeled and finally moved in. My totes were toast as they got crushed due to the moving/storage company. But the items inside were fine. Some of my fabrics are still in plastic totes for lack of anywhere else to put them but I do open the lids up and air them out occasionally. No bugs traveled with me either........Thank Goodness!

Oh shoot, i'm thinking of moving back to Texas and have fabric galore in tubs. the last two i got had the locking handles that clip over the lid. cost more though. Good luck. I will try grocery stores for boxes.

Locking lids are a must. The ones that have the clip on the bin & fold over the lid are the best. Just make sure they aren't the biggest if you are going to be lifting them. Better to get mid size & be able to lift them without straining your back & arms. Might drive guys nuts but if you are going to be shifting alone midsize works much better.

The Container Store has wonderful plastic drawers. They really glide nicely. My "goal" was to ditch the Sterlites and buy the Container Store ones but I decided purging the plastic as best I could was a better option. I have donated a lot of fabric to the 4H sewists. I, frankly, dont want a huge stash staring back at me for years. Take a look at the Container Store. The casters are awesome too. Lots of size options.

sandy

Don't do it! I did and they all cracked. Even taping did not work. We moved 1200 miles perhaps if you are moving a short distance it would be okay. I moved from FL too so I know the plastic is preferred because of ALL the critters that you may come upon or should I say come upon you LOL. Also don't get your boxes from a box store they are too flimsy. The boxes we got from a moving/storage company were undamaged - the box store boxes twisted and had broken up. After all this believe it or not only 1 Isabelle Bloom statue had it's base cracked so we just glued the Huggers back together.

When our girls were young adults and moving all the time, we bought the big plastic trash cans on wheels. They were fantastic! Seems they had more books then anything and books are a nightmare to move. The wheels made the job so easy. The cans wheeled right onto the ramp to inside the truck and right back out again. No lifting required. After the first time using the trash bins, the girls could pack everything and move everything but big furniture.

I love them as you can see what is in them. I've had no problem with them. Moving companies can't sell you boxes if you use only the plastic ones; then we use a lot of them after we move in and unpack only what we need.
Dodee

My sister found nice plastic bins at Big Lots for much cheaper than elsewhere. Her daughter worked as a marketer for a disaster reclamation company and she swore by Rubbermaid. I have never put it to the test thankfully but she said that that brand was the only one to give any protection in the event of a fire. The Rubbermaid would no longer be usable but the contents would be protected. She won't use any other brand. This is hearsay, untested information but my niece is sharp as a tack otherwise, LOL!

All our garage stuff is in plastic totes, and we've moved twice with those and never had any problems with movers not wanting to use them and very little damage to the totes themselves. We buy the kind that have the lid split in half that flip over - the sides are structured and they're more sturdy than the kind that have the purely straight sides. We stack those things as high as we can reach with no problems.

When I move, I buy boxes online from Uline. I get a ton of small boxes for my books (I have about 1500 books) and medium & large boxes for the rest of the household stuff. I like having just 3 sizes of boxes to deal with rather than tons of random boxes; it's easier to stack them and move them. I use small boxes for the books so I can still manage them myself after they're filled up.

I also buy a roll of red tape that I use to seal any boxes or mark any totes that I want to move myself - things that are extra fragile/valuable/sentimental. It's really easy for the movers that way - red tape means don't touch!

When we moved I did place all my material in plastic totes but we were only moving 4 miles. For anyone moving and needing boxes you can go to your nearest Lowe's Building Supply and ask them to save their inventory boxes for you. They told me what day to come pick them up and it was amazing how many, not broken down, I could load into our Expedition. These are just the right size to pack with so that the weight (even with heavy things) doesn't get to be hard to handle. The boxes break down and go back together great and they have an over-fold flap top that tucks in and open handle grips on each end. We didn't have to tape a box since we were not going very far. They were free as they just break them down and recycle them. I guess they still have their inventory delivered that way. I could never understand why they didn't use plastic totes and reuse them instead of cardboard but it was a great deal for me and we still are using several of them for different reasons. And I recycled them by giving them to a friend that was moving also.

I have had plastic totes for decades. People thought I was crazy for spending the money but I didn't have broken dishes and I sold Tupperware so I knew enough about plastic. I paid more for the clear containers but they were all worth it. At least I could see what was here and there. I have one set of totes that I know are 25 years old. DH and a few others have said to me "Do you know what that's going to do to the landfill?" Hello, they aren't going anywhere! They are full!

The plastic totes are great for moving...IF you pack, move and unpack right away. If you need to put them in storage for any length of time, beware of too hot or too cold temperatures. We spent Valentine's day moving my sister's things from storage to an apartment. Her things had been in storage for 18 months...The hot temps melted the plastic...it collapsed down and distorted...the cold made many brittle. They were stored in outside storage, in Minnesota....lesson learned.

I like to get the ones you can see through. Makes it easy to find what you are looking for.

I used big ones I got from Sam's. I packed about 20 quilts in them and gave them to my SIL. good thing they were in the plastic tubs. She had a flood and they were saved. I like them they are easy to handle and can stack easily and you can write on them if you need to. the locking handles kept my quilts safe inside. and no 'bugs' got in either.

I bought some Rubbermaid Tough Neck totes. They don't have that awful plastic, off gassing smell. The lids lock on. I am very happy with them and will be buying more.