Seems like a nightmare to pack up an entire garage. When is the last time you moved (your entire tools & garage) ?

[Jacobson]

Seems like a nightmare to pack up an entire garage

Even just a single tool chest.
How do you prefer to move a tool chest?
Empty drawers into each box?
Remove each drawers and try to keep stuff in drawers for less work unpacking?

Spare parts, stuff, unused stuff, hoard, etc

Did anyone move their tools after they stopped using them much
and knew they should just junk it all and move on with life
but were unable to get rid of stuff
and ended up moving all these tools that you never use anyway ?

 

[olytdi]

When I moved into my current residence 6 years ago, I had to pack up my shop, move it to storage, then pack it up and move it again after I built my current shop two years later.

There's no easy way to do any of it short of hiring it out.

 

[kbuhagiar]

Maybe not quite a nightmare, but it's no fun.

I just finished moving TWO garages, three hundred miles apart, into my forever garage, another five hundred miles down the road.
We moved a total of six three-section Craftsman cabinets full of tools, and I didn't empty a single drawer.
Sure, the tools were a jumbled mess at the end, but it was easy to straighten since the tools were already in the correct drawer.

Everything else was packed into boxes: not just any boxes, but the bankers box style with a separate lid, in two different sizes. Makes a world of difference when trying to stack everything, both on the truck, and then after when unloading into the new location.

Moving is also a great opportunity to dispose of stuff that is/was no longer needed. I sold/donated/dumped about 7-10% of everything I had before the move, and another 5% after the move.

 

[GirlnAgarage]

3yrs ago
Moved the garage by itself in a separate uhaul load.
Emptied toolbox drawers into individual boxes to attempt to keep weight down per box.
Having an organized toolbox and garage helped tremendously.
Rolled and carried big toolboxes onto the uhual ramp.

Not looking forward to moving again.

 

[loganb]

4 years ago. Sell what you can to reduce the burden, some big heavy/awkward things aren't worth moving... Sell them then rebuy as needed. Otherwise I tried to keep the boxes small and well labeled, where possible rolled the wheeled boxes up into the truck

 

[finn]

Moved from suburban Chicago to our lake house 440 miles north over a few year period. I had already built a 32x54’ garage and gradually brought up duplicates.

For the final push I bought a cheap but relatively new 25’ enclosed car trailer and made several trips.

The trailer had a ramp and winch so I was able to roll a loaded toolbox right up. Unfortunately the box tipped somewhere along the way. No damage, but it was a pain to unload and tip back up.

Sell or scrap anything you don’t absolutely need. Don’t get too attached. It can all be replaced, likely with better, more modern equivalent stuff.

 

[Old Man Roger]

I moved just about 250 miles a year ago, but I put it all in storage while selling the house. So I guess twice in the last 15 months or so. I took drawers out, to make it easier to roll the boxes up and down the ramp, but put them back in for the drive.

I get an oddly satisfying feeling moving it all, I’m strange.lol

 

[Jacobson]

Seems like a nightmare to pack up an entire garage

Even just a single tool chest.
How do you prefer to move a tool chest?
Empty drawers into each box?
Remove each drawers and try to keep stuff in drawers for less work unpacking?

Spare parts, stuff, unused stuff, hoard, etc

 

[FTWingRiders]

I don’t have a clue… but I’ll be watching here hopefully to get A Clue..

My wife and I are looking to downsize within a year or so and I’m terrified of what’s ahead..

 

[Jacobson]

I moved just about 250 miles a year ago, but I put it all in storage while selling the house. So I guess twice in the last 15 months or so. I took drawers out, to make it easier to roll the boxes up and down the ramp, but put them back in for the drive.

I get an oddly satisfying feeling moving it all, I’m strange.lol

So you kept the tools in the drawer.
Removed drawers
Loaded cart
Replaced drawers
Rolled cart off truck into new garage?

 

[Jacobson]

I moved just about 250 miles a year ago, but I put it all in storage while selling the house. So I guess twice in the last 15 months or so. I took drawers out, to make it easier to roll the boxes up and down the ramp, but put them back in for the drive.

I get an oddly satisfying feeling moving it all, I’m strange.lol

Why storage while selling the house?
Why not leave all in garage until sold/move?

 

[Jagmandave]

I moved 1800 miles, I don't think the distance matters it's always a terrible chore to do. I took the drawers out of the tool boxes, rolled them up into the truck then reloaded the drawers in. Did the reverse once I got here. Some of the **** I moved is still in the same boxes 30 years later, but I'm slowly getting rid of stuff I just don't need anymore......slowly is the key word....

I've had my old Snap On top chest for 56 years, it's just gathering dust in the basement these days - empty. I keep thinking maybe I'll give it to one of my grandsons, but neither is in a position to keep it right now. I hope they get settled soon, I'm not getting any younger!

 

[Jacobson]

I don’t have a clue… but I’ll be watching here hopefully to get A Clue..

My wife and I are looking to downsize within a year or so and I’m terrified of what’s ahead..

You should be.
If you have a lot of stuff, be prepared for a meltdown overload

 

[Jacobson]

Some of the **** I moved is still in the same boxes 30 years later,

Brutal.

I've had my old Snap On top chest for 56 years, it's just gathering dust in the basement these days - empty. I keep thinking maybe I'll give it to one of my grandsons, but neither is in a position to keep it right now. I hope they get settled soon, I'm not getting any younger!

All your stuff is junk to everyone else
Dump it or give it away

 

[ducktapeguy]

I moved recently and had a couple of large toolboxes to move (plus about a container load of random stuff including a disassembled engine and an entire project car). I removed each drawer and wrapped each one in plastic wrap (the kind that looks like extra wide Saran Wrap) and moved the chest separately. It was actually pretty easy and painless, but I did have an overhead gantry at my old house to load it up on a trailer and an engine hoist at the destination to unload it which made it really easy. I was only moving a few miles so I didn’t have to worry about keeping everything really secure.

the more boxes/crates you have the pack things in the easier it is because you don’t spend as much time orgainizing and packing. Transporting boxes is probably the easiest part of moving, what takes the most time is packing boxes and trying not to damage anything,

 

[930dreamer]

I moved the contents of my 1200 sq ft shop to my 3200 sq ft shop. I had some help so not horrible. $600 for property tax and nothing will ever need to be moved again.

 

[MushCreek]

Our last move was about 10 years ago. Since I was building the new house, most of the tools were at the job site. I built the shop first so I had a base of operations and a secure place for my tools. Every trip to FL, about 600 miles away I filled my van with stuff and hauled it to SC. I still have a lot of stuff in totes, mostly parts for projects. All of the tools have been set up while I was building the house. While I was building, which took three years, I had a tool chest bolted to the floor of my van, facing the side door for access. I had to haul certain tools back and forth so I could do maintenance and repairs to the old house.

 

[gtae07]

Never (yet). Though I hate to lose the shop, hopefully we'll be moving sometime in the next 6-12 months assuming I can find a job where we want to go.

By that point the airplane should be out of the shop and at the airport (and hopefully flying because it's much easier to move when it can move itself), so the tentative plan for everything else is to get a basic cargo trailer for all my tools etc. That way I'll have access to them until we're settled, and then I can either sell it and recoup most ir all of my cost, or keep it and sell the utility trailer. I plan to leave/give away/sell things like workbenches, tables, etc.

 

[LeeG]

I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I have a move coming up in a year or two. My plan is to load everything onto pallets, then rent a forklift to load them onto a truck. It’s not going to be fun.

Lee

 

[LWB]

I recently moved. They just rolled full boxes on and off the truck. The rest of the tools went into heavy plastic totes. You know the yellow and black ones at the big box stores. It's worth it to pack them away.

 

[mike93lx]

I did it three years ago, but my roller chest isn't huge. Stretched wrapped it and rolled it up into the truck with 2 other guys assisting.

The move did ****. I ended up using lots of boxes instead of buying totes, as I didn't want them hanging around after.

I had movers pack most of the house, but I did the majority of my tools in a separate Uhaul trailer myself. Loaded the really bulky stuff then just packed **** around it.

Moving *****

 

[mrodgers]

2016. I just grabbed what I could and chucked it in the back of my Jetta. I didn't have time to sort, box, just chuck it in and hope I can get another trip. Lost a lot of stuff because I didn't have anywhere to take it to. Lost a good solid cast iron table belt driven table saw, year 1958. Loved that thing, but I didn't have anywhere to take it to. Nice saw, but wasn't worth $150/month storage.

2 trips. Kayak, bicycle, clothes, and laptop. 2nd trip was fitting what I could from the garage. No more tractor, snow blower, tiller, table saw, no furniture, smoker, grill...

 

[jarhead]

29 years in our present home, downsizing in a month when we close on the next home. Fortunately i'm not losing much square footage for shop space.

.5 full harbor freight 44"
.2 HF end cabinets
.3 overhead cabinets (expanding to 6)
.1 project car
. 1 full size mill and 1 full size lathe
.welders, sandblasters, rotisserie, engine hoist, engine stands with 2 engines
.etc etc

Wow after typing a not so complete list i am a little nervous

 

[CJM8515]

about 4 years ago when I moved to my new house. I unloaded everything out of my chests and into home depot branded plastic bins. they hold weight well, are stack-able and if you load them right you can carry a bin yourself or use a hand truck for several of them. moving the chests was rather easy, I have a utility trailer and empty they can easily be rolled. I loaded the bins into my truck bed and towed the chests with the trailer. Did my entire setup that way

the rest of my stuff i boxed up and moved in the same manner, but I didnt have that much stuff coming from an apartment-then back to parents and then back out again.

 

[Oldsmobile]

About four years ago, I moved to a new place about seven miles from my old place. I removed the drawers from my boxes and stacked them carefully in the back of my station wagon. The boxes were moved empty in a utility trailer. I did it this way to minimize the disruption. OP, I don't know how far you're moving, which may affect your plans.

 

[OccupantRJ]

I had a 1400 sq ft repair and fabrication shop and knew we were going to be moving a year ahead of time, so I brought excess wood pallets from work to use. I then bought an old forklift from my neighbor and did a full refurbish on it, including completely refreshing the engine. Most everything of any size like tool chests or cabinets was grouped on pallets and wrapped with stretch wrap. Small stationary power tools were bolted to pallets to remain usable.
I also bought a pallet jack and a 40 foot dry van from a friend, parked it outside my shop, and loaded it with the forklift. It was completely filled. One of my neighbors worked for a heavy duty truck repair and drove the wreckers for them. He had a semi truck that was tagged as wrecker duty to move trailers that were not technically road ready. He backed under the trailer after attaching emergency lights and towed it about 40 miles to my new location. Afterwards, I had the forklift towed on a rollback. I still own the forklift, and recently gave the trailer to my son to use for storage on his rear property. As moves of that size go it was relatively painless With that method.

 

[Stuart in MN]

I've lived here for 40 years. I'm thinking the only choice for moving will be to toss a match in the door and just walk away.

 

[NUTTSGT]

June of 2000.

We bought our current house, moved from an apartment where I had no garage. I was using the garage at my SIL's place. Needless to say, it all probably fit in 1 or 2 pick up loads.

 

[RoninB4]

I last moved 7 years ago that entailed an entire small machine shop, an 800 lb. granite surface plate, about a dozen tool chests, 5 motorcycles, 2 cars, 1 pickup truck, and a quantity of tooling. I have a couple of suggestions:

1) Group your tools together so they can be located AFTER you move
2) Attachments need to be taped to whatever they attach to
3) Tool chests that are loaded will be very heavy, plan for how you will move them
4) Use moving dollies, hand-trucks, or anything with wheels to save your back (engine hoist helped me)
5) Build wooden crates to hold things instead of using cardboard boxes that will come apart
6) Make large, clearly read labels for any containers to avoid searching for things after you move
7) Move as much in one session as possible even if it means renting a truck/trailer. Multiple trips moving things takes too long
8) Build devices to move heavy objects like machinery, buy a chain-fall or electric hoist if needed
9) Start loading the truck early, it's a long day. Avoid injuring yourself.
10) Drop bed trailers are good for moving heavy machinery (like a Bridgeport) or call a roll-back wrecker (money well spent)

Good luck

 

[f121]

How do you prefer to move a tool chest?

 

[Dragfluid]

You should be.
If you have a lot of stuff, be prepared for a meltdown overload

That's probably the funniest thing I've read so far this week!
Starting in November 2021, we started to move 110 miles when Graco bought our place. I say started because we wouldn't be closing on our new place until Dec 1, but the PO allowed us to move stuff for the house into the 4 stall garage. That was very nice of them. Two 20' shipping containers worth, plus a couple 10' enclosed trailers worth.
As most know, I'm a retired mechanic. (mostly just tired) For 48 years.
I had a few things to move.
Old shop, 2800 sq ft, plus items in another out building. One 20' container, several trips with a large flatbed trailer, and a skidloader trailer, a 26' U-haul, and several more trips with the small enclosed trailer. Plus, two vehicles and a tractor on a class 8, and a motor home on a slightly smaller truck. The four tool boxes had everything left in them, with the drawers locked. Large stuff included a few saws, plasma table, powder oven, hoist, benches, shelving, cabinets. Thankfully, the boys at the dealer let me borrow a bunch of those hard plastic GM parts totes. Graco said that anything that I didn't want I could leave with no problem. (except for vehicles)

I could go on, but the point is, it doesn't have to be a ***********. I had a spiral notebook started when we made the decision, listing all the things I was going to take, the people that would be helping, what each individual would be doing, etc. And I do want to point out that this went on for a few weeks. Had to be done accessing the place by the end of Feb.

 

[bdbecker]

Regarding inventory (spare parts, stuff, unused stuff, hoard, etc.), I'd suggest getting rid of as much stuff as possible so you can start off on the right foot in your next space. Personally, I try to do a clean-out/purge/reorganization at least once a year. When doing this, I ask myself a series of questions when trying to decide what to keep and what to get rid of. These questions have evolved over the years, but seem to work pretty well for me.

1) Is this item in working order? If it's something I tossed on the shelf because it was broken but haven't repaired it yet, is it really needed or worth keeping around?

2) Is this item redundant? Basically, do I really need to have this amount or this many of the same thing on hand? Keep a reasonable number of the better condition items and get rid of the rest.

3) How easy is this item to replace? I'm terrible about holding onto wood scraps. How many 2x4 off-cuts do I really need to keep around? A few are fine, but the rest can be sent to Dad's wood stove. Now if an item is expensive and/or difficult to replace - like a hard to find part for a vehicle - yeah, it's probably worth keeping.

4) When is the last time I've used this item and/or how likely am I to use this item in the next year? I'll hold onto certain things with the thought that they might come in handy or could be repurposed in the future. If after a year or two I haven't used something and don't see an immediate use for it, it's time to get rid of it.

5) Am I still interested in this project and/or am I ever going to complete this project? This is probably the most difficult one for me because I'm a bit of a dreamer. I'm sure I'm not alone in that I'll start to collect items for a project idea I've had, only to realize a few years later those parts have been collecting dust and my focus has shifted towards a different direction. At this point, it's time to be honest with myself and admit that I just need to walk away and pass those items onto someone else who can use them.

I agree with others on emptying out the tool chest drawers into bins. I'd also add that picking up some cheap moving blankets or some foam padding to wrap around the box before wrapping it in shrink wrap will help protect the paint.

 

[Dragfluid]

Becker has a nice suggestion list up there ^, except I don't understand why he and some others want to empty out the toolboxes? Why handle stuff twice? If you strap the box in place and lock the drawers, it will be fine.

 

[niget2002]

I used it as a chance to purge. I threw out a LOT of stuff.

I borrowed an 18' trailer for all the big tools. Had most of the garage loaded onto that. The toolbox got rolled into a box truck and strapped so that the drawers faced the wall. The toolbox is a craftsman with the metal sliders that lock the drawers. I used those and locked all the drawers too. Then one set of keys went into the wife's purse and the other set of keys went immediately into the console of my truck. Normally I keep all of the keys in the top of the box, so I still had all of them.

It also helped that at the time both my BIL and his dad drove 35' box trucks.

I ended up putting another strap around the bandsaw and strapping it to the big box on the other side of it after this picture was taken.

 

[zmotorsports]

First and only time the wife and I moved was 7 years ago. I was dreading moving the shop, the house not so much.

We made a commitment when we were looking at houses that it would be our forever home because I was NOT going to move the shop again. Boxing up and moving everything out of the old shop to the new house's garage as a temporary basis took nearly 3 weeks. We were fortunate that we had a big enough garage on the house to store all of my tools and equipment and didn't have to rent a space.

Once the shop construction was completed it took about a week to move everything from the house garage to the shop about 45' behind the house. Then another year to get is set up the way I wanted. I don't ever want to move and go through that again.

As far as moving, most of the smaller pieces of shop equipment and tools we loaded in an enclosed trailer and transported them the 8 or so miles from our old home to the new one. For the larger pieces of shop equipment such as lathe, milling machine, toolbox, bandsaws, etc. I rented a drop deck trailer from my local rental store. That made the job much easier as things could be rolled onto and off of the trailer's deck rather easily. I would rent another drop deck trailer for moving larger items in a heart beat.

 

[JSutter]

2010ish then 2013
I had it easy. I used the work box truck with a lift gate. Had help from a few friends when needed. The trips were short distance and I could work at my own pace. The trash went into the work dumpster and the scrap metal went to the recycling yard I went to daily already.

Organizing the new space was the hard part.

 

[CraigStu]

I left the toolboxes full. Movers needed a couple of guys to push them up the ramp into the truck but said it was no big deal for them. I left some stuff in the wall cabinets and ratchet strapped them closed. A few cabinets had small hard heavier stuff I emptied and packed in boxes so it would not be ricosheying around inside the cabinet.

 

[NakeDiesel]

Last move for me was 15 years ago. I bought a 26' enclosed car hauler, packed up all my tools, all the disassembled pieces of my 69 Camaro, welder, air compressor, etc.. I packed that trailer from front to back, top to bottom full of all my garage stuff and all the household items I could fit into it. Hauled it from SC to OK and set it on my land while I got the house on the land, roads, electric, septic system, etc.. all established then built my shop a few years later and move the garage stuff into my shop and sold the trailer. Sold the trailer for 100.00 less than what I paid for it new.

I'd need several semi trailers now to move my current shop and all my projects...

 

[RaisedByWolves]

Seems like a nightmare to pack up an entire garage

Even just a single tool chest.
How do you prefer to move a tool chest?
Empty drawers into each box?
Remove each drawers and try to keep stuff in drawers for less work unpacking?

Spare parts, stuff, unused stuff, hoard, etc

Toolboxes are easy.

Remove drawers, stack in truck next to box and reassemble when you get to the destination.

 

[txvwnut]

I've moved shops several times over the years. Tool boxes get the drawers and doors strapped shut and loaded full, then all of the equipment and other sundries get packed and moved accordingly.