A box is a box, right?

NO, that is a common misconception among everyday people who only uses boxes a few times during their lifetime, like moving time. I guess a lot of people think that if something will fit in the box, the the box will hold it. That may be true for light weight items but all boxes are rated by weight and if you load heavy items and surpass the weight rating of the box it will most likely fail (come apart, tear, crumple) so basically your stuff can get ruined by not using the proper box. Large boxes are often overloaded and come apart and tear but large boxes are rated at the same weight as a small boxes by most moving box manufacturers.

How do I know what a box will hold? A Box Maker's Certificate

A printed label is located on the one of the bottom flaps of a box and it is called the Box Maker's Certificate. This mark is the maker's certification as to the strength of the box and its materials. Comparing these numbers helps you pick the appropriate box for your belongings. Here is a sample of a Box Maker's Certificate:

The 3 blanks filled in on each box are as follows:

Burst Test - The force required to rupture the board using vacuum pressure. This relates to the box's ability to withstand forces, and therefore to contain and protect the contents during rough handling.

Combined Weight on Facings - This is a measure of the weight the side of the box can withstand when something is placed on top of the box. This relates to the stackability of the box.

Size Limit - This is the maximum length in inches that a sheet of this board can be while still maintaining its strength characteristics.

Gross Weight Limit - This tells us the maximum total weight of contents that can be safely placed in the box.

This is a great information but how much does a person packing their home really need to know?

Really just the bottom line "gross weight limit" abbreviated "Gross WT LT" is all a home packer needs to know. That's how heavy the contents of your box can be to stay within the limits the box is designed to hold.

The moving industry makes it a lot easier, there are 3 main size moving boxes named easily enough as small, medium, and large! Most moving box manufacturers have all three sizes rated at 65 pounds each. That means its easy to overload a medium or large box because even though they are larger, they are rated for the same overall weight as a small box.

Small ones are referred to as 1.5's by packing professionals because the holds 1.5 cubic feet.

Mediums are referred to as 3.0's...

Larges are are referred to as 4.0's...

Small boxes are also commonly called "book boxes" because that is one of their main uses. They are ideal for heavy items like books, CD's, canned goods, records, tools, videos, small appliances, or kitchen items.

Medium boxes are the most common box for most household items such as Kitchen items, linens, toys, clothes, appliances, and much more. Except for heavy items which take a small box, almost everything else can fit in a medium box.

The large boxes are for lighter items like lamp shades, pillows, bulky plastic toys an such.

There are many other sizes and specialty boxes but those three above can pack almost any apartment and most houses except for larger houses (over 1500 sqft). Wardrobe boxes and dish packs are the most common specialty moving boxes used in larger homes.

Wardrobe boxes are boxes for hanging clothes. They have a metal bar that runs along the center of the top of the box and they have a special opening flap to allow you to get hanging clothes in the box. They come in 2 sizes short and regular. The short ones can hold shirts and items that don't hang lower than a shirt would. The regular wardrobe boxes are about 4 feet tall and hold longer clothes like dresses and trench coats. You can also place shoes and other loose items at the bottom of the wardrobe box to use any empty space.

If you have a large kitchen with many dishes or large heavy items a "dish pack" box is a good choice. It is close to the size of a large box, but double wall layered cardboard (twice as thick as a normal box) to handle the extra weight of dishes. They also have inserts to separate glasses and such but packing paper can do the same thing.

There are other specialty boxes that are sometimes used in moving such as picture frame boxes, electronics boxes, sporting good boxes, extra large boxes, lamp boxes, etc... Most of these boxes are more expensive compared to regular boxes but if your belongings need the special attention, they are available.

The main point I wanted to get across with this blog on boxes is to NOT overload your boxes. I have seen many boxes fail and fall apart from being overloaded. You can save a lot of money packing yourself as long as you pack boxes correctly.

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