Staying green is important to a huge proportion of the population nowadays, and it is important for humanity that we keep our good efforts up. A lot of people live their lives as eco-friendly as can be, up until it comes to relocating their home – then resort to using bad packing materials, doing trips back and forth between their old and new homes, as well as moving all their junk with them also!


Now, this might be because you hasn’t thought of alternatives to your usual moving efforts – or it could be because moving is a stressful task anyway, without having to try and be as eco-friendly as possible! (We're totally not judging!) However, for those of you who do want to reduce your carbon footprint when you are moving, the following tips may be of some help.

­First of all, don’t go and buy tons of bubble wrap and other materials of such sorts. You can keep your belongings safe when you pack them by using the clothing, that you are already moving, as a cushion for your delicate belongings. Pack your clothes, blankets and duvets around any of the fragile items to stop them breaking—this way you are packing smart, by not wasting money on bubble wrap and saving space by using clothing that you would be moving anyway! Also, if you are in need of boxes be sure to adapt your suitcase, laundry baskets and all things similar to be able to occupy some of your belongings, again ‘two birds with one stone’.

Alternatively, pop down to the local shops near you and ask if they have any card board boxes that they are due to throw out – then you are giving them another use rather than allowing them to go to waste, and can still send them off for recycling when you are done.

Another top tip is to cut down on any unwanted belongings before your move. Downsizing is always a good idea, and this saves you moving tons of possessions. If you cut down enough – you might just save yourself a couple of trips back and forth.!  Filter through all of your belongings and place the ones you no longer want on eBay, Freecycle, or Craigslist so that they are used again rather than being thrown out. Alternatively you could take anything unwanted to a charity shop, or even arrange for pick-up in some areas. Saving on trips back and forth is important because it saves emissions, if you turn two journeys in to one – it immediately halves your emissions.

Upon arriving at your new home there is no doubt that you will be looking to clean the place, if already use ‘green’ cleaning products then you might know where this is heading. Yep, a great way to be eco-friendly on your move is to use eco-friendly products to clean out your new home and your old home. They are available at stores, however if you are struggling to locate any products of that kind then you can simply Google them and find them through internet retailers.

Finally, it can honestly be a great idea to hire some movers to reduce your emissions. You might ask how or why that is the case, however rather than desperately cramming all of your possessions into cars or vans of your own, which might require an awful lot of trips, you could hire movers to get the job done in a single journey, as they are prepared with vehicles fully prepared for the entire ordeal. On top of this, they also have insurance so if any of your belongings are broken whilst moving, you are covered. Movers such as Goodfellows Removals or Anglo French Removals are reliable and renowned for their top service, try to make sure you hire movers that are both reliable and fit for the job.