No one wants rain on moving day. It is out of everyone’s control, but how we handle it is not. The only thing worse than a rainy moving day is a rainy moving day where your stuff gets ruined.
We recently completed a move in Hudson, Ohio, in the rain. The house had a helpful setup: we could back the truck close to the garage and bring most items into the home through the garage entrance. That made a difference, but it did not make the rain disappear—or remove the extra work that comes with it.
Why rain makes loading take longer
Rain tends to slow loading down the most. Laying down carpet and floor protection takes a little time, although that is usually the smaller part of it. Keeping everything clean after the protection is down takes ongoing effort.
We are still going in and out several dozen times. Each trip means paying attention to wet shoes, wiping or stomping our feet before entering, and watching what we are bringing back into the house. Floor protection helps, but it does not mean we can stop thinking about the floors.
At the Hudson move, we used the garage as a staging area to limit the time furniture spent outside. It gave us a place to work between the truck and the house. The tradeoff is that staging adds handling: instead of taking an item straight to its final spot, we may effectively move it twice.
We wrap furniture before taking it outside
For this move, we wrapped all the furniture inside before moving any of it. During steady rain, we try to get as much preparation done as possible. That way, when there is an opening in the weather, we have plenty of items ready to move.
Getting the truck close to a useful entrance also helps shorten the trip outside. Every house is different, so we look at the setup and work out which access point makes the most sense.
Floor protection follows the path of the move
We use Carpet Pro and Ram Board depending on the size of the home, the flooring, and the conditions. The important areas are usually the stairs, pathways into rooms, and the places the crew will cross repeatedly.
Doorways and the tops and bottoms of stairs deserve particular attention. Those are busy transition points throughout the move. The goal is to protect the route we are actually using and keep paying attention to it as the day goes on.
A wet ramp changes how the crew moves
It also takes longer to load because the crew has to account for its own safety. Ramps and liftgates can get slippery. Our steps get shorter, we may need to move more slowly, and very wet conditions can affect our grip.
Those things add up. A crew can be working hard and still take longer than it would on a dry day. Rushing to make up that time can put the furniture, the home, and the people carrying everything at risk.
Should you postpone a move because of rain?
A light drizzle or a passing shower is usually no big deal. Steady rain all day is no fun for anyone.
If both the customer and the moving company have scheduling flexibility, and the future forecast looks clearer, postponing is worth discussing. That is different from assuming every rainy forecast means the move should be canceled. Sometimes the dates are fixed, and sometimes the home’s setup gives us a workable way to limit exposure.
The best approach is to talk through the forecast, the schedule, and the access at both homes before making that decision.
What homeowners can do before we arrive
If your home has an access point where we can get the truck close and stage furniture under cover, keep that area free for us to work. That might mean leaving space in the garage and keeping the closest useful parking spot open.
It is completely dependent on the setup. You do not need to guess which route we will use; let us know what access is available so we can plan around it.
More time can be the better outcome
On a rainy day, keeping the house clean and dry, protecting the furniture, and moving safely are all going to take more time. If we take the right precautions, our aim is for the inconvenience to stop at a longer day, rather than broken items or carpets that need cleaning afterward.
Planning a local move in Northeast Ohio? Tell Harrington Moving about your move, including any garage access, parking restrictions, or concerns about the weather.