Cheap cardboard moving boxes

Remember the day when you would go to the local supermarket and scrounge for used boxes for moving? Those days have changed as Portland retailers usually break down the boxes minutes after unloading the product and bundle them for recycling. Sure you can still find moving boxes in the back alley of liquor stores and in some cases online, where used moving boxes are advertised as cheap or as the ‘green option’, but are they really a good deal.

Consumers do not think about the hazards of moving your belongings in used moving boxes. Firstly, used boxes are NOT as safe and reliable as new moving boxes. They are far more likely to collapse, especially if they’ve suffered any physical damage, wear ‘n tear, or exposure to water/moisture in the past. Furthermore, pre-used boxes come with a host of other hazards, such as:

Used Moving Boxes Pose Health Hazard

Pests such as bed bugs, cockroaches and lice and their eggs may hide within used moving boxes. Even one bed bug could result in a total infestation of your new home. In addition, bacteria, mold and viruses can be introduced into your home by used moving boxes. In October 2010 girls on a Tigard, Oregon soccer team became violently ill because they contracted the norovirus from a bag that had been passed around. Before this incident, it was thought that the norovirus could not be passed to other people via inanimate objects. You have no way of knowing who has handled those used moving boxes and what diseases may be passed on to your children.

Used Moving Boxes Lack Strength

Used moving boxes are not as reliable as sturdy plastic moving boxes. They are far more likely to fall apart or collapse, especially if they’ve suffered any physical damage from previous moves. In the Pacific Northwest, exposure to moisture will affect the integrity as well. Lastly, those liquor store boxes were not designed to be used as moving boxes and often your belongings will wind up broken or scattered across the driveway.

Used Moving Boxes Are Not Green

Sure, reusing cardboard boxes for moving is better than dumping them into a landfill but make no mistake about it… that is where they will eventually end up. Renting plastic moving boxes can save up to 500 cardboard boxes and save hundreds of trees. They also pack more efficiently into a moving truck so you will need a smaller truck and less gas.

The average person doesn’t move very often and is likely not aware of the hazards of used moving boxes. But when you take into account the diseases and pest you could be exposing your family to, and the cost of broken heirlooms that may result in going ‘cheap’, you may want to reconsider used moving boxes and rent moving boxes instead.

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