Moving house can be exciting, but it also comes with plenty of planning and decisions.
Being prepared makes the whole experience smoother, faster, and far less stressful.
Below we answer some of the most common questions people ask when organising a move.

​It’s best to book your removals company as early as possible—ideally at least 2 - 3 weeks before your moving date.
If you’re moving at a busy time of year (end of the month, coming up to bank holidays, peak summer time, late December moves), booking even earlier is wise.

Early booking ensures:

• You reserve your preferred date
• You get the best price
• The removals team can prepare the right vehicle and manpower

Leaving it too late can limit your options, especially if you need a larger van or multiple movers.

• Size of the property
• How much furniture and boxes you have​
• How well your items are packed
• Accessibility (stairs, lifts, parking difficulty, long walks)
• Distance to travel between the two properties

As a rough guide for Local House Removals:

• 1–2 bedroom moves: 2–4 hours
• 3 bedroom moves: 4–6 hours
• Larger homes: A full day.

Professional removal teams work efficiently, but good preparation on your part, always speeds things up.

Please Note:- If you are in a Selling and Buying Chain, due to the legal process, there are often waiting time delays for keys to new properties, you may require a moving van for a full day even when its a small house move.

​The van size depends on how much you need to transport, the distance you need to travel and whether you are Renting or part of a Buying/Selling Chain:

If you are renting nearby, you often have flexibility on moving times so it's not always essential to empty the house in one van load, 2 or more trips can be done in a smaller vehicle and this will save you money.

If you are in a Selling Chain, Time Restricted on moving day, or for Long Distance Moves, you may need to have all or at least most of your items emptied from your old home before you get the keys for your new home so a Larger van or 2 Vans may be needed.

• Small/partial moves: A Transit or Long Wheel Based -sized van is usually enough.
• 1–2 bedroom moves: An Extra Long Wheel Base Van or Luton van is often ideal.
• 3+ bedroom homes: You may need an Extra Long Wheel Base Van or if in a selling chain, multiple moving vans to empty the home

If you’re unsure, your local removals company can advise based on a quick call or survey.

​If you are wanting to keep your moving costs down, then Yes, you need to pack everything ready for the removals team to move your items on moving day.

But, often at a high cost,  some removals companies do offer:

• Full packing services
• Part packing (e.g., fragile items only)
• Supply of boxes, tape, and packing materials

​If you choose to pack your house yourself, start early and try to complete one room at a time.
Doing this can save you a considerable amount of money.
Professional packing services ensures everything is safely wrapped but can double your moving costs as its very time and manpower consuming.

​Most professional movers can dismantle and reassemble items like:

• Beds
• Wardrobes
• Dining tables
• Sofas with removable sections

BUT... It’s always best to check in advance so the team can bring the right tools and allow extra time on moving day.

​Removal companies sometimes are not allowed to transport certain dangerous or restricted items.
Always ask your movers if you need to move...
.

• Flammable liquids (petrol, solvents, paint thinners)
• Gas bottles
• Chemicals
• Explosives or fireworks
• Open containers of paint
• Perishable food
• Pets

When looking for a Removal Van or Removal Men​ make sure you check them out and that you are choosing a Removals Service with Great Google Reviews with 5 Star Feedback.
You then know that other have used them and that they have provided a great service to other people and you're going to receive the same service.

A smooth move also comes down to preparation.

Here are simple ways to reduce stress:

• Start packing early - It takes loner than you think
• Declutter before moving day - Its speeds up your move and you start a fresh in your new house
• Book your removals team in advance
• Keep important items (documents, medication, chargers) in a separate and marked “essentials box”
• Arrange childcare or pet care to ease your stresses on moving day.
• Take photos of cable setups behind TVs and PCs

The more organised you are beforehand, the easier moving day will be.

​Labelled boxes save time and make unpacking far easier.

At a minimum, each box should have:

• Room name in the New House
• General contents (e.g., “Kitchen – plates & glasses”)
• FRAGILE where needed
• “This side up” or "Keep Upright" if important

Good labels help the removals team place everything in the right rooms and prevent breakages.
​Ready Printed Rolls Of Stickers can be purchased on Amazon
​Your new house may have more or less rooms so base Room Name on the New Home.

Some do but most removal companies in West Yorkshire  don't, because It's often more cost effective for clients to buy their own packaging like sturdy boxes, bubble wrap, tape, and packing paper from Amazon, Ikea, Online Box Sellers when you need them.
Ikea has some of the best boxes, that are strong and often don't need to be taped underneath due to the design.
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Large rolls of bubble wrap can be delivered to your door through Amazon, along with bundles of boxes in the sizes you need.
Buy a quality Tape Gun and quality Brown Packing Tape as these will make your life so much easier when building and closing boxes.
Also purchasing a roll of Shrink Wrap (commercial strength Cling Film), as this is often handy to wrap around furniture to hold doors, drawers etc in place.

Please Note: Removals by Steve Advises you NOT to put brown parcel take on furniture items to hold doors or drawers closed, and it's also not to be used on appliances like Fridges. Its often difficult to remove the tape afterwards and sometimes a residue is left on the items that cannot be removed, Use Shrink Wrap !

​When buying boxes, please always buy "Double Walled Boxes" as this are less likely to crush when stacked up in your home or the van.
Buy a variety of sizes, books and heaving things can be placed in small to medium boxes and lighter bulky items into larger boxes.
When you build your boxes, use plenty of tape to secure the bottom of the boxes. Just folding the box bases will result in them opening and thing spilling out as the removal man carries them around.

When you are doing all your packing yourself, using proper materials is essential — strong boxes reduce the risk of damage, strong packing tape stops the boxes from opening, and quality bubble wrap gives fragile items the protection they need.
Be sure to order a mix of sizes so you’re not packing heavy items into large, hard-to-lift boxes.

Whilst purchasing your boxes you can also buy rolls of "Fragile" Stickers and others from amazon that are in a bold red colour and stand out, although you can just use a marker pen to mark boxes if you prefer.

Don't use brown packing tape on Furniture, Fridge Freezer Doors or Glass & Mirrors as you will often be left with a hard to remove residue on the items.

Your movers will usually wrap and protect your larger furniture on the van on moving day.
This often includes removals blankets or shrink wrap, for tables, wardrobes and other such items when in the van.

But you are welcome to wrap your furniture items with blankets and shrink wrap or bubble wrap ready for the removal men, but please keep in mind that if your items are large or bulky the additional wrapping may cause issues when trying to get them through tight spaces or doorways.

Your job is mainly to ensure drawers are emptied and loose items are boxed — the removal team will take care moving the heavy items and protecting them in the large moving van.

And don't forget, we need the contents of your Fridge Freezer removing so we can safely move these appliances on moving day. Try use up your frozen foods before your move as they will be out of the freezer for a number of hours and may defrost before you get into your new home. You can use chiller bags or boxes for any remaining items that you need to move but in the summer heat this may not be adequate to keep your items frozen.

Yes, please empty things from Chests of Drawers, Sideboards, Cabinets etc and place them into sealed boxes marked up for the correct room in the new house.
But you can leave items inside any small bedside cabinets if they are not fragile. We can take them as they are or if you want to ensure they don't open, use shrink wrap around the doors or drawers to prevent them from opening.

Dismantling your furniture yourself, if you can do this, is often the best thing to do a few days before moving day.
If there are any issues taking things apart, like a rounded screw, you then have time to solve the problem rather than having an issue on moving day when time is short.

If it's not something that you can do, Your removal team can often dismantle and re-build flat pack type furniture for you but you need to mention this when requesting a moving quote from them to check that this is a service that they offer.

Dismantling & Re-building furniture again at your new home is often time consuming and this can put pressure on the removals team on moving day and also mean an additional cost due to the additional time. 

Loose clothing on hangers can often fall off the hanger when carrying them to the van so it's always best to put them into Boxes or Strong Black Bin Liners.

Same for bedding, They can fall onto the ground and get dirty when left to be carried loose.
​Getting them Boxed or Bagged is the best thing to do.

If you have loose/spare coat hangers, please remove them from the wardrobe and place then inside a box or bin liner and fasten them up.

Opened boxes with items sticking out can cause issues when loading the moving van and we cannot stack them on top of each other without the risk of damage to something. Having said that, we know not everything fits nice and neatly inside a box, so please try keep to a minimum this type of box.
​
The more you have in Sealed Boxes or Bin Liners, the safer your items are from damage and spills and also the faster we can get you moved. 

This also goes for any Garage or Shed Items, Box or Bag smaller items ready for moving day, bundle together any items like brooms, garden rakes, poles and tape together.

With ALL your boxes, write on each box the name of the room in the new house and maybe add a side note where the contents came from... i.e Living Room - Sideboard, Sue Bedroom - Drawers.
If they are marked up with a destination room, the removal men can place them directly into the correct room rather than stacking boxes up to the roof in one room for you to sort out later.

So you're moving home and need to find some cheap or even better still, some free moving boxes !!

​There are various options for buying cheap boxes in person or online, as well as, ways of getting FREE boxes too.
​How, well I'll tell you.....

Free Moving Boxes....
Getting boxes for free can be a bit hit and miss, so you may need start to look for them way in advance of your moving date. Here are some ideas for you...

Ask your local corner shop if they have any boxes or can keep some boxes for you the next time they restock, they are often happy to help as it says them disposing off them themselselves.

You can try your local supermarket, most mornings around 9am, visit the fruit & veg area. As they replenish the shelves there are often free empty carboard boxes available that you can take to use for your move.
These boxes may may not be exactly what you are looking for and will come in various shapes and sizes. If you're luck you can find some strong enclosed boxes that the bananas have arrived in but sometime they only have shallower open top trays which may not be ideal and are only suitable for packing limited things, but they will be better than nothing and they are after all, Free.

Another option is to ask on local Facebook groups to see if anyone has any empty boxes available after their own house move. You may need to put a couple of posts up on different days at different times to reach the right person, but there is often someone else disposing of their old moving boxes after their own house move and it saves them a trip to the tip to get rid of them.

Buying Moving Boxes....
The other option is to buy boxes. Yes it costs money but you an choose the size you want, the quantity you want and you also get them when you need them, especially if its a last minute move.

When you buy moving boxes make sure you buy Double Walled Boxes, these are thicker and stronger boxes. They protect your items better, and they stack better in your home and in the moving van with less chance of crushing or crumpling.

Ebay and Amazon have lots of people selling packing materials including boxes in various sizes. Its easy to do a quick search but check the quality, sizes and quantities of the listings and watch out for any additional posting costs.
​
Ikea have some excellent and strong carboard boxes for moving home, they can be ordered online and usually available instore, and whilst you're there, buy some of the large blue bags, these come in handy for soft items like bedding & clothing or bits and bats that you need to gather up and these bags come in handy later and can be used for various things after your move too.

If you are in or close to the Shipley area of Bradford, ASC Direct supply removal boxes/kits which you can order over the phone or online and collect yourself saving delivery costs.
​But they also do Online and Delivery Orders.

There are more moving home help and advice short blog pages below, why not take a look or if you have any other ideas for cheap or free boxes, leave a comment.

Look for trusted local Moving Vans with 5-Star Reviews on Google, Facebook, or Checkatrade.
​Reliable services will have feedback on punctuality, care, fair pricing and safe moving of items.  ​

Ask for 2 or 3 Quotes to compare prices but Also ask what the quotes include, what Manpower that includes, do the removal men take things to the room of your choice, is the van Clean, Tidy, Equipped for Moves and Large Enough.

What Service do you need and expected prices....

For moving a Single Item or Small Part Moves - 1 Man & Van Fixed with price quotes - from £50 (2men extra)
For 1 or 2 Bed House Removal- 1 man £50-£80 per hour .... 2 Men £95 - £150 ph or Day Rate of £650 - £999
For a 3 - 4 Bed House Removals - 2 Men + 2 Large Vans - Day Rate £800 - £1500.

Additional services = Additional Costs - Dismantling furniture, additional vans, Additional moving men​

A professional Man with a Van or Home Removals Service will have Removals Blankets and Ratchet Straps on the van to help protect and secure your items during the move.
​Removals by Steve goes on step further and has a Carpeted Van Floor in the Load Area to give your items added protection.
Always ask before booking!  ​

Bradford’s best Moving Teams and Man with a Van Services get booked quickly—secure your slot early, especially for Friday and Weekend moves. 
​
For House Moves try book your Removal Van at least 2 Weeks in advance to have a better chance of securing a Removal Team at a Great Price for your required Moving Day

If you are moving just 1 or 2 items and looking for a Man with a Van Service, book at least 2 - 3 days in advance to get your preferred moving but you may still need to be flexible on collection time.

If you're looking for somehwere to store some boxes & bags, a few pieces of furniture Or a FULL House in the Bradford area I've got just the place for you !

Small Units from only 25 sqft going all the way up to units large enough to hold a Full House and more !!!
​And all at a fantastic price in a safe & secure storage unit in a recent purpose built facility in Bradford.

And if you're wondering how do I get my things to the storage unit?
I've got just the Man with a Van for you too !
Oh yeah, that will be me. 
If you tell them "Removals by Steve" sent you...
​I will give you a discounted rate on moving your items from your home in Bradford to this Storage Company, so you win all round !

If it's just no longer needed and in a usable condition and still has a bit of life left in it, then the obvious answer is to recycle / re-use it....
Let someone else have it for their home, their garage, their man cave, their pet to sleep on, but how do I do that you ask ?

Facebook has a large number of Local Selling Pages like these 1, 2, 3, as well as a number of pages that just allow people to advertise unwanted items on to be given away for free so it's a great place to start to advertise your unwanted furniture. Just choose whether you want to sell your unwanted item for a few quid or do you just want it gone by advertising it as FREE.
​
Then there's always the FreeCycle Website where again you can advertise your unwanted items free of charge, if you are giving it away without a sale price.

Other options are auction sites like ebay and other such selling pages like Schpock.
Advertise it at a low price like 99p but make sure you change any delivery setting to "Collection in Person" only

And don't forget.... If they need a Man with a Van in Bradford or general area to take your old sofa to their home...
Give them my details, I'm happy to help and a cheap affordable price.

If it's Broken or no longer of any use to anyone then you're looking at disposal of the item.
Again there are a number of different options.

1). If its small enough or you can break it into pieces small enough, place it in your car and take it to a local household waste recycling center, most items can be disposed of free of charge if its household waste.
Check the council website for locations and opening times.
You will need your Residents Permit to enter HWRC Bradford Council Waste sites.
New (blue) permits were issued March 2023 with your council tax bill.


2). If it's metal, like a washing machine, old cooker, microwave etc, in Bradford there are always lots of scrap metal collectors going around the area collecting these items for free. Usually you can just place these items outside your gate or somewhere suitable and that can be seen for the scrap men to spot it, you can even add a little note to make it obvious it free or for scrap. If you prefer, you could put a little ad on a local Facebook page advertising the fact there's some scrap metal to be had.
Please Note:- They do NOT usually take fridges or freezers, you'll need to look at an alternative disposal.

3). Bradford Bulk Waste Collection, Usually the cheapest option for large items, but not always. At the time of writing this blog, prices have just increased and is now £50 for disposal of up to 3 large furniture items like sofas, beds, wardrobes, etc.

If you are disposing of just electrical items like fridge freezers, tv's etc, its a lot cheaper, make sure you scroll down their website pages to the relevant section for electrical item disposal.

4). A private waste disposal service. They will come to your home and take your old furniture away for a fee. They can often be booked to come to you to collect at a time that suits you. These providers can be a small independent man with a van or a larger businesses specializing in waste disposal. Prices vary but make sure you get a licensed waste carrier to move your old furniture.
Please Note:- These businesses have to be Licensed Waste Carriers and its down to you to make sure they are.
If you ask them for their business name and license number it can be checked on the Government Waste Carrier Register. 
If you give your items to a cowboy who then dumps your items in a country lane you can be fined along with the cowboy business.

If you're looking for a ​​Bradford Man with a Van to move a single large item of furniture or someone to complete a Small Home Removal in Bradford, Keighley or Halifax at an affordale price with a great service then, yes It is me you're looking for.
​

​Early 2007 I started moving peoples things for them, sometimes business deliveries, sometimes moving large furniture items people buy online (ebay, fb marketplace, etc) and sometimes full house removals. 
And over 17 years later I'm still here moving the same things for different people, I guess I must be doing something right for people to come back again and again, sometimes years later.

​I love meeting the different people in Bradford, sometimes only for a few minutes and sometimes a lot longer, listening to their stories about their lives and where they have lived. Some people, like me, have lived all their lives in Bradford, but it's a city that attracts people from all over the world and others have moved here from some far away places.
​

Being a Bradford Man with a Van or a Removal Man in Bradford how ever you discribe me, can be very hard sometimes when I'm lifting and carrying boxes, bags and large furniture like sofas & wardobes from your house to the van, then at the other end, from van to the room they will stay in, day after day... but its a job that I still really enjoy doing now.

Most of the collections and deliveries or small moves stay local in or around Bradford, Keighley, Haworth, Halifax, Cleckheaton areas because, well thats where I can keep my prices the cheapest for people with local delivery prices starting at only £29 !
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But sometime people need to move to other cities. And then I find myself moving peoples prized personal possesions big and small safely with my Long Distance Moves,  travelling from West Yorkshire to places around the UK like... London or Edinburgh, sometimes doing one day after the next.
Driving a round trip of around 450 in one day heading south, then the next day doing the same mileage again but this time heading north into Scotland.
I love driving the longer distance moves and seeing the country.
​Is that something that you'd like to do?
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If you need a Reliable - Professional & Cheap Man with a Van to help you move your things in and around the Bradford, West Yorkshire area... Call Me - Text Me - Whats APP Me... 07766741774 for your quote or use the Online Quote Form >>>