Moving furniture can be one of the more complicated parts of a residential long distance move since large pieces are often heavy or awkward and can be more vulnerable to damage in transit. One way to protect your furniture is to determine which pieces can be safely disassembled before the move. This may include bed frames, table legs and furniture held together with visible bolts or brackets. If you’re comfortable taking these pieces apart, you can do so ahead of time, or your moving crew can handle the disassembly on moving day.
Breaking down bulky furniture can make it easier to load onto the truck and maneuver through doorways, hallways and stairwells. It can also make larger pieces easier to wrap and secure for the trip, helping reduce the risk of damage during a long distance move.
At National Van Lines we have a simple rule that can cover many of your pre-move decisions—if it fits in a box, it should go in a box. We’ve been handling long distance moves since 1929, and we’ve moved just about every kind of furniture you can imagine. Our teams know exactly how to treat various types of furniture with care that will accommodate the route you’re taking.
How to Prepare Furniture Before a Long Distance Move
Are you curious to know what to do before the movers arrive on moving day? The best place to start is with items that can be boxed up. Small electronics, lamps, framed pictures, mirrors and anything else that fits in a box should be packed before your crew arrives. Larger furniture is left as-is, since your National Van Lines crew will disassemble anything that needs to come apart and pad-wrap everything else on moving day.
Items to pack yourself include the following.
- Small electronics
- Lamps
- Framed pictures
- Mirrors
- Anything else that fits in a box
Items to leave for your crew include the following.
- Dressers
- Tables and chairs
- Bookshelves and coffee tables
- Safes
- Entertainment centers
- Armoires with a hutch
As you work your way through the furniture, you may notice that certain pieces will need to be disassembled. Another simple but effective way to keep you (and your crew) organized is by designating a clearly marked box for your furniture hardware, also known as a parts box. This way, the parts you need to reassemble furniture at your new home stays in one secure place.
Finally, make sure you clear a proper pathway for your moving crew. Walk through your home the way your movers will on moving day, and make sure hallways, stairs and doorways are clear of rugs, cords or anything that could cause a slip or fall. This will make lifting and moving heavier furniture that much easier for your moving crew. It also lets them focus fully on proper wrapping, padding and loading.
How National Van Lines Protects Furniture During a Long Distance Move
Professional movers protect furniture by focusing on the kind of material they’re handling. Wood furniture will require different kinds of protection when compared with something made of glass. This table describes different materials, how they’re protected, and why it matters.
| Material | How It Is Protected | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Wood furniture | Fully wrapped in quilted moving blankets, secured with stretch wrap or tape applied to the wrap itself (never directly on the surface). | Prevents scratches and surface damage from direct contact. |
| Upholstered pieces (sofas, armchairs) | Wrapped in plastic or stretch film. | Guards against dirt and moisture during transit. |
| Glass, marble, and mirrored surfaces | Boxed or crated separately, with corner protection and rigid support. | Most likely to be damaged by pressure or shifting, and padding alone can compress under weight. |
As you can see, these common materials need more care than you might initially think. And while there’s nothing wrong with taking a do-it-yourself (DIY) approach to packing, many individuals and families find that relying on a moving company to pack and protect their furniture helps make the entire process less stressful. At National Van Lines, our 95+ years of experience means we’ve wrapped and handled countless types of furniture, and can customize our packing methods to match exactly what you need.
When Custom Crating Services May Be Needed
Occasionally, you might have a piece that needs to be packed or wrapped, only to find out it actually needs to be custom crated. Custom crating is most commonly used for larger, fragile or unusual items like the following.
- Oversized furniture
- Glass or marble tabletops
- Televisions over 85 inches
- Mounted or preserved pieces like taxidermy
If you have any overly large or unique items, talk to your National Van Lines MovePro coordinator during your virtual survey process. We’ll be able to recommend the right resources for a crating service, should it be needed for your move. For other delicate, bulky or high-value pieces, National Van Lines expert packing services can help protect furniture before it’s loaded up for a long distance move.
Why Furniture Weight Matters for a Long Distance Move
Furniture weight is one of the biggest (and most overlooked) factors in your total moving cost. Interstate pricing is based on certified shipment weight, not on the number of boxes or how full the truck looks, so knowing roughly what your furniture weighs helps you understand where your estimate comes from.
These are general industry reference ranges for common furniture pieces.
| Furniture Piece | Typical Weight Range |
|---|---|
| Full or queen bed frame | 50 to 90 lbs |
| Dresser or armoire | 80 to 150 lbs |
| Sofa (varies widely by size) | 100 to 300 lbs |
| Dining table | 50 to 150+ lbs |
| Bookshelf or bookcase | 20 to 100 lbs |
| Coffee table | 20 to 50 lbs |
These are general reference ranges, not National Van Lines-specific figures, since exact weight depends on size, materials and construction. What we can tell you from our own process is how that weight gets measured and billed. Federal law requires interstate movers to weigh your shipment on special scales, meaning your move is held to the same federal standard as everyone else.
At National Van Lines, we’re proud to be officially registered and licensed to operate for long distance moves under USDOT #76628. Your MovePro coordinator can answer questions about how federal long distance moving regulations apply to your shipment.
How National Van Lines Loads and Secures Furniture for the Road
Loading order is as important as wrapping, and our crews at National Van Lines have the skill and experience to quickly and efficiently implement a loading plan that truly protects your furniture. Loading order is generally as follows.
- Heavier, sturdier pieces go in first and are always the first layer, with lighter and more fragile items loaded on top or in protected pockets between padded furniture. This keeps the weight evenly distributed and prevents shifting over hundreds or thousands of miles.
- Straps and tie-downs secure every piece to the truck itself, so no items rely solely on friction over highway miles, turns and stops. This is a requirement enforced by the FMCSA to keep items and drivers safe during long hours on the road. This arrangement provides stability through sharp turns, acceleration and braking.
- Gaps between pieces are filled with soft, wrapped items rather than left open, since empty space is exactly where shifting starts. Across the industry, loading-related damage most often traces back to gaps that were not filled or straps that were not re-checked after the first few miles. To prevent this, an experienced crew examines the load before sealing the doors.
Understanding this procedure prior to moving day can help relieve stress about the move, since you’ll better understand why your moving crew is loading the truck the way they are.
Why Choose National Van Lines for Furniture-Heavy Moves
National Van Lines has been protecting household furniture on long distance moves since 1929, from just about every type of home that exists. This kind of experience is acquired through skilled handling and care – a moving company cannot build this quickly or casually – and comes from using proven wrapping, loading and transport techniques in every season, traveling over every kind of road.
As an employee-owned company, our crews have a direct stake in doing the job right. This accountability shows up in the small decisions we make during your move, from how a dresser is wrapped to how a sofa gets positioned in the truck.
“Most furniture damage we see traces back to the same few things: a piece that was not disassembled when it should have been, hardware that got lost and caused a rushed reassembly, or a custom crating need that got flagged too late to plan for properly. The moves that go smoothest are the ones where the customer has done the simple prep, and our crew handles the rest of the heavy lifting.”
Danielle Perri, Director of Contact Center Sales Development
Move Furniture Long Distance With National Van Lines
Moving furniture across the country is easier when you know that your items will be in the hands of an experienced crew. Today it means working with a crew that has spent decades refining how to wrap, load, and secure every kind of furniture for the road ahead.
Ready to see how a National Van Lines crew would protect your furniture? Give us a call at 800-323-1962, or get a free quote and find out what nearly a century of experience looks like on moving day.