Are you tired of the clutter in your house? It’s time to lighten the load and sort through the junk that has been piling up. For years you have been cramming up your space. But now you need to revitalise and reinvent your living space with a house clearance. Well, what better way to usher in new energy than to discard the old?
If you are living in a large house, clearing it by yourself might seem daunting. But like any mammoth task, it becomes much easier if you break it down to smaller, more manageable parts. This article will help you organise and streamline your house clearance with four simple steps. So onward to the checklist!
Time Management
Now before you dive headlong into your dusty attic, take a moment to plan. If you have a lot of stuff that you need to clear out, then you can’t do it all in one day. Manage your time and set some goals.
Keep at least half a day of every room and a couple of days for the basement and attic, if you are doing it alone. The last thing you want is to get exhausted halfway through. So unless there’s a rush or a deadline, take your time and go easy on yourself.
Having a schedule will also help in planning ahead of the disposal. But more on that later!
Color Code and Simplify
So you are ready to start sorting out what you will keep from what you will clear out. Colour coding them will save you a ton of time. All you need are three different coloured tapes. So go ahead and start taping the stuff you want to keep as green. Mark the things that you are selling/donating/recycling with orange tape and the rubbish with red.
This will simplify the whole process, and you can just move from room to room labelling out the stuff. Once you are done taping everything out, you can move the things into different spaces. Start with the rubbish since you can jostle it around without worry and it’ll free up more space for you to move the delicate things. Once they are grouped into separate places, you will be ready for the next step.
Ideally, you should end up with very little green-labelled stuff and a lot of orange and red. That toaster you got as a gift three years back and only used once? Time to tell it goodbye. If you are sentimental about your possessions, then ask over a friend to help lend you a more objective opinion. Clear out anything that you don’t use often.
Donations and Sales
The next order of business is to start getting the orange labelled things out your house! You can donate these to charity stores, give them away to friends and family or sell them off yourself.
- If you want to donate a bulk of your things, then look up the nearby charity stores. But remember that they do not always accept damaged goods and can refuse a particular donation. You can also ask your family and friends to come to take what they need. This will lighten your load considerably without you having to put any effort at all to move the stuff around.
- If you want to sell, you can participate in car boot sales for a small fee in and around London. You can also organise a garage sale. Put up a few flyers and advertise locally to attract a bigger crowd. If you have antiques or valuables to sell, then contact an antique dealer and send them pictures of what you have. Another lucrative option is putting them up for sale online on e-Bay or Etsy. Selling online might take a little more time and effort, but the rewards are high, and you can reach out to buyers globally.
Also, consider upcycling your junk to create useful items. Here are some great ideas that’ll make your home look fabulous and have a positive impact on the environment.
Throw Out The Rubbish
Before you start throwing out the rubbish, you need to figure out how much space it will take up. Alter your plans accordingly. You can opt for any of three ways of disposal.
- DIY – If you have the time in your hands, you can cram disposal bags into your car and drop them off at your nearest dump. You can also hire a van if there’s a lot of stuff that you need to throw out. Alternatively, you can contact your local council who will arrange a truck for bulky waste disposal (often for free or a subsidised rate).
This is the best option if you have hazardous waste like paint, old fridges or TVs that you need to dispose of. However, you will need to notify the council weeks ahead of disposal to book your slot. So plan ahead if you want to opt for this. You can also get rid of the hazardous waste by dropping them off at a local recycling centre.
- Skip Hire – If you have a lot of junk and you don’t want to wait for the council, then you can hire a skip at a flat rate. You will need a skip permit from the council, and possibly parking permits depending on where you leave. But this enables you to load it up and dispose of all the rubbish at one go. Compare your local skip hire rates to find the best option.
- The easiest way is to hire a professional house clearance company to do all the heavy lifting for you. They will pack, clear and dispose of everything that you don’t want while you sit back and relax. House clearance in London is done in best way by the professionals like Junkbunk. The best part is that if you have sellable items that you want clearing out, these companies will give you a sizable discount for picking them up. So you will get all the benefits without the hassle.
Precautions
There are a few things to remember before you start. You will be moving around dusty old things so always wear a dust mask. If you have a dust allergy, then hire someone to clean everything up before you start sorting out your stuff.
Double-check the rubbish you are disposing of. A lot of people stuff documents and money in unlikely places and then forget about it. So take your time and sort through the things carefully, check between books and in the furniture you are selling off.
Well, there you have it. Complete each task in the checklist in order before moving on to the next. And before you know it, your house will be cleared of all the jetsam, opening up the space for new things in your life!
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