A box is a box is a box, right? You’ve got a top and a bottom, four sides and room inside for your stuff. There’s nothing complicated about a box — and a shipping crate is just a big box, right?
Well, actually, wrong. Completely and totally wrong. That’s why we were recently dismayed by this Washington Post article in which it’s suggested that a mover could construct their own shipping crates to save moving expenses.
Let us be clear here. There are certain circumstances in which building your own shipping crates is a perfectly acceptable option. Those circumstances are if you’re an experienced builder, who understands the unique stresses and pressures shipping crates are subjected to, and knows the best way to cushion and protect the contents of the crate – no matter what. Also important is access to the right high quality materials and tools to get the job done right. Of course, you want to make sure you have the time and space to build crates – which is rare, when you’re in the middle of moving your household or business, but it could happen.
However, if you can’t realistically say that you are an experienced shipping crate builder with material, time, and the skills needed to build a shipping crate, it might be better to leave the task to an professional packaging and shipping company. When you consider the cost of having the job done right, by the pros, against the hassle of having to do it yourself — and the anxiety of not knowing if your possessions will arrive safely! — having shipping crates built specifically for your moving needs becomes the obvious option.
Valuable, fragile objects, such as chandeliers, artwork, large mirrors, antiques, and more are best moved in sturdy shipping crates built specifically to protect and cushion that item.