Wrapping your items with bubble wrap is one of the best ways to pack and move your fragile items. Its bubbles provide extra cushion, there is no chance of the items within it to get dirty or scratched as the entirety of the wrap is made of plastic. Perhaps the two greatest things about it are how inexpensive and re-usable it is.
There is a right way and a wrong way to use bubble wrap. If used the wrong way it provides little to no protection to the items within it and may end up damaging the item’s surface. If you use it the right way, however, it is second to none in providing protection to what is kept within it while you are packing and moving.
Before your next house shifting project, make sure you know how to use a bubble wrap to get the most protection out of it.
A Brief History of Bubble Wraps
A funny thing to note about the bubble wraps is that it was originally intended to serve as textured wallpaper. It was first used as packing material in the year 1959, two years after it was invented. When IBM was looking for ways to protect its products from any sort of damage while shipping, bubble wraps offered both flexibilities and cushioning otherwise unavailable at the time.
Why use bubble wraps?
Here are a few reasons why you should consider using bubble wraps for your packing and moving projects:
It is one of the easiest packing service materials to use; its flexibility means that it will fit around almost all objects without any issues. You simply need to wrap it around most objects and secure it with tape. Since it is flexible, it fits around almost any item regardless of the item’s shape.
The air trapped inside the two fused plastic sheets makes a bubble wrap, it can easily protect the item that is inside its wraps from shocks, jerks, scratches, moisture, and dirt. This makes it one of the best packing materials in existence for shifting houses.
It is so light that it adds pretty much no weight to what’s kept inside its wraps. This means the objects inside it are pretty easy to move and people lifting them are less likely to sustain any sort of back injuries during their move.
Bubble wrap can be reused multiple times as it acts basically like a sheet of plastic. It is resistant to most things except extreme heat, and since you can roll it or store it in sheets, it won’t take much of your space.
Utility
You can store most items within a bubble wrap to cushion them from any kind of external shocks and the flexible nature of this wrap means that you can easily wrap it around most of your valuable, fragile, and odd-shaped items.
Another thing that you need to be cautious about while packing these items is if there is a glass surface on them. This is important as the bubble wrap can leave marks on computers and TV Screens. To reduce the possibility of this happening, wrap it first with a sheet of paper.
You may also need to fill hollow items such as vases with a crumbled piece of paper so that it gets additional support from the inside before you wrap them with a sheet of bubble wrap.
Read: Tips to move home plants safely
Different types of bubble wraps
There are different kinds of bubble wraps meant for different things based on the size of their bubbles. It comes with air bubbles ranging from 0.25 inches to 1 inch. The most common type of bubble wrap comes with 0.4-inch-sized bubbles. Smaller bubbles protect the items within it from scratches and larger bubbles protect the items within it from impact.
This gives the users a variety of options to choose from as both, the nature of the items and the distance of the move dictate what kind of wrap should be used while setting your items up for your journey.
Apart from this, there are also different types of bubble wraps. Heavy duty bubble wraps come with durable bubbles to sustain heavy weight while the pink-colored anti-static version of the bubble wraps protects the items within it from static charge. This is why it is not recommended to pack your electronics with basic bubble wrap sheets as the static charge built within the sheet can ruin it.
Using Bubble Wraps
Bubble wraps should always have their bubbles inwards and touch the item you are wrapping. It provides extra cushioning and reduces the chance of bubbles popping during your house shifting projects. Additionally, it provides grip to the items holding them in one place. It is also easier to tape the bubble wraps when the smoother side is facing toward the users.
While Packing and Moving
While shifting houses, glass items, and any items with a screen on them need to be packed with paper first so that the bubble wrap doesn’t leave any marks on its surface. Similarly, hollow items should be filled up with crumpled paper so that it receives support from the inside before wrapping with bubble wrap.
Place the items on the sheet in a way that it is long enough to encircle the objects within it at least twice and then secure it with a piece of adhesive tape along the side and at the end. Finally, label it what you want and place it in a box.
For packing and moving projects the heavier items should be kept at the base of the box while the lighter and more delicate items should be kept at the top.
The items with weird shapes usually require you to put in a bit of extra effort. They may have parts that are more fragile than the others and their shape may not allow a uniform distribution of the bubble wraps throughout its surface
Items with odd shapes may require a little extra effort. For example, a wine glass requires extra padding around its weakest point, the stem. Wrap several layers of bubble wrap around the stem, and secure it in place. Once the stem has adequate protection, add packing paper to the glass itself and wrap the entire glass in bubble wrap.
It is also recommended that you pad out these items with extra sheets of paper, especially your fragile items so that they do not collide with each other.
After Packing and Moving
Bubble wraps are rather long-lasting and it makes perfect sense if you want to keep them for your next packing and moving project. This sheet can also be used to pack materials when you need to transport a box. You can also donate it to others or recycle it.
Conclusion
Bubble wrap is an excellent packing material that can save your items from shocks, jerks, scratches, moisture, and a lot more, given you know how to use it. It is not biodegradable and hence can be easily reused or donated to others who need them. Thanks for reading this article and have a wonderful day ahead of you.
