Packing a Dorm Room Into a Car

I wish had pictures to illustrate this post, but I was unable to take any in the frenzy that was packing for me. I had to pack up my entire room last Saturday (5/5) in about two hours mostly due to procrastination and terrible check-out times. I managed to fit my entire room into my sedan.

Here's what I learned on my 1,200 mile drive:

• Pack the largest, most solid items first into your car. For me, it was the former housing of a oscilloscope, a large trunk. Everything inside the trunk was not collapsible (mostly books).


• Pack clothes last. You'll need to do laundry once you get home anyway, don't worry about making clean clothes dirty by packing them around the solids. Or...


• Vacuum-pack your clothes. By a rough estimate, vacuum-packing reduces your clothes to 1/3 their original size. They will be more wrinkly than your feet after a long bath, though.


• Use pillowcases as protectors. My pillow supplements became monitor guardians.


• Remember to keep your tools accessible. Just in case...


• Eliminate squeaks with clothes. Any plastic-vinyl or plastic-leather interaction produces annoying squeaks. Recognize this while packing so you don't have to unload have your car at a rest stop to find that frustrating squeak.

Or, you could try using Amtrak to travel home cheap. Their policies allow a lot of extra baggage for only $10 each.

Happy packing for those who are driving home soon. Don't forget to use Trippish and please drive safely.

Comments

[Andrew]

Enjoyed the article. Interestingly enough I just wrote about http://www.dormdelicious.com/articles/moving_out_where_do_i_put_all_this_stuff_for_the_summer" rel="nofollow">moving out of college and what to do with your stuff over the summer! It provides slightly different advice about what to do about getting a storage space if you live so far from school that you need to fly home, for example.

[Chris Lesinski]

You don't have to buy fancy bags with one-way valves to vacuum-pack your clothes.

Use trash bags. Stack the clothes neatly in the bag and make a tight seal with the mouth of the bag around a vacuum's tube. Use a rubberband or a quick knot to keep it sealed. Air will eventually leak in, so pack this flattened clothing bag into an already-stuffed suitcase soon after, which will keep it compressed.

This works best with big comforters, towels and pillows. Also note, the cheapie trash bags your school gives you will probably pop under the pressure (nice try though).

[thomas tooma]

Try getting a uhaul. thats what i did

[January Site News and Updates]

[...] Chris and myself finally made it back to LMU. Chris took a cheap flight whilst I opted to drive down to LA. Everyone traveled and arrived safely. Scott’s also been here for a few days. Here are a few [...]

[mary (chris's aunt)]

Great website,really gives students,people that aren't students a chance to ead what really goes in college life,and how to cope w/college life.Telling about your life experiences how they really happened.

Thank you foe sharing,and it is a really impressive website.You & yout friends..,Chris..,are doing a great job.I'm very proud of you!!

[car moving]

thanks for those tips, gonna bookmark this page for reference.

[Run Your Car on Water]

I agree, vacuum packing is very useful. I have bought special vacum packing machine so I can pack my cloths in no time.

[Used Engines]

I remember I had to fit everything into my little car or leave it behind. I still don’t know how I did it.

[Celebrity Clothing Stores]

I agree vacuum packing works great. We use it for trips also when we have access to a vacuum cleaner on the trip such as visiting family.

[Water4Gas]

Ahah, that's why I prefer huge cars like Hummer or Ford Escalade. There is so much space, you can even install toilet there.

[Stephanie]

I am just loving these tips! I work from my computer so where I go my job goes with me. Therefore I have grown accustom to moving as soon as I get bored with where I am at. I've never had much luck with the vacuum bags because of the heat that makes them puff out so quickly. I can't wait to take advantage of these tips and even pass them on to friends! Thanks!

[Used Car Dude]

I've done this myself. At the end of last semester I packed my entire dorm into my small 1990 Toyota Cor. It was a task. I did most of the things you did. Towards the end, I start unboxing and sliding things into open spaces in the car. You can also slide things under the seats and in the tire well in the trunk =P