Packing Computers And Other Electronics For Easier Moving

If you're moving with multiple electronics, how are you keeping them safe and secure for the drive? They should be considered fragile, but are the normal fragile shipping techniques enough? There are a few extra precautions that should be taken with computers, so keep a few of these issues and solutions in mind as you plan for moving day.

Fragile Wrapping Techniques Protect The Outside

If you're wrapping drinking glasses, fine china, or pottery with bubble wrap or setting them in foam cushioned boxes, you're protecting them from breaking by reducing impact. The foam, bubble wrap, or other insulating material is absorbing some of the shock of vibrations, jolts, or even drops that happen while driving.

The same protection is needed when moving computers, but it's not as simple as wrapping the entire tower or laptop with bubble wrap. Wrapping the outside will protect the case from damage, but the case itself is not the important part.

Inside the case is a series of components, such as the motherboard, specific cards, and chips. Some of these components are wafer-thin, and they stick out of other wafer-thin boards like a rigid diving board waiting for some force to push down.

With a big enough road bump or drop, these components can snap. It's not likely to happen from one or two drops, and definitely not just by nudging the computer with your foot. Unfortunately, driving around in a moving truck across poor-quality roads can be enough to break the internal components.

The insides aren't wrapped, and they have plenty of moving space to work up enough momentum for breaking.

Protecting Electronic Components

Take apart any computers that you plan on moving, and place any movable components in anti-static bags. If you don't know how to work inside computers, parts removal is a relatively simple and low-cost task that a reputable information technology (IT) professional at the entry level should be able to handle with an anti-static wrist strap and a jewelers/electronics tool set.

Common devices to remove are hard drives that aren't bolted down, video cards, sound cards, and disc drives. A professional should check the motherboard—the main board that connects all other components—to make sure it isn't shaking around loosely on its connecting screws. 

These boards are made of thin resin, and too much shaking on a loose screw connection can lead to cracking that may render the board useless. It's cheaper to buy a new board than get the current board fixed, unless your board is under warranty or with an affordable repair plan.

Contact a local moving services professional to get help with moving computers and other electronics that may require sensitive handling beyond just a fragile sticker, and be sure to bring up exactly what kinds of devices you want to move so that movers can plan ahead. For more information, talk to companies like Moving U.