There seems to be a few fly by night moving companies in Phoenix that are out to take your money and even keep your belongings for extra payment. You hear about it occasionally in the media and from other folks that have been victim of these moving scams. There is a lot of warning out here for that so please get educated and make your self aware.

We received a phone call from a return customer of Frontier Apt Movers to get a new quote to move her again. We gave her a quote with a 5% discount for returning back to us and she scheduled the move on our hourly rates. Two weeks later she called the office to ask if we could discount her move any further as she received a coupon on her door in her town of Anthem that was offering a special deal with cheaper rates. We visited the website of the company and noticed the special deal was really true. This was brought to the owners attention and we do offer competitive pricing but this time we could not match the other moving companies rates. With much regret we had to tell her that we were not able to compete with those low rates. The hourly rates that were offered would have only paid for our movers hourly wages not including any fuel or operating cost.

The owner of Frontier Apt Movers became suspicious of how they could offer such low rates and remain in business unless it was a scam. We went back to the website and found if you clicked on the banner ad it would take you to another page that explained the extra fees and charges. The company did not accept checks or credit cards. The extra labor fees, fuel surcharges, mileage, etc ended up costing her almost double that day.

The best way to avoid moving scams is to do a little research. If the price seems low it could be a scam. There are many ways to take precautions. You can check with the better business bureau, corporation records, references, etc. You should at least go online to visit the company website and browse through each page. If the rates are not clear chances are your final invoice will reflect it.

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Loading A Rental Truck

We are professional movers in Phoenix and our Phoenix movers are well known for the skills we use on a daily bases. We will give you a few ideas how to load a truck and hope you get the idea. If you want to read other articles or moving and packing tips please check out our website at Frontier Apt Movers Or continue to browse through this  site. We are sure you will find something that will be helpful. Feel free to leave a comment or write us with any ideas or special request that you feel would be helpful in your situation. We will surely write about it.

Assuming you have already rented a truck with an interior square box. If you rented a truck with a shelf area, cab over in the front then it shouldn’t be a big deal to stuff it full with misc. items such as overstuffed chairs, ottomans, electronics, etc. The idea is to make a flat even area to work with so fill it up. We recommend from the floor up, you begin with your sofas and love seats. Place them standing up tall in the corners with the feet to the outside walls and the backs of the sofas touching the front wall this will give you another area to fill but it will be worth it. Please read on.

You may use a chest of drawers, or you can place a couple of night stands, wardrobes, or even a big screen TV to place between them just don’t let it stick out further than the sofas. You want to build a flat surface again. It’s called building a tier.

You can use all of your stuffy items in between to finish filling it up. For example, bags of clothes, light boxes, duffle bags, rolled up rugs, etc. Once that is pretty full you will need to use your largest mattress and box springs to lock the load and make it a flat tier again. Now you need base or tall items such as bookcases, armories, etc. Here is where you need to make sure whatever tier you are working on will need to be pretty close to the same size. You really can’t stack a lot on top of tall bookcases so they get their own tier. You may fill bookcases with small book boxes or more stuffy items. You will really need to get creative here so you can utilize all of your space.

Now you are working on building your next tier. You can use a dresser or chest of drawers for base. Now you can stack boxes on them. You can use items such as office chairs or kitchen chairs to top off that tier. Nightstands are typically the same depth and can be used for base in the same tier. You may also stand dressers up on end but be sure to lay a pad, blanket or cardboard under it to protect the finish.

You will be building tiers all the way to the end of the truck but somewhere along the load you will need to start tapering the tier down if you are not filling it to maximum capacity. You will want to load any appliances last such as washing machines, water coolers, refrigerators, etc. You will also want to use a pad, blanket or anything that will soak up water. your appliances will tend to leak a bit of water and you will not want that soaking into other furniture or boxes.

It is recommended to disassemble kitchen tables, bed frames, two piece hutches should never be stacked back on each other unless you know what you are doing and know the consequences that could happen if not properly protected. Any large glass tops should stand up no matter what and can be placed between the mattress and box spring for extra protection.

If you find this to be somewhat helpful you can visit our website http://www.frontieraptmovers.com We have a lot of useful moving information that you could benefit from and make your move much more stressful.  We hope you have a safe move and please drive careful. Be sure to to take special notice of any low hanging trees, parking overhangs, etc. If you don’t feel comfortable loading your rental truck alone we are professional movers. Give us a call for a free no obligation quote. 623-374-5696

Cute Moving Story

We arrived early to a small two bedroom apartment move one April morning. It was a very peaceful spring day. The sun was rising and the air was fresh with the newly cut grass, the scent of flowers was hinting in the air and the birds chirping good morning songs in trees above. We were greeted by a lovely well dressed, young couple. They stepped out the door and quietly requested us to keep the noise down to a minimum. They went on to explain they have a young toddler sleeping. We agreed to their request as we quietly introduced ourselves and proceeded indoors to do a walk through and inventory checklist. As we approached the toddler’s room we were asked to save his room for last so their sleepy child could get some well needed rest. Being that he was just turning two years old we thought it would be a great idea so he doesn’t get in our way and slow down the progress of the move. Well we managed to get the entire living room and dining room emptied out. There were only a few packing supplies and a lamp left in those two rooms.

Now giving you a mental picture of this small 800 square foot two bedroom apartment, when you enter the front door you can visually see the entire living room and dining room. The toddler’s room was the first door just inside the hallway and then the master at the end of the hall.

We were walking back from loading the last piece of furniture from the dining room and as we were approaching closer to the apartment front door we heard this really loud scream followed by a cry like we have never heard before. The cries coming from this little guy were unlike any cries I have ever heard before. It sounded like a cry of deep fear. It sent chills up my spine as my stomach did a flip and my adrenaline immediately kicked in. I ran the last 30 – 40 feet into the door and raised my voice to say “WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE” The customers showed instant signs of nervousness and fear, I didn’t know if it was because we intimidated them and they thought we were rushing to conclusions or the child was hurt somehow. I rapidly checked out the child and looked back at his parents as I am scanning the room with my adrenaline going even stronger now. I asked again “I want to know why he is freaking out”. He seemed to be in a panic. This all happened in a matter of 30 seconds. During that time the young toddler is totally freaking out, tightly clutching his teddy bear and blanket with tears running down his face.

The parents suddenly seemed very concerned for the child not knowing why their child went into an instant panic when he walked out of his room. As I started to notice the genuine care they began to give their child my mind started to relax to think of other possibilities. I asked if they could check his bed for scorpions or broken glass.

They instantly went into his room and stripped the sheets and blankets. We quickly pulled the bed apart with no signs of danger in sight. In the mean time the father is holding his son trying to calm him down. They were in the back ground while we were turning the bedroom upside down. Suddenly the father starts laughing. He went on to explain to us that for the last few weeks they have been using alternative methods of punishment for their son for bad unwelcomed behavior. He explained to us that they take things away from him when he is not behaving and give them back as a reward when he is good. Turns out, when the boy entered the living room he entered an empty room with nothing in it, everything was gone and he had no idea what he did wrong. I almost cried.

Apartment moving

Apartment moving is the most common moving in the moving industry. Apartment moving has the least amount of challenges and is normally easier and quicker to perform. The furniture is normally smaller to better suite the size of living quarters and people usually have less to move such as no appliances, lawn and garden tools, water fountains, recreational vehicles, etc.

Apartment moves typically have lower total moving cost because of the amount of items to be moved with smaller closet spaces, and smaller bedrooms. Apartments have limited space for example the average apartment resident has one set of living room furniture, one dining room set. Without all the extras such as antiques, over sized furniture, home offices and garage items you can easily see how quickly an apartment move would be.

The difficulties apartment moving poses are minimal but still exist. Parking a large moving van can be a challenge when trying to avoid blocking resident parking or trash dumpsters. It is important to be alert at all times to other residents leaving or arriving. It is an easy task if you take precautions when loading or unloading by making sure you don’t place items outside the moving van on the ground or around the loading ramp that way you will be more prepared to pull ahead to allow people into their assigned parking spot. When you are loading your moving van it is important to secure each item as it’s loaded or unloaded. This will enable you to pull ahead at a moments notice. The last thing you want is to have an irate neighbor late for work or doctors appointment.

Another challenge that has a simple resolution is the stair cases on upper floor apartments. Most apartment complexes in the Phoenix area have stucco walls and rough texture landings. By taking extra precautions and preparing for your move before the work begins you can eliminate minor damage such as scratches and even major damage such as gouging and chipping. It is recommended placing moving pads over the railings and taping them in place creating a cushion to rub against. Placing a burlap moving pad on the landing is also a recommended procedure in the event the item being moved needs to be set down or stood up to maneuver the turn.

This is something that can be done by just about anyone if the proper precautions are taken. If you find that you don’t feel comfortable doing this your self or having your friends move you either, you can call upon Frontier Apt Movers.

We are professionals in all areas of moving and it is our duty to perform a safe and economical move for you. The complexities of apartment moving is not a challenge for us as we are very familiar with most all aspects of moving within apartment buildings as we specialize in apartment moving. We have been moving in Phoenix Arizona since 2002 and we proudly service the entire state of Arizona. We have built a solid reputation through the years and our professional moving services really stand out from the competition. 623-374-5696

Phoenix Movers