Moving to a new home should be a fun and exciting time of life -- however, your delight in your new surroundings can quickly be tarnished if valuable and cherished objects have been damaged or even destroyed while in transition. Antique furniture in particular sometimes take a beating during a move. Fortunately, there are several ways that you can ensure that your antique furniture pieces reach their destination in the best possible condition. Following are three strategies designed to accomplish this.

Have Furniture Appraised 

Having your antique furniture professionally appraised should be the first thing that you do prior to making preparations to move it to a new place. A professional appraisal will be necessary in order to recover costs in the event that your furniture somehow ends up being damaged while in transit. Keep in mind that many moving companies put a cap on the amounts that customers can recover, so consider purchasing separate insurance for your valuable antique furniture through your current homeowners' insurance policy. One important factor of insuring antique items is that even if the piece can be repaired if damaged in transit, the value of the item may become greatly diminished. 

Use A Climate-Controlled Moving Van

Fluctuations in atmospheric humidity and temperature can have a substantial impact on antique wooden furniture because wood is a porous material -- meaning that it contracts or expands as temperatures become cold or hot, and either extreme can cause the wood to warp. If the atmosphere is too dry, the wood may become brittle, increasing the chances that it will break if moved. If the atmosphere contains too much humidity, mold and mildew colonies may begin to form while the furniture is in transit. However, many people who are moving go to great lengths to ensure that they use a moving company that provides climate-controlled vans, only to have their antique furniture be adversely affected when the temperature and humidity levels of the final destination have not been properly prepared for the arrival of the furniture. For instance, having your antique furniture delivered to a new home environment where the heat or air conditioning has not yet been turned on can damage it as well. Sudden changes in temperature and humidity may harm veneers or cause surfaces discoloration, so have someone on the other end turn up the heat or air conditioning to get the place to normal room temperature and relative humidity prior to the arrival of the moving van. 

Hire Movers With Experience in Moving Antique Furniture

The precautions listed above will mean little if your movers fail to understand the proper procedures involved in moving wooden antique furniture. For instance, antique furniture requires a great deal of extra padding in order to provide proper protection -- and unlike moving other types of furniture, antique furniture needs to be padded before it's moved in order for optimal protection during the process. Objects with padding that is tight and well-secured with strong movers' tape will be easier to handle than items where padding is loose and haphazard. Even when well-padded, antique furnishings should never be pushed or pulled -- carrying them or transporting them on a dolly will add another important layer of protection that will help them reach their destination with no added nicks, scratches, dents, or other damage. Also, some antique pieces feature one-of-a-kind fixtures such as claw feet or intricate knobs that may be easily broken off if bumped or dropped, and these features are frequently irreplaceable. 

Please feel free to contact a local moving service like Wheaton World Wide Moving for more information on safely and easily moving your treasured antiques from one home to another.