Truck Rental Driving Tips

October 17, 2008

Driving a truck rental does not mean that you need to go out and get a commercial driving permit. It will require that you learn how to handle a large vehicle, however. There are some situations that can pose a significant risk to those who are not used to driving these large vehicles. These situations include backing up, turning, and driving on bridges or narrow roadways. Knowing what to do and getting prepared for the drive will take alot of stress away when its time to actually drive. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you are going to be driving a truck rental.

Test Driving

Before you leave the companies property, get used to the truck. Make sure to find out the location of any controls, switches, or important items such as flares or safety triangles. When you feel confident that you are aware of everything important, take the truck around the parking lot, or a nearby empty one, to get a feel for the truck and its handling. This will go a long way in getting you used to the idea of driving a truck.

Looking Out

A moving truck rental is a lot bigger than the vehicles that most people are used to driving. These trucks are not only wider, but taller as well. You need to keep a sharp eye on what is around you when you rent a truck. There are many low lying branches, bridges, or poles that could pose a problem for you and your truck. You need to be aware of how tall your truck is and how short the things around you are. You might even want to bring a friend along to keep an eye out for things that you might run into while driving.

Getting Ready to Drive

Driving a moving truck rental is not easy, and it is likely to take you a while as well. Driving your car over a long distance is a difficult task, but driving an unfamiliar vehicle over a long distance can be really difficult for you. Make sure to plan ahead and take precautions before you get into the drivers seat. That means that you need to make sure to get a good night’s sleep before you leave on the trip. You also need to practice backing up and set up a timetable for the move. taking all of these steps can help you save time and stress while you are actually on the road driving.

There are a few things that you need to pack with you in order to be totally ready to drive. Keep this small box of items with you in the cab of the truck so that you don’t have to stop to find them along the way. Include items like sunglasses, important documents pertaining to driving the truck or insurance coverage, medication, extra cash, a cellular phone, and a first aid kit. All of these items are important to the safety of you and your items as you drive to your new home.

Other Thoughts

For longer trips, it may be a good idea to keep a log of when you left and how long you drove. In the event that you do get into an accident, this information can help you prove that you were not tired or distracted. Make sure that you do know the emergency procedures for your truck before you get on the road. Have any emergency numbers available and keep water on hand in case you break down and have to wait for a tow truck to show up.

Following these simple tips can help you avoid problems when you are moving with a truck rental. Driving one of these big vehicles is not always easy, so it is important to take the right precautions before you get on the road.

Relocation: Move Yourself or Hire Professionals?

October 8, 2008

Moving is something that most of us dread. There are many reasons for this feeling, but the most prevalent reason is the fact that a sacrifice is required. This sacrifice will come in one of two manifestations. Either you will have to sacrifice your personal time in order to pack, load, and drive yourself, or you will have to sacrifice a large chunk of money in order to hire people to do these jobs for you. Neither choice is anything to get excited about, so you need to take a hard look at your situation before you choose one over the other.

Do It Yourself

There are plenty of benefits to moving yourself. These benefits can include money savings, the ability to control every aspect of your move, and the ability to plan a move around your busy schedule. For many people, completing a move on their own means that they will be getting a truck rental.

Taking this route can give you plenty of benefits, but you need to look at the drawbacks as well. Obtaining a rental truck will still cost a chunk of cash, but it is a much smaller chunk than hiring a professional moving company. Taking this route also means that you need to find some way of loading and unloading everything that you own, including the heavy stuff. Since no one person can possibly lift and carry everything in their home on their own, it is important that you enact a plan to get help. Some people enlist the aid of friends and family. Others hire a professional loading company. No matter what you do, you must remember to take both the time and monetary costs into account.

Hiring Professionals

Hiring a professional mover can save you alot of time and stress. They will come into your home and assess your personal situation. They can pack you up, if you choose to pay the fee. They will load everything into their truck and drive it to your new home. Once there, they will unload the truck into your new home, and in some cases, they will even unpack your stuff as well. This sounds like a great solution to your move, but beware of the drawbacks behind this route.

Handing the control of your move over to a professional moving company means that you cannot make sure that your things get to where they are going in one piece. Once you hire a company, you are handing over complete control to them. If you have done enough research, then you have probably chosen a company who is forthright and honest, so you do not need to worry about a scam. Too many people, however, think that they have found a company like this, but in the end, they get taken for a ride.

The other downfall to hiring a company is the huge costs that are involved. Professionals charge a different fee for all kinds of things. If your old or new home has steps, then there is a fee. If you choose to use their packing service, then there is a fee. If they have to walk an extra distance from the truck to your home, there is a fee. Because of all of these fees, you need to make sure that you read all of the fine print before you agree to or sign anything.

Making the Choice for You

As you can see, there are benefits and drawbacks to both options. The best thing that you can do is weight the options, and all that is involved with them, before you make a choice. Make sure to get pricing quotes and speak to customer service before you pick any company. In the end, whether you choose to use a professional company or a truck rental, you need to make sure that you are going to be happy with your choice.

Moving with Kids

September 9, 2008

Moving with children of any age can be difficult. You have enough on your plate to take care of as it is, but when you throw in the needs of your kids, life gets a whole lot more hectic. In order to decrease the stress level and have a happy move, there are a few things to consider. The most important thing to consider is how you are going to facilitate your move.

Truck Rentals

Moving with a truck rental is by far the easiest way to move when you have kids. The benefits to moving with a truck rental are enormous compared to other moving methods. Perhaps the most prevalent benefit to parents when moving is the fact that you can create a very flexible schedule that fits around the things that you are already doing on a day to day basis.

Obtaining a rental will allow you to schedule your move over as many or as few days as you would like. You will find that this is a necessity when you have kids. Children take more time to do things and adjust to changes than adults do. In order to make your move a smooth one, then you should give your kids as much time as they need to adjust to what is going on around them.

Making it Exciting

When you have children, you want to take every chance you get to educate them. When you are driving across the country or over a few states, you can make your move into a very exciting journey. You can plan a vacation while you are moving, and create educational stops along the way. Many tourist attractions are located on main roads throughout the country, so you might even plan a stop at one of these.

Getting There

Having a truck rental will allow you lots of time to spend with your kids along the way. You can really spend some quality time and open the lines of communication while you are on the road. It can be amazing what you learn from your children along the way. Don’t hesitate to stop and chat or have lunch either. Consider the extra time and money well spent on your children.

Overall a Good Time

Despite the stress of a move, you can really make this time in your family’s life a good one. You can also take the chance to teach your children about different states or cities that you run into along the way. There is no reason to be totally stressed out when you move, but you need to make sure that your kids are given the time they need to adjust.

My Experience With a One Way Moving Truck Rental

June 8, 2008

My experience using a one way moving truck rental company was very positive. I was only moving a few miles from a house to an apartment. I did not think I would have too much to move and so could just have friends help me but as I started packing and assessing the size of the furniture I wanted to move, a truck rental company began to appeal to me. I checked out a number of companies and settled on one that was reasonable priced and could accomplish the task in my time frame. I was greatly impressed by the company I chose. The movers called me about 2 hours before they arrived just to let me know they were on the way so I could make final preparations. They were prompt and the persons who arrived were very pleasant. The truck was very clean. This was important to me since I have some very special pieces. The truck was dedicated to my items so I would not have to worry about my things getting mixed with someone else’s. I watched while they loaded my items. They took very special care to wrap everything that was fragile. They even packed the boxes in the order I asked so they could be taken out in the order I wanted. When the truck was full I accompanied them to the new place in my car. They waited until I had parked and approached before they unlocked the truck and started to remove the items. Unfortunately I was moving to an apartment on the second floor with no elevator. I could not believe how patient they were. They had to take many trips, and it was rather warm out, yet they were pleasant to the end. These people and their company made my move easy and pleasant. They made a difficult move easy and showed me that companies are made up of people who can be very kind and helpful.

An amazing experience with One Way Moving Truck Rental

June 3, 2008

Recently me, my wife and my son needed a reliable way to move all of our worn, yet running, appliances. We had a dish-washer, an oven, and a washer and dryer duo. We needed a truck big enough to meet our needs, but affordable. We looked in the phone book, and saw ‘”One Way Moving Truck Rental.” They looked presentable and we were in severe, short notice service. We need to move in two days time, and had yet to land a truck to help move out all of our items. The short notice was in no way a problem. The truck was easy to pick up/ The paperwork was minimal. But, I feel, the most important part was not having to deal with driving our rented truck back to the rental office where we received it. I am very pleased with the level of service and condition of the truck, and will indeed use the service again.

Self-Storage, Friend’s Truck, or One Way Moving Truck Rental: Take your Pick

June 2, 2008

There I was, standing in the middle of my studio apartment filled to the ceiling with box upon box of my personal junk. Too many times I passed a self-storage warehouse and brushed it off in my mind. “You don’t need it!” my wallet would scream, and it was right, I didn’t need it– not for THAT price. But moving, by definition, is a pain in the butt. If you’ve ever wanted to test somebody’s patience, just ask them to help move your mattress down three flights of stairs (if you wanted them to leave, you would’ve said *up*stairs). Was saving my car from a few scratches and my back from a few aches really worth paying $75 a month for a self-storage space? No. No was the answer I was content with. My moving savior snuck up on my one day when I was stuck in traffic and I noticed these magical words: “One Way Moving Truck Rental“. Yah, it may not sound like anything special to you but to me these words spelled the end of my moving nightmare. For a significantly lower fee than any self-storage place has ever offered, I was able to rent a nice truck to move all my junk in one big, far less painless move. Yah, it may not save my back, but it certainly saved me money, AND I didn’t have to get fingerprinted and fill out 900 forms like a self-storage place ‘requires’. I’m glad to have realized that this was what I needed, so glad that my wallet doesn’t scream anymore when I pass those self-storage places. Now it only screams at the car dealership across the street.