How to Use Moving Blankets

If you’ve ever watched movers, you know they arrive with stacks of moving blankets, also known as furniture pads. These heavy-duty, quilted coverings protect furniture, appliances and other large items from scratches and damage during a move. Similarly, they can protect a home’s doors and walls from gouges and dents when hung inside the house at strategic points.

While you can move without furniture blankets, you’ll probably regret it. Learn when to use moving blankets, how to use them and where to find them when preparing for your next move.

Moving blanket basics

Furniture blankets typically measure 6 to 7 feet each side and consist of multiple layers of filler—cotton, polyester, nylon and similar materials—stitched together like a quilt. Often, they have a lighter-colored side and a darker or contrasting side. The light side is considered the “clean” side while the dark side is the “dirty” side. When you move, place the light or “clean” side facing the piece as you wrap it. The dark or “dirty” side should face out.

Whether your furniture blankets are a combination of light blue and dark blue, light brown and dark brown or another combination, they will absorb the bumps and jostling of the road and prevent your furniture from getting scratched, nicked or damaged along the way. They can also help keep your future and appliances clean when they are packed next to lawn equipment or the sides of the van.

On the other hand, moving blankets are not waterproof. They will absorb any liquid, including rain. If the moving blankets around your couch get wet from rain and sit inside a moving van for several days on a cross-country move, your couches could develop mildew or mold. To prevent this, cover moving blankets with a layer of plastic, especially on rainy days.

When to use moving blankets

You should use moving blankets on all large, bulky items, including refrigerators, tables, dressers and headboards. In addition to protecting these pieces from damage and filth in the moving van, furniture blankets reduce the risk of them shifting during transport. In essence, moving blankets serve as padding within the van.

Another good time to use furniture pads is when you want to protect heavily-trafficked hallways and doorways from getting damaged. Do this by securing the blankets in these areas to walls and door frames with packing tape. You can leave the moving blankets in place for the entire move or just for as you maneuver a particularly large or difficult piece through the area.

Furniture blankets can also come in handy when moving a bulky item, like a large area rug. Slip the moving blanket under the rolled rug, and use the blanket as a sling to walk the rug to the moving van.

Or, they can be used to slide a heavy item, like a freezer, when you don’t have furniture sliders readily available. To use a moving blanket, tilt one side of the empty freezer back just enough to get the blanket underneath that side. Then, repeat on the other side, and pull the blanket forward. (Use friends to help tilt the freezer and steady it as you move it forward.)

Determining how many you need

The number of moving blankets you need depends on the number of appliances and furnishings you have and their size. Before you start packing, go from room to room, listing the items that will need moving blankets, then determine how blankets you’ll need for each based on the guidelines below.

Items small enough for one blanket

Nightstands and end tables
Small bookshelves
Microwaves and mini fridges
Chairs and bar stools

Items needing two blankets

Larger bookcases
Coffee tables
Recliners
King-sized headboard
Office desks

Items needing three blankets

Large kitchen or dining room tables
Pool tables
Refrigerators
Washers and dryers
Sofas

When in doubt, err on the side of having too many blankets.

Should you rent or buy?

Renting moving blankets makes sense for two reasons: cost and storage. It costs less money to rent moving blankets than to purchase them. Expect to pay $10 to $20 per quality moving blanket if purchased individually and $6 to $8 if purchased in a pack. Renting comparable moving blankets from U-Haul costs as little as $1 per blanket. Plus, when you finish moving, you can return them and not have to store them.

However, if you can reuse the moving blankets, it’s worth the money to purchase them. After a move, you can use furniture blankets to soundproof a music room in your home, to protect your car’s seats when taking your pet to the vet or as a beach or picnic blanket. You can also use them to safeguard your furniture during a remodel or keep dirt off items in storage. Then, when you’re ready to move again, you’ll have moving blankets already on hand.

You can purchase moving blankets at home improvement stores like Lowes and Home Depot and online retailers like Amazon. Even Walmart sells moving blankets. Look for woven moving blankets, which are thicker and more durable than their non-woven counterparts. While you’ll pay more for them, woven blankets can be used again and again. If you’re on a budget but still want durability, consider purchasing a moving blanket made of both woven and non-woven materials.

How to use moving blankets

On moving day, start by gathering your furniture pads and whatever you plan to use to secure them with, such as tape, ratchet straps or mover rubber bands. For larger items, have a dolly on hand.

One-blanket items

Wrapping small items is a slightly different process than larger one. Follow these steps to ensure smaller items are properly covered.

Clear enough floor space to spread a moving blanket out flat.
Make sure the blanket’s light (clean) side faces up.
Place the item in the center of the furniture pad.
Position it at a diagonal so its top faces one corner and its bottom the other.
Fold the bottom corner up over the item and secure with tape.
Fold the sides in and tape.
Finish by folding the top over the item.
Secure the moving blanket with tape or a rubber band.

Larger items

Depending on its size and location, you’ll need to have a friend or two to help position and secure moving blankets on a large, heavy or bulky item. These steps will make the process easier.

Pull the item away from the wall.
If it has a cord, secure the cord with tape or plastic wrap.
Secure or remove any appliance doors or furniture drawers.
Unfold a blanket and hold its light (clean) side facing the item.
Wrap the front first, making sure the blanket covers all the way to the floor.
Secure with tape or rubber band.
Continue wrapping the sides and back with additional blankets.
Drape a pad over the top.
Secure all pads with tape, rubber bands or ratchet straps.

Plastic wrap and moving blankets

You can use plastic wrap to secure moving blankets to an item you’re moving instead of tape or rubber bands. Simply, wrap it around the item’s width to hold the furniture blanket in place.

Plastic wrap also offers protection from any water the blanket absorbs. Apply the plastic wrap to the item first. Then, follow the instructions above to add the moving blankets. If it begins to rain on moving day and you haven’t already used plastic wrap under the moving blankets, you can use it over them for last-minute water protection.

Other options

You can substitute old bedspreads, blankets, towels and sheets in a pinch, but these alternatives do not offer the padding and protection needed to prevent damage during a move. If renting or buying moving blankets seems like too much work, consider hiring a professional moving company instead. Professional movers usually provide moving blankets at no additional cost, and they’ll do all the work for you. Check out Moving.com’s extensive network of reliable, licensed and insured movers to find the right professionals for the job.