Wall Protection: Avoiding Wall Damage During a Move

Most people focus on protecting their belongings during a move, but your walls are just as susceptible to damage. Heavy, bulky furniture can scratch, dent or even knock a hole in your walls while boxes and dirty items can leave marks where they come in contact with them. Doors, door frames and staircase banisters are also at risk, and damage to any of them can cost you.

If you damage the walls or any structural element as you move out of your house, you may be on the hook to make repairs before the buyers take possession. Similarly, those damages could cost you your security deposit when you move out of a rental property. And, if you damage the walls moving into your new home, you’ll kick off your stay with a repair.

Fortunately, you can protect your walls from damage by following these helpful tips.

Know your route out

Before moving day, walk your home and identify the best routes to move your belongings from inside your home to the moving van. Note any areas that could present potential problems such as hallways, stairs, sharp turns and door frames. These areas are at the greatest risk for damage, so you’ll want to take additional steps to protect them. (Read below for information on materials you’ll need and how to protect your walls and other elements below.)

On moving day, walk the routes again. This time, remove any items that might get in the way, including furniture, wall art and clutter. Take the time to make sure your kids and pets are out of the way.

Phone a friend

Damage to your walls, doorways and banisters are often the result of not having enough people to help move large, heavy items. To determine how many people you’ll need to help, consider how many items and boxes you have and the size and weight of heavier items.

Generally, you’ll need two people to carry a bulky item like a rolled carpet and up to four people for heavy appliances like a refrigerator. However, depending on how much you have to move and how long you have to move it, you may need more than four people. The more people you have, the less each has to lift and carry. As a result, they will not get as tired and be less likely to damage your walls.

Disassemble large pieces for wall protection

More often than not, walls get damaged when large pieces can’t make it through a doorway or around a corner. For example, you might have a difficult time fitting a heavy desk through a doorway without hitting the door’s frame. Or, you might risk hitting the ceiling as maneuver a tall bookcase down the stairs. Additionally, protruding parts, like the legs on a coffee table, can bang or dent walls and door frames.

You can avoid these scenarios by disassembling large pieces of furniture and removing protruding parts whenever possible. As you break these pieces down, put all screws and small parts in a bag, and tape that bag to the furniture. To prevent lost time on moving day, you may want to disassemble these items before your help arrives. Either way, smaller pieces of furniture and furniture are less likely to hit your walls, doorways and banisters.

Wrap, wrap and more wrap

Using furniture blankets, bubble wrap and other protective materials not only protects the item you’re covering, they can also protect your walls, door frames and banisters. Secure bubble wrap with tape to any legs that can’t be removed. (If you don’t have bubble wrap, old towels will work, too.) Then, wrap the furniture with moving blankets, securing these with tape or ratchet straps.

That way, if you accidentally come in contact with the wall or door frame, the blankets and bubble wrap will provide cushioning. Not only will that cushioning keep the item from being damaged, but it will keep your walls from sustaining damage, too.

Cover the walls

The best wall protection is to cover them. Be sure to use blankets or cardboard in narrow hallways and staircases where you worry about dents. Drop cloths and old bedsheets work well to prevent scratches and smudges in other areas of concern. While you don’t have to cover all the walls in your home, you’ll want to cover those along the main routes out of the house.

When covering your walls secure the moving blankets, drop cloths and bedsheets with painter’s tape. Don’t forget to wrap furniture blankets around door frames and banisters. Sharp corners will need extra padding, so consider folding the edge of the blanket over and wrapping it around the corner. Or, make a temporary corner guard by folding a strip of cardboard in half, sticking the corner into the crease of the cardboard and taping it in place. Bubble wrap can also be used on corners.

Corner guards are a must

For a more permanent solution, you can purchase corner guards to protect your wall’s corners from damage. Color guards come in a variety of colors and materials, from clear plastic to hunter green PVC. Usually, you screw the guards to the corner, but you can also buy peel and stick guards. Whichever type you choose, the guards become part of your wall. They are not temporary.

They also aren’t cheap. Expect to pay $6 to $10 per corner guard depending on the length of the guard. However, if you’re concerned about damage to your home’s corners, corner guards offer the best protection.

Wheel it out

Dollies allow you to lift more with less effort and, often, with fewer people. As a result, you’ll have an easier time navigating narrow hallways. Since you won’t be struggling as much to move a heavy item, the chances of damaging your walls diminish. Additionally, with fewer people in a narrow space, there’s less opportunity for one of them to accidentally scratch or dent the wall as they move through the hall.

There are two basic types of dollies. A two-wheeled dolly or hand truck can help move boxes and even appliances while the four-wheeled version slips under heavy furniture, allowing you to push them with little effort. You probably want to have both on hand to help protect your walls on moving day.

Take your time

On moving day, allow plenty of time to get the job done, including enough time to plan how you intend to move each large piece. Measure any areas that could cause problems, such as doorways, and decide the best approach to take to get the item to the moving van without damaging the walls.

Unfortunately, people often don’t allow enough time for their move and have to rush to finish. As a result, they dent or bang the walls trying to muscle a piece through a tight space. They may even damage the furniture they are moving or wind up injuring themselves.

Dress appropriately

Accessories, including large rings and watches, can scratch or dent the walls. So can exposed zippers (covered zippers like those on jeans are okay), chain necklaces and large, metal buttons. Be sure to remove any of these or similar items before you start moving, and ask your friends and family to do the same.

Hire professional movers

If you’re really concerned about protecting your walls, hire professional movers. Moving companies train their employees how to move items to avoid causing property damage of any kind, including damage to your walls, door frames and banisters. Plus, they have extensive experience moving a variety of large, heavy items and maneuvering them through a house.

Moving.com has an extensive network of reputable and reliable movers who can do all the heavy lifting as well as pack and move your entire house. And, because they’re licensed and bonded, you don’t have to worry about damages to your walls, door frames, doors or banisters either.