Is the width of bubble wrap important?

Bubble wrap is a form of protective packaging that has many important uses, including house moving, storage and shipping. It comes in different shapes and sizes and there are different types of heavy duty bubble wrap, which have different uses. It is commonly used by both businesses as well as the public for protection and it is very easy and quick to use.

The difficult part is finding the right bubble wrap for your requirement. If for example you are moving home; how much bubble wrap do you need to buy? What type of bubble wrap do you need to buy? Which items in your home actually need wrapping up? Should you buy one extra large roll or several smaller rolls? These are all difficult questions that need answering, but another common question is: does the width of bubble wrap matter?

• If you are moving home, you do not need to wrap up every single item from your home. It is only the most delicate items that need protecting with bubble wrap, which includes your kitchen appliances, cooking equipment, plates, bowls, glasses and mugs. It also includes pictures and picture frames as well as ornaments and mirrors too.
• When calculating how much bubble wrap you will need, there are two options; you can work out exactly how many objects need protection, measure them exactly, and then calculate the amount of bubble wrap that you need. Or the quickest option is to simply take an estimate based on averages and guess how much you require, which is what most people do.
• Generally speaking most people will use a one hundred metre roll of bubble wrap for a three bedroom house move. If you are moving a smaller house or flat you may need slightly less, or if you have a larger four or five bed house then you might need a bit more.
• When it comes to choosing which type of bubble wrap that you need, when looking where to buy bubble wrap, there are two main types; small and large bubbles. Small bubbles are perfectly good enough for house moving and larger bubbles are designed for heavy objects. You can always put several layers of smaller bubbles around your object to give more cushioning, so we always recommend that. It is much cheaper as well.
• When choosing whether you need one large roll or lots of smaller rolls, this really depends on whether you have people helping you pack. If you have helpers, then it can be useful to have many smaller rolls, so that each person can help wrap up items at the same time. Otherwise it is more economical to buy one larger roll if you are doing it yourself.

So is the width of bubble wrap important?

• When you have worked out how much bubble wrap you are going to need, typically rolls of bubble wrap will come in different lengths and widths. You can buy ten, twenty, one hundred length metre rolls from most suppliers, as well as width variations of 300mm, 500mm or 1000mm.
• The length is the biggest variation by a long way. This is therefore the most important factor; the width of the roll does not matter.
• The reason that the width doesn’t matter is because if you have a really long hundred metre roll of bubble wrap but it is not wide enough, you can very easily put several layers to make sure it covers the entire width of your object. If the length is long enough then you can cover anything.
• If the width is too wide then you can end up with a lot of wastage, so we normally recommend buying an average width of 500mm. (half a metre).
• If you buy a much wider roll then the price of the roll becomes less economical and you can end up paying a lot more for a large 1000mm wide roll compared with a 500mm wide roll. The reason for this is because of the postage charge associated with extra wide rolls of bubble wrap for moving, so it is never worth the trouble.
• It is so quick and easy to wrap up an item in bubbles that covering a very wide object with a roll that is not quite wide enough is easy to do. It won’t cause you any troubles. If you wrap up an object in both directions in a crossed pattern then this ensures that all areas of the object are fully protected from damage.
• If you buy a slimmer roll of bubble wrap this makes them easier to store in your home before you use it, without the roll taking up too much room in your house. A really wide and large roll will not fit in a cupboard in your home for example, however a narrower roll will so you can buy bubble wrap in advance of your move to ensure that you have everything ready and on time.
• The same applies if you are using bubble wrap for storage or shipping too. As long as the bubble wrap is fully protecting the item you are sending or storing then this will work. Most businesses use 500mm wide bubble wrap as this is the most economical size available.

Other notes

• You should make sure that you buy environmentally friendly bubble wrap that is fully recyclable because this is easy to purchase today and most suppliers should offer it.
• You can even buy paper bubble wrap which is made from recycled paper and is fully recyclable too so this is the most environmentally friendly option available. This is new in the past five years.
• Bubble wrap is lightweight and will not add to the weight of your parcel. This is important if you are calculating the weight of a parcel you are sending with a courier.