HELP! PCSing to Germany - moving large stockpile

[SiBu04]

This is kinda of topic, but any answers would be greatly appreciated.
We just got orders to Germany and I have a few questions since this is our first PCS move:

1. Can I take my stockpile and if so, any tips?

2. Do they get the Sunday paper with inserts on post in Germany or do I have order my coupons from a clipping service.

Thank you

[sbp]

I have no advice on moving your stockpile, but I can help you to get coupons once you are all settled in Germany!!

The Sunday papers over there will not get inserts, but you will be able to use coupons up to 6 months past their expiration date, so start asking your family members now if they'll send them to you over there. Also, once you're over there and are receiving your mail, PM me and I'll get you added to our overseas military families list so that our members can contact you about sending their expired/unwanted coupons to you.

[SiBu04]

Thank you, that would be awesome!

[rrpate]

as for stockpile..you are limited to a certain amt. of weight... so??? also it takes a while for you to get it as it goes by boat usually... and are you going right away? or waiting for a port call??? sometimes it takes several months to get quarters and get the port call... so all this food sitting ?????? for how long???? not sure i would send food...maybe hba and paper products though! good luck... i loved Germany.. course it was 30+years ago! things are way different now! but its still a beautiful country... dont know if they still ration gas/cigs/booze???? the castles are fantastic to visit....

[cbw23]

I have successfully moved my stockpile last year. The movers won't take any liquids or openend boxes. No cleaning supplies!!
Don't take any chocolate products. Mine melted and hardened into a grey glob. Disgusting. Cans and boxes are fine, no problems whatsoever. Spices are doing great too.
I order all my coupons from a clipping service. The sales aren't nearly as good as in the states. No double coupons. EVER. The sales usually last about 2 weeks. Prices overall are cheaper than in the states.
Don't be afraid to go shopping on the economy. Produce prices are way cheaper than the commissary and selection is better as well.
If you have any questions, let me know.

[bryansilvia]

Take your stock pile and visit your local AFRC for coupon donation bags! Once you arrive if you are interested in starting a regular coupon exchange train of expired please PM me.

[tivaclare]

What people have told you about moving your stockpile is spot on. No liquids, nothing opened, just stay below your weight limit or you'll have to pay out of pocket for the difference.

One word of advice though, I cannot speak for base housing, but if you choose to live on the economy, European houses can be much smaller than US homes. We spent many years in Turkey, England and this was the case. My dad spent time in Germany and Italy on his own and the same was true there.

Not to deter you, but you may run into storage issues if you end up in a more European style home. We never lived on base when we lived overseas, we always chose to live on the economy. I visited friends in base housing at times and found the homes to be like a traditional American home.

[tessa67]

When you get to your new base check with family services for coupons. In Italy they used to receive envelopes of expireds from sweet people stateside and would give you several if you asked.

[JulieDB]

I have not moved to a foreign country but have made many military moves. I have been told they will take spices so long as they are in bottles, jars or cans. They will take canned goods. They will not take anything a rat could get into such as cereal or pasta. And they will not take larger jars of food like salsa or spaghetti sauce because the jars could break and make a mess. Yes, a spice jar could break and make a mess, but apparently a much smaller mess. They have packed my extracts.

I have also been told they can not take candles because they are flammable. Which is kind of weird because they will take things like clothing and wrapping paper and they are flammable! They also will not take batteries and they said they would not take nail polish. Or cleaners, or shampoo, liquid soap, etc.

However... I have found a way around this. Get yourself some plastic boxes with lids that can you can not see through. I have larger ones and smaller ones. Put things like nail polish in the smaller ones. Wrap them yourself in paper if you are worried about breakage. Or you may want to seal in plastic bags first.

Do the same thing with the other stuff you want to take. I put things like soap and shampoo in tall, round containers and I also toss in any bath puffs that I have. I seem to get a lot of those for free.

I don't personally take cleaners but you could if you are careful. You don't want the container to be too heavy.

I have found if the container is sealed like that and small enough for them to put in a packing box, they will just put it in, no questions asked!

They didn't question my larger boxes either, even though those contained seasonal items and not really anything I was trying to hide from them. They just put tape over the lids.

The thing is, any boxes they haven't personally packed, they will not cover if an insurance claim would need to be filed. So if you are okay with any damage that might occur should any of those things break and/or spill then go for it.

Not that they would actually come forth and cover damage even if it was their fault. I tried to file a couple of claims for damaged furniture when we moved to NY and the hoops you have to jump through to prove a claim make it next to impossible to do. I just gave up.

And yes, there is a weight limit. Technically we could have moved all of our canned goods because we were told that we had fewer things than most people. Hard for me to believe given how crowded this teensy house is. But I guess most people have at least one large item like a pool table and we do not.

I never moved any food except for the spices and extracts because they are the most expensive to replace. I didn't move them here though and opted just to replace them all since they were mostly old. I just live off of the stock pile for the weeks prior to the move. And as it gets closer to the date I only buy things like lunch meat, cheese, bread, etc. I make sandwiches for the movers too. I've been told they like that because most people just get them pizza.