9 Things Worth Buying Before Your Rental Move-In Date

It's easy to realize only after the furniture has arrived that something should have been done beforehand. In fact, the empty room before move-in is exactly when certain preparations work best. Here we introduce nine items worth having ready by your move-in date, from pest prevention to protecting your water areas and prepping your kitchen.

Pest prevention you can only do properly before the furniture arrives

An empty, furniture-free room is the best possible moment for pest control. Start with a fog-type fumigator (such as Varsan), which releases a fine mist rather than smoke. Smoke-based fumigators can trigger fire alarms, but fog-type versions carry far less of that risk, making them a safer choice for apartments and condominiums. Setting one off while the room is still empty lets the mist reach every corner, making it far more effective. Next, pick up some gap-sealing putty. The space around the drain pipe under the kitchen sink, and around the piping for the air conditioner and washing machine, often has surprisingly large gaps — prime entry points for cockroaches and other pests. Sealing them with putty beforehand gives real peace of mind. It's also worth fitting an anti-insect cap on the air conditioner's drain hose. Since the hose runs straight outside, it's an easy route for insects to get in. A cap keeps them out — and as a bonus, it also helps prevent the odd gurgling noise the hose can sometimes make.

Water areas are easier to protect than to clean later

With water areas, preventing dirt is far less work than removing it once it has built up. While the bathroom and kitchen are still spotless right after move-in, spray on a water-repellent coating. It helps keep mineral deposits, mold, and grime from taking hold, cutting down significantly on your everyday cleaning. For the caulking around the sink and kitchen counters — the rubbery seams where mold tends to settle in — anti-mold masking tape is worth applying. Once mold takes root in caulking it's hard to remove, so covering it in advance means that if it does get dirty, you can simply peel off the tape and replace it, making cleanup far simpler. In the bathroom, keep a mold-prevention bath fumigant on hand. Just fill the tub with water and leave it in place, and it disinfects the entire bathroom — ceiling, walls, and even inside the ventilation fan — with effects lasting up to about two and a half months. Using it regularly, not just at move-in, keeps mold from taking hold.

Getting the kitchen ready

Kitchen storage benefits from a little prep too — it changes how easy the space is to live with afterward. Before putting dishes into the cupboards, line the shelves with cabinet lining sheets. They protect the shelves from scratches and stains, and a cushioned type also softens the sound of dishes knocking together. You can pick these up easily at a 100-yen shop (such as Daiso). The range hood is another notorious spot for being hard to clean. Fit a ventilation filter before grease has a chance to build up — catching the grease from the start means you'll need to clean the unit itself far less often.

A good all-purpose cleaner for your first bottle

Last but not least, keep a cleaner on hand that works throughout the home. A neutral all-purpose cleaner (such as Utamaro Cleaner) cuts through grease effectively while staying gentle on skin, and works everywhere from the kitchen to the bathroom sink and tub. Diluted, it also works well for mopping floors. Having this as your first bottle means you won't need to rush out for cleaning supplies right after moving in.

Summary

The small effort you put in before move-in day may seem minor, but it makes a real difference to how much cleaning and pest trouble you deal with later. The harder a spot is to reach once the furniture is in, the more worth doing while the room is still empty. Keeping things clean this way also works in your favor later, when it comes to restoring the unit to its original condition and settling your deposit at move-out. Use this list to get your new life off to a comfortable start.