How to transfer a utility
- Find the provider for each address. Look up who serves the new home. In the Reno and Sparks area this includes the power and water utilities named in the Reno utilities guide.
- Call or use the provider's start and stop form. Ask for a stop date at the old address and a start date at the new one, and write down the confirmation number.
- Ask about deposits, final readings and the last bill. Request a final meter reading on the stop date and give a forwarding address for the final bill.
- Overlap by one day if you can. Keep service on at the old home through your final cleaning and at the new one from the day before arrival.
- Test everything on arrival. Switch on lights, run the taps, check the heat or cooling, and connect the internet before the crew leaves if you work from home.
Utilities are the one part of a move that has a hard start. A mover can arrive in the rain at a home with no power, and the crew will still carry boxes in, but you will be unpacking by flashlight. A short list, made early, avoids that.
The five services and what each needs
Power and gas: ask for a transfer or a new account. Gas service may require a visit to relight pilot lights, which can take days to schedule, so ask first. Water and sewer: many providers handle this by a simple account change, but a landlord may need to authorize it. Internet: this is the longest lead item. Providers may need an installer appointment, and an installer may be booked well ahead. Trash and recycling: the city or county sets this up, sometimes through the water bill; the new-home service and bin delivery can take a few days.
Local detail for northern Nevada is in utilities in Reno and trash and recycling.
Why the overlap matters on moving day
Crews load and unload with the lights on and the door propped open. If the heat is off in a Reno winter, or the water is off when appliances need to be disconnected, the work slows down. Appliances that are moving have to be disconnected and set up again, and that goes more smoothly with water and power on at both homes.
Appliances and utilities together
Tell the estimator which appliances are going. A gas range or dryer connects to a gas line, and a licensed technician is the right person to cap or connect it; the estimator can explain what the crew handles. See appliance moving for what the crew handles.
Keep the paperwork
Save the confirmation number for every stop and start. If a final bill arrives wrong, that number is your proof. Add each utility to your change of address checklist so the billing address changes with the service.