Moving to a new home is an exciting experience, but it often comes with a difficult challenge – moving large, heavy and awkward furniture without damaging it.
Anyone who has moved houses and big pieces of furniture knows that it requires more than sheer brute force. It demands careful planning and a strategic approach.
Whether you’re moving an oversized couch, your cherished china cabinet or a big, bulky desk, the last thing you want is to see it scratched or, worse, irreparably damaged during the move.
How To Move Large And Heavy Furniture
If you’re planning to move houses without the help of removalists, here are some tips on how to move large and heavy furniture.
Plan and clear the route
If you’re planning on moving your furniture to the moving truck/vehicle through the front or garage door, the first thing you need to do is clear the route.
Take measurements of your furniture and any doorways and hallways you may walk through to get the furniture outside.
The general rule of thumb is to find the shortest distance to the moving truck/your vehicle so you don’t have to carry the heavy furniture longer than you need to.
Disassemble your furniture
If you’re dreading moving heavy furniture, one of the best ways to lighten the load is to disassemble it.
Rather than trying to carry the entire piece of furniture, see if there are ways you can remove parts of it. For example, if you have a heavy chest of drawers, to lighten the load, remove the drawers and carry the shell. That way, you’ll only have to carry the lighter individual pieces rather than one big, bulky piece of furniture.
Use the high-low method
When you have tall bookcases or cabinets to move, carry them with someone else using the high-low method.
Tilt the furniture backwards so one person is holding onto the top and the other person is holding onto the bottom. This method makes it easy to lift and carry heavy furniture because its centre of gravity is more balanced.
Hook couches and chairs around doorways and corners
Moving large furniture around tight corners can be difficult, but it doesn’t have to be!
When carrying bulky chairs or couches around corners or through doorways, turn it on its side so it makes an L-shape.
Once you’ve got the furniture on its side, turn it so it hooks around the corner or doorway. After you’ve gone through the door or past the corner, tilt it back to its normal position to make it easier to carry.
Use furniture sliders
If you’re wondering how to move a pool table or other heavy items, furniture sliders are a fantastic solution.
Furniture sliders are made of fabric or slippery plastic to reduce friction when moving heavy items. To use them, simply put them under the legs or corners of heavy furniture items and push the furniture so it glides across the floor.
Move heavy furniture on a hand truck or moving dolly
If you have tall, heavy furniture such as china cabinets or bookcases, hand trucks are a great way to move them.
Hand trucks are L-shaped devices with two wheels and a platform on the bottom to place items, tilt back and roll to the moving truck or your vehicle.
If hand trucks are too awkward to maneuver, a moving dolly is the next best thing. A moving dolly is essentially a platform on four wheels. Place your large and heavy piece of furniture on the platform and simply push it to where it needs to go.
Use moving blankets
If you’re worried about damaging your heavy items during the big move, cover them in moving blankets.
Moving blankets are large blankets made of durable fabric, and their purpose is to cover large pieces of furniture to prevent them from getting damaged.
If you’re moving items such as glass cabinets, TVs or dressers, moving blankets are a great way to prevent them from getting scratched, damaged or broken.
Why Hire Professional Removalists?
If you’re worried about damaging your furniture during the moving process, there is a solution: hiring professional removalists!
At Ready Movers, we take pride in offering a stress-free and seamless moving experience. Our team is trained to handle all types of moves, from local relocations to interstate.
Our home removalist services include two men and a fully equipped truck. We also offer packing services to make the process easier for you.
Our packers are professionally trained in wrapping, boxing and labelling your possessions to ensure they arrive at your new home in pristine condition.
The packing services we provide include
- Pack and unpack your entire home
- Furniture disassembly/re-assembly
- Assistance with fragile, large and bulky items
There are many benefits of hiring Ready Movers as your furniture removalists, including
- No-damage written guarantee: If anything is damaged or broken during a local move, we will arrange the replacement or repair immediately.
- Latest tools and equipment: It can be hard to move heavy furniture, especially if you don’t have the right tools. At Ready Movers, we have hand trucks and moving dollys to make it easy to move your bulky items.
- High-quality packing materials: We take pride in using high-quality packing materials to ensure your items aren’t damaged during the move.
How To Prep Large And Heavy Furniture For Removalists
If you’ve decided to trust the experts and let furniture removalists move your large and heavy furniture, there are a few things you can do to prepare for their arrival.
Clear doorways and hallways
A day before the removalists arrive, clear all the doorways and hallways in your home to ensure the removalists won’t trip on anything.
If your doors don’t stay open, prop them open with a door stopper so the removalists don’t have to repeatedly open them to remove the furniture.
Empty drawers and cabinets
If you have large items, such as cabinets or chests of drawers, you will need to empty all of them.
Not only does emptying them make it easier for the removalists to move, but it also protects the items that were originally stored inside. Once you’ve removed them, you can wrap them up and store them in a moving box.
Disassemble your furniture
Another tip for prepping large and heavy furniture for removalists is disassembling the big items.
To ensure drawers and cabinet doors don’t fall out/off during the move, it’s a great idea to disassemble them before the removalists arrive. This makes it easier for them to carry and provides you with extra piece of mind that your furniture won’t break during transit.
Hire Ready Movers For All Your Removalist Needs
Moving houses but don’t want the stress of packing and moving the big items? Ready Movers are here to help!
With over five years of experience, our professional removalists are trained in efficiently packing, moving and unpacking large and bulky items.
Whether you’re moving locally or interstate, we’ve got you covered.
Get in contact with the Ready Movers team to organise your big move.
