Moving Furniture Safely
Share
Whether you're relocating or just rearranging, moving heavy furniture is a big job. Use these simple techniques to move heavy, awkward items without wrecking your back, your house or the furniture. How to move heavy furniture by yourself - use your head, not your back.
Ramp It Up (and Down): Use lumber, scaffold planks and blocks to create ramps to maneuver items.
A tall dresser, filing cabinet or shelving unit is awkward to handle. Make it a two-person job. Tip the item backward at an angle and have one person carry the top while the other carries the bottom. This centers the weight and keeps the item from swinging out of control. Transporting the item up or down stairs is easier too, since the carrying angle will roughly match the slope of the stairs.
These dollies have wheels or casters to simplify move. The dollies are useful to move heavy and unwieldy appliances (washing machines, refrigerators, TV, dryers etc.) including heavy or large pieces of furniture.
With the dolly's two wheels and lower center of gravity, the load is much more stable and easier to move heavy items around. Walk backward and pull the loaded dolly up a hill or stairs. You'll have more leverage and better control. And rest the handle on your thigh to support the weight when you have to take a quick break. That way you won't need to tip the dolly upright and then tip the load down again.
A large easy chair can be the opposite of easy to move. Follow the example of pro movers and “hook” large chairs around corners. Turn the chair on its side so it looks like an “L” and move it back-first through the doorway. Then curl it (hook it) around the door frame and slip it through.
If you're moving to a new house, decide beforehand which furniture will go where. Before you move, sketch a floor plan with the correct measurements of each room, measure your furniture and create your layout. Then, as you move things in, you (or your helpers, if you're not there) can place your furniture in the correct spot and not have to touch it again. To make it easy on the movers, tape a copy of the plan to the wall of each room so people can tell at a glance where things go.
Furniture moving straps are also used by moving professionals. Straps are fitted easily in tool belt or back pockets. They are lightweight but strong and furniture and other heavy pieces can be easily lifted and carried. Two people can easily carry heavy or bulky loads. Moving straps makes moving heavy large/bulky objects like furniture, washing machine, piano, bed etc much easier. Significantly reduces strain and risk of injury to the lower back and also makes it comfortably to move large and heavy objects without damage to floors and walls.