When it comes to moving you have two choices: hiring movers or taking on the daunting task all on your own. If all you’re moving is three boxes of clothing, it might be easier to take the job into your own hands. If you’re moving three boxes of clothing and a hand-carved statue of a bear, it gets iffy. If you have all of that and even more delicate, heavy, or cumbersome objects, it’s probably time to trust the pros.
Sometimes, though, there are no ifs, ors or maybes at all – you must call the professionals. That’s because there are some objects you should never, ever try moving by yourself. We’ll list the five most common hard-to-move objects below, as well as why you shouldn’t move them and how professional movers can help.
Pianos.
Pianos are at the top of the list of things specialty movers take care of. Not only are they typically large and very heavy, but they’re fragile as well. When something is hundreds of pounds and worth thousands of dollars, moving it without help is a huge risk.
On top of the obvious issues, there are also some tricky nuances to moving a piano. Pianos are stringed instruments, which means it’s easy for them to fall out of tune or even unstrung when moved. Professional movers can limit this potential hindrance with our expert tools and techniques. There are also federal regulations regarding moving ivory across state lines. If your piano is old and valuable enough, you’ll have to follow specific laws when moving it.
Fish and their tanks.
Moving any living thing is a complicated, delicate process. Moving a living thing that needs water is even more complicated. Your first priority when moving fish is keeping them happy and healthy. They require specific water with specific pH levels to stay healthy when transferred out of their tanks. You have to be very careful not to knock them around too much during the move itself.
Then there’s the tank itself. An empty fish tank is incredibly fragile. It’s not as easy to wrap in blankets or bubble wrap as a cup or bowl is. Professional movers will know how to wrap your fish tank to prevent it from breaking. We can also lift and move it carefully to avoid damaging it.
Original artwork.
Most moving companies offer insurance and valuation protection. When it comes to things like original art objects, it’s worth having the back-up of a professional mover and valuation protection to mitigate risk. You can communicate delicacy and need for care to the movers for special pieces. We’ll also have the right packing materials to help you cover and preserve them. A little extra peace of mind can go a long way during a move.
Exercise equipment.
Exercise equipment is deceptively difficult to move. It frequently contains many oddly-shaped, heavy moving parts. It’s easy for things to fall off or apart mid-move. Sometimes those things can be heavy enough to cause injury. Other times, they’re surprisingly easy to damage so badly that you can’t fix them!
It’s almost always safer to have professionals move your exercise equipment for you. After all, you won’t be able to use your equipment in your new home if you throw your back out trying to get it into the truck.
Appliances.
Most appliances are big, hefty, difficult to move and expensive. It’s a quartet of potential problems. While our recommendation for all the other points on this list is to have professionals help you, that’s not our advice here. More often than not, moving things like a dishwasher, washing machine or dryer isn’t worth the cost.
It’s almost always more efficient and cost-effective to work out an appliance deal with the realtor you’re buying from or to just buy new. If that’s not an option, these are still difficult to move and easy to harm items that benefit from the help of pros.
These are several things that are simply very dangerous to attempt to move without professional help. Avoid potential injury, expensive damage or loss by skipping the self-move on them. Instead, call up a moving company you can trust.
Companies like Bekins can tailor a moving plan to your specific needs whether you need help moving a whole home or just one especially cumbersome item. Call us today.
