When an item needs more than two movers and a blanket
A standard moving crew can carry a sofa, a dresser and a hundred boxes. It cannot safely carry a 770-pound upright piano up a Plateau staircase, a gun safe into a basement, a marble tabletop that will crack if it is laid flat, or a painting that must never touch a blanket. These items need different equipment, a different technique, often a larger crew — and above all, they need to be on the plan before moving day, not discovered on it.
Specialty moving at Simplex covers everything heavy, fragile, oversized or valuable. We move these items as part of a full move or on their own — a piano to a new home, a safe to a new office, a painting to a gallery. Three services have their own pages: piano moving, fine art and antique moving and crane moving.
What counts as a specialty item
Pianos
Upright pianos, baby grands and grand pianos. An upright typically weighs 450 to 900 pounds; a grand can weigh more and must be moved on its side on a piano board with its legs and lyre removed. Pianos need a piano dolly, a piano board, straps and a crew that has done it many times.
Pool tables
A slate pool table cannot be moved in one piece. The rails and pockets are removed, the felt is carefully taken off, and the slate — one to three heavy pieces — is moved separately, padded and on edge. Reassembly and levelling at the new home are part of the job; re-felting, if needed, is done by a pool-table technician.
Safes and heavy items
Residential safes, gun safes and commercial safes range from under 200 to well over 1,100 pounds. We plan the route, protect floors and stairs, and use stair-climbing dollies and extra crew as needed. Items above what can be safely carried by hand — very large safes, industrial machinery — are planned with rigging equipment or lifted by crane.
Gym and exercise equipment
Treadmills, ellipticals, home gyms and weight racks are heavy, awkward and often need partial disassembly. We move them with their manufacturers’ instructions in mind and reassemble them at the new home.
Fragile and high-value items
Large mirrors, glass and marble furniture, chandeliers, designer furniture, collectibles and high-end audio equipment each need the right protection: mirror cartons, crates, foam, corner protection, and careful loading away from heavy items.
Fine art and antiques
Paintings, sculpture, antique furniture and collections need acid-free wrapping, travel frames or crates, and handling that keeps hands and blankets off finished surfaces. See our fine art and antique moving page for how we pack and transport them.
Appliances
Refrigerators, freezers, stoves, washers and dryers are heavy and easily damaged: doors dented, water lines cracked, drums shifted. We move them upright, protect them, secure washer drums where the manufacturer requires it, and place them at the new address. Disconnecting and reconnecting gas appliances must be done by a certified technician; we coordinate with yours. We can also take away old appliances for recycling.
How we price specialty items
Specialty items are priced per item, before the move, based on the item, its weight and the access at both addresses: floors, stairs, turns, doors and elevator. A piano on a ground floor with an elevator at the other end costs less than the same piano from a third-floor walk-up. As a starting point, specialty items such as an upright piano or a safe on a ground floor start at $350, and often cost less when they are part of a full move; the rest are quoted after we see a photo and the access. When the item is part of a full move, it is added to the same quote.
Why planning matters more than strength
Most damage to heavy items happens in three places: at the top of a staircase, at a turn, and at a door frame. The item is fine; the floor, the wall or the banister is not. That is why every specialty move starts with questions about access, and why our crews protect the building before they touch the item. We measure doors, turns and landings, remove doors from hinges when needed, and decide in advance whether the item goes through the door or is lifted by crane through a balcony or a window.
Equipment we use
- Piano boards and four-wheel piano dollies
- Stair-climbing dollies for safes and appliances
- Heavy-duty straps, ratchet straps and load bars
- Floor protection: hardboard, runners and corner guards
- Mirror cartons, foam, glassine and custom wooden crates
- Extra crew sized to the weight and the stairs
When the stairs are not an option: crane moves
Some items simply do not fit Montreal’s buildings: a sectional that will not take the turn of an exterior spiral staircase, a piano going to a third floor, an armoire taller than the landing, a hot tub that has to reach the backyard. We lift them by crane through a balcony, a patio door or a window, and carry them to their room from there. The lift is planned before the day from photos of the item, the opening and the street, and it can be part of a regular move or a job on its own. See crane moving and hoisting.
Booking a specialty move
Send us a photo of the item, its approximate size and weight if you know it, and a description of the access at both addresses — floor, stairs, elevator, doors. We will reply with a price and the crew and equipment we plan to use. For a full move, just mention the item when you ask for your quote so it is on the plan from the start.
Specialty items at a glance
| Item | Typical weight | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| Upright piano | 450–900 lb | piano dolly, straps, 3–4 movers on stairs |
| Baby grand or grand piano | 550–1,100 lb | piano board, legs and lyre removed, padded |
| Slate pool table | 650–1,000 lb | disassembly, slate on edge, releveling |
| Gun safe | 450–1,000 lb | stair-climbing dolly, floor protection |
| Treadmill or home gym | 220–450 lb | partial disassembly, careful stair route |
| Refrigerator | 200–350 lb | moved upright, doors secured |
| Marble or stone tabletop | varies | removed from base, crated on edge |
| Large painting or mirror | varies | mirror carton or custom crate |
Weights are typical ranges; your item may differ. We plan crew and equipment for the actual piece.
Specialty items in a full move
Most specialty items move as part of a household or office move. The difference is timing: a piano or safe is usually loaded first or last, depending on its weight and where it goes in the truck, and it has its own crew and equipment for that part of the day. Mention every specialty item when you ask for your quote — not on moving day — so the right tools are on the truck and the extra crew is scheduled.
Protecting your home
Heavy items damage buildings more often than they damage themselves. Before we move anything heavy, we cover the floor along the whole route with hardboard or runners, pad banisters and newel posts, protect door frames and corners, and check that the floor can bear the weight where the item will stand. For basement installations, we look at the stairs first: some older staircases are not strong or wide enough for a safe or a piano, and we will say so.
Appliances: what we do and what a technician does
We move refrigerators, freezers, stoves, washers and dryers, place them and, for standard washers and dryers, reconnect them. Gas stoves and dryers must be disconnected and reconnected by a certified technician, and plumbing or water lines for refrigerators should be handled by a plumber. Before the move, empty and defrost the freezer, secure the washer drum if the manufacturer requires transit bolts, and leave doors ajar afterwards so they dry out.
Pool tables, gym equipment and hot tubs
Pool tables are disassembled, the slate is moved separately and on edge, and the table is reassembled and levelled; a pool-table technician can re-felt if needed. Gym equipment usually needs partial disassembly and careful routing on stairs. Hot tubs are moved over the ground when the access is safe; the ones that cannot pass are lifted by crane, planned before the day.
How to get a price for a specialty item
A specialty item can usually be priced without a visit. Send us:
- A photo of the item, and a second one showing how it sits in the room.
- Its size and weight if you know them — the make and model of a piano, a safe or a treadmill is usually enough for us to look it up.
- The route out: the floor, the number of steps indoors and outdoors, any tight turns, the width of doors and whether there is an elevator.
- The route in at the other address, with the same details.
- Any constraints: a date, a time window, building rules, fragile floors.
We reply with a price, the crew and equipment we plan to use, and any questions. If something about the route worries us — a staircase too narrow, a floor that may not hold the weight — we tell you before the day and suggest alternatives.
One item or a whole move
Specialty items can be moved on their own — a piano to a new home across town, a safe to a new office — or as part of a full move. On a full move, they are added to the same quote and handled by the same crew with the extra equipment and people they need.
Insurance for specialty items
Specialty items are covered by our insurance while in our care like the rest of your belongings. For valuable instruments, art, antiques and collections, tell us the declared value before the move so the coverage matches the piece. We photograph the item and note its condition before we start, which protects both of us if a question ever comes up.
