CitizenShipper · Updated January 17, 2024
Of all of the household objects that can cause a headache to move, it’s the couch. Big, bulky, heavy, and awkward, the couch presents a moving challenge. If you need to move a couch as part of a bigger move, sell it, or simply get it out of the way to make room for a new one, you first need to decide if you will try and do it yourself or use the help from professional movers.
Decide who will move it
To help you decide whether you either need professional help to move the couch or can handle it on your own, consider the following;
- How far does it need to go? Are you moving the couch to a new room in your existing house or are you transporting a couch across a city?
- How many obstacles are on the way, i.e. stairs, a small lift, a large hill, or a narrow corridor? This is a key aspect in your decision-making. Don’t underestimate how challenging a heavy couch can be to move up or down a stairwell.
- How expensive is your couch, and is there any chance of damaging it? If you have an expensive couch then it might be better to get a professional. You should also check if your home and contents insurance covers your couch during the move.
- What is your budget? While hiring a professional will entail some costs, doing it yourself may also require hiring equipment, time, and energy that should also be calculated into your decision-making process.
Now that you have decided on a moving option it’s time to prepare the couch for its move
Preparing a couch to be moved.
No matter if you are doing it yourself or hiring a professional, it’s important to take a few preparatory steps before picking it up.
- Clean the Couch: Vacuum the couch under the cushions, and clean any dust off of the sofa. Now is also a good time to take off any couch covers that you can send to the dry cleaners.
- Disassemble the Couch: Remove the parts of the sofa that can be detached (legs, armrests, cushions, etc.) Keep all screws in a plastic bag and label the bag. Ensure that you have the right tools, such as an Allen key or screwdriver at the couch’s new location to reassemble it.
- Wrap the Couch for Moving: Use newspaper and bubble wrap to cover the couch’s feet and metal or wooden armrests; these are the edges that are most likely to be damaged and also most likely to cause damage during the move. Secondly, use furniture blankets to wrap all the removed pieces. If your couch is of a light or delicate material, consider covering the entire thing in shrink wrap to protect it from dust, dirt, or moving accidents.
Moving the couch yourself
Suppose you choose to do a DIY job it’s important to gather a set of equipment that will make the job as easy as possible. We recommend the following equipment to help get your couch on the move.
- Furniture Dolly: You can buy or rent a furniture dolly
- Furniture Sliders: Minimize friction when sliding or pushing your couch along the floor.
- Ropes or straps
- Friends or family members to help you move!
Using a furniture dolly to move a couch
A furniture dolly is essentially a flat, four-wheeled trolley. If you don’t own a dolly you can rent one from a local moving company. To move a couch quickly and safely position the dolly as close to the couch as possible. Using as many helping hands as you can find, lift the couch and onto the center of the dolly. Once in place, secure it with the ropes or straps then push the couch carefully through the doors. If you are using a moving van, the couch can stay on the dolly, just strap the couch and dolly to the interior of the van to ensure a safe move.
Using furniture sliders to move your couch
If the couch only needs to be moved to another room, a fast and easy method is to use furniture sliders. You can hire a specific piece of material for the job, but a fluffy, low friction piece of carpet, turned soft-side down will also do the trick. The theory of this move is to lift a part or all of the couch onto the slider, then pull or push the couch into the other room. Depending on the size and shape of the couch will depend on how you tackle this. Small and relatively light couches can be lifted up and placed on the slider. Larger and heavier couches can be lifted up just a bit while someone else places the slider underneath.
Best way to move a couch with professional movers
If you want to use professional movers it’s wise to get several quotes before proceeding. An even easier way to get multiple quotes quickly and easily is through using a marketplace shipping platform such as CitizenShipper. Simply post your couch moving details and then qualified, experienced and available drivers will bid for your job. You can review each of the bids and select one based on availability, reputation, and price.
Moving a couch can be a challenging process but by following the tips we have outlined above, you’ll get your couch to where it needs to go swiftly and smoothly.
Post your couch moving job on CitizenShipper, here.
CitizenShipper is a two-sided marketplace for hard-to-ship items such as dogs, cats, motorcycles, boats, cars, and more. CitizenShipper puts you in touch with experienced, background-verified, and user-rated transporters. A quality experience — quick, safe, and affordable!
