How to move heavy sculptures

What makes moving difficult? Well, if you think about it, it boils down to items. Outside factors do contribute, but it is the type of the item that determines whether the move is difficult or not. Now, there are two things an item needs to be in order for it to be difficult to move. Those are heavy and fragile. The heavier and the more fragile an item is the more skill and planning is required to move it properly. And you can hardly get heavier and more fragile than sculptures. Therefore, we have made a compressible guide for you to figure out how to move heavy sculptures. If at any time you find yourself in doubt, contact professional fine art movers NYC. Be it for advice or help, they will be your best support.

Preparations

The more you spend planning and getting necessary supplies, the better you will execute your move. Mind you that, that goes double when you move heavy sculptures. And triple if you have to move long distances. You need to be meticulous and prepare everything before you even start relocating your heavy sculptures.

In order to move heavy sculptures, you need to have everything figured out and planned.

Planning

When is the right time to start planning? Now! Spare no time in starting the planning phase of your move. You need to figure out what you will need, how you will do it and when you will do it. Do not wait for the last minute to start figuring out your move. You need to think through every phase of the move. That is the only way to reduce the possibility of accidents and mishaps. You need to figure out who you will call to help you and to make sure that they are free on that day. You also need to make sure that everyone that is helping you is familiar with the plan and that there are no confusions. Then you need to schedule your move in advance. All of that takes time. Do yourself a favor and start planning now.

Moving supplies

Once you have a general plan figured out, you need to get some moving supplies. To lift and move heavy sculptures you will need working gloves and boots for protection. They are there to protect you from slipping and accidentally dropping your heavy sculpture. Next, you will need lifting belts and a dolly. Your sculpture will most likely be too heavy to lift safely without using belts and a dolly. You might also need padding and wrapping materials to make sure that there is a minimum risk of damage. Take care to protect any extra-fragile parts of the sculpture and to make sure that it is constantly in balance while being moved.

Transport

In order to move heavy sculptures, you will need to have proper vehicles. Find someone who has a pickup truck. If that is not possible, consider finding a company that rents them. You will need one that can easily fit the sculptures without them touching. Figure out how to place them so that there is enough wiggle room for there to be no risk of them bumping into each other and getting damaged. You need to tie down and pad the sculptures so that the transportation goes without any mishaps. Do not risk transporting your sculpture without it being safely loaded. If needed, find experts to verify that you safely loaded your truck.

If you are moving multiple sculptures at the same time, make sure that they are not touching in the truck.

How to do it

Slow and steady wins the race. Once you have planned and prepared everything, you are ready to move heavy sculptures. Start off by safely navigating your sculptures from their original space to the truck. Make sure that there are no bumps, drops or garbage along the way. Your sculptures need to have a smooth, slow ride on the dolly so that they arrive at your truck in one piece.

Loading and unloading

You need to do this even slower. Go as slow as possible. Depending on your truck and your equipment you will have to figure out the safest way to load your sculpture into the truck. Make sure to safely position it and reduce the risk of it tipping and falling. The truck needs to be big enough for you to be able to move around the statue in order to properly handle it. This will be especially important during unloading. You will have to repeat the loading procedure, but in reverse, which tends to require more skill and planning.

Get professionals to help you move heavy sculptures

After reading all of this you might think to yourself: "Ah, I'll just get professional movers". And hey, we get and downright support it. In order to move heavy sculptures, you need to have equipment and skills that few people have. You'll be much better off with hiring Long Island movers to help you out than by trying to do everything on your own. Moving companies do this all the time and are quite familiar with the procedures and requirements. Furthermore, if you hire a reliable moving company, you will reduce the risk of accidents and mishaps by a quite significant margin. Don't put your sculptures at risk. Get help from professional movers when you need it.

Professionals move heavy sculptures all the time. Let them do what they do best.

How to find them

Start by looking locally. Local movers tend to be cheaper and can offer just as good of a service that an online mover who is further away can. If you are having trouble finding local movers that can move heavy sculptures, go to your local galleries. There you'll be able to find out who they use to move their sculptures. Once you do find a mover, don't get hasty. Make sure to check them out online and see if there are have any references. Moving industry is not immune to bad business practices and scams, and you want to avoid them as much as you can.