Moving into a building with no elevator can prove to be a true challenge for one reason only – you can only use the stairs to get your things up to the new apartment.
Moving into a walk-up apartment requires careful preparation and strategic planning in order to be a smooth move from start to finish.
Oftentimes, hiring the best apartment movers in your area is your best choice to prevent any property damage and personal injuries.
Follow these 13 tips for moving into an apartment building with no elevator to give yourself a good chance of success.
Moving into an apartment building can be quite an adventure for you, especially when you’ve lived in a house until that moment in time. In fact, moving into an apartment doesn’t have to be better or worse than moving into a house, it’ll simply be different.
When moving into a high-rise building, then you should be able to use an elevator (sometimes even a freight elevator) to get your furniture and boxes up to the floor of your apartment.
Of course, using an elevator to lift up your stuff on Moving day will make the move much easier, safer, and more convenient for you.
However, you may happen to be moving into an apartment building without an elevator. How come, you may ask? Apartment buildings that only have 3 floors are not usually required to have an elevator. But it’ll all depend on where exactly you move to in the country.
Apartment buildings in New York City, for example, are required to have an elevator when they have six floors or more. This means that you may be moving into a 5-storied apartment building and still not be able to use an elevator on Moving day simply because there won’t be one at your disposal.
So, what should you do when moving into an apartment building without an elevator? How are you supposed to get your things up to your place?
These 13 tips for moving into a building with no elevator will help you resolve any issues you may have during the actual move.
1. Reduce the number of items you’re moving
Bear in mind that it doesn’t really matter if the building you’re moving into has never had an elevator or it does have one but it’s currently out of order for some reason or another. The outcome is that you won’t be able to use an elevator at the time of your move.
The good news is that you’ll know in advance that you’re moving into an apartment building that has no elevator. And since you’re well aware of what you should expect when you arrive there, you can actually do something about the situation in advance.
Without a doubt, the best thing you can do when moving into a walk-up apartment is to take as few things with you as you possibly can. It’s easy to see why – the more items you decide to move to the new apartment, the more challenging the task will be on the day of the move.
So, don’t hesitate to go through your stuff one more time and get rid of the things that 1) you don’t seem to like or enjoy anymore, 2) you won’t ever need again, and 3) you assess that they are too worn out or broken to be worth the effort.
Remember that the easiest way to move into a building without an elevator is to leave behind all the furniture pieces and move only things that can be safely packed into packing boxes.
Most furniture items are big and heavy, and that’s a serious problem when you won’t be able to lift those pieces up using an elevator. Just the thought of you trying to carry bulky furniture up multiple flights of stairs in an apartment building is enough to send chills up your spine.
The solution is easier than you think – just don’t move any furniture.
First of all, you’re going to have to rent or buy an apartment that’s already fully furnished – after all, you can’t live without any furniture at all. And secondly, if you own the furniture in your current place, then the real question is what you’re supposed to do with it prior to the move.
It’s never an easy thing to part with your furniture, especially if it has a certain sentimental value for you. But sometimes you just have to do what you have to do. Right?
3. Disassemble the furniture you intend to move
When moving into a walk-up apartment, you just have to disassemble any large furniture you wish to take with you.
It’s easy to figure out that one of the major problems when moving into a walk-up apartment will be the furniture you’ve chosen to take with you.
Even though you’ll be better off not lugging any furniture with you when moving to a building with no elevator, sometimes you simply won’t be able to part with some of your furniture items. You may be too attached to them or they can have a strong sentimental value, especially when it comes to antique furniture.
If you must bring along some furniture pieces, then make sure you disassemble them properly prior to the move. Once taken apart safely (if possible at all), a large furniture item will become (much) smaller and lighter to carry up the stairs of an apartment building.
The exact disassembly process will depend on the furniture item itself – whether it’s a dresser, a china cabinet, a couch, a table, or something else. As a rule of thumb, you’ll need to remove any furniture elements that can be taken apart safely, especially the ones that are protruding, such as legs.
Disassembling the large furniture you’ve decided to take with you is an important step to ensure the overall safety of the move. Of course, smaller and lighter items are lifted and carried much more easily and safely.
Still, you’re going to have to wrap the (disassembled) furniture pieces in thick padding blankets for two types of protection: direct and indirect.
Direct protection is when the soft padding layer keeps the furniture item from getting damaged in any way during the move. Just make sure the furniture blankets are well secured to the item they are protecting and cannot unfold at any given moment.
Indirect protection is when the moving blankets, thanks to the thick padding, keep walls, floors, and doorways safe in case you accidentally bump the wrapped-up furniture pieces into them.
When the apartment building you’re moving into has no elevator, then you don’t have any other choice but to use the stairs to get your things up to the new place.
Now, you shouldn’t have any problems carrying lighter cardboard boxes and furniture pieces up the stairs to the apartment. The task will take time and is likely to exhaust you as well, but it’s perfectly doable as long as you’re watching your step. And if you have your friends helping you out, then that’s even better.
However, you’re going to need a moving dolly to take the heavier and larger household items to the right floor. You can’t use a furniture dolly (the 4-wheel low platform), so your best bet is an appliance dolly (aka a hand truck).
An appliance dolly is a 2-wheel L-shaped lever that can be rolled up the stairs, one step at a time, as long as at least two people are working with it – one person in the front to pull up the dolly and another one in the back to support and balance the heavy load, and to push, if needed.
You can use the moving dolly for moving up stacked boxes on it or pieces of furniture. Make sure the moving dolly you rent or buy has large inflatable tires that will handle the stairs without too much difficulty.
6. Use a shoulder dolly up the stairs
A shoulder dolly can really make a difference during your move.
You can also use a shoulder dolly to get the heavy stuff up the stairs.
A shoulder dolly is a lifting system for two persons that have one moving strap and two harnesses (one for each person). With its help, you can lift and carry up the stairs heavier items that you cannot normally handle using only your hands. Why?
A shoulder dolly allows you to use the strength not only of your shoulder muscles but also your leg muscles – the strongest muscle group in the human body.
All you have to do is
secure the shoulder harness around your shoulders and have your buddy do the same;
bend your knees while keeping your back straight;
loop the straps under the heavy load (usually a piece of furniture),
attach one end of the strap to your harness and the other one to your partner’s harness,
lift the load off the ground by standing up and using the strength of your leg muscles.
When using a shoulder dolly to move heavy items up the stairs of a building with no elevator, always keep your back straight to prevent back injuries. Also, have the stronger person be on the lower step for extra support and stability.
Even when you’ve made up your mind NOT to take any furniture with you, moving into an apartment building with no elevator will mean loads of strenuous work carrying boxes up the stairs.
At first, you may be feeling just FINE going up and down the stairs, but you’re also likely to start feeling tired after 30 minutes or so. And depending on how up you’re going and how many boxes you’ve got to move up the stairs, exhaustion is bound to settle in within the first hour of hard work.
Safety is of paramount importance when you’re moving without hiring professional movers, so you must use the proper lifting techniques to prevent injuries or accidents on the day of the move.
Keep a stable base with your feet;
Have a proper back posture – always keep your back straight, your shoulders back, and your eyes looking straight ahead;
Bend your knees, never your back. This will allow you to use the strength of your leg muscles;
Get a firm grip on the heavy items before lifting and carrying them. Use high-quality work gloves to improve the grip;
Keep heavy items close to your waist, relatively centered in relation to your body.
And remember – never rush things when moving into a building without an elevator. Instead, assess the situation carefully and pick the safest approach to move heavy items up the stairs when the elevator is missing or not working.
When it comes to tips for moving into a building with no elevator, a good piece of advice is to mind what you’re wearing on your feet on the day of the move.
Wearing a pair of sports shoes during your apartment move is always a safe choice.
Going constantly up and down the stairs can be dangerous – a single slip or misstep could lead to serious trouble. And this is why it does matter what type of shoes you’re wearing during the entire relocation process.
First of all, the shoes on your feet should give you an excellent level of traction when moving up and down the stairs. In most cases, anti-slip rubber soles should work just fine.
Secondly, the shoes have to be closed to protect your toes as well – after all, wearing flip-flops when carrying heavy items along multiple flights of stairs is one of the worst ideas a person could come up with.
And thirdly, the shoes you’re wearing during the move should preferably provide some type of ankle protection. However, this footwear requirement is highly optional.
In general, wearing a pair of sports shoes or hiking shoes will increase significantly the overall safety of the entire no-elevator moving operation.
One unwritten rule you should follow for your own good is to move up the stairs all the heavy and bulky items first of all. Now, why the heavy stuff first, you may wonder?
Moving the big and heavy things up to the apartment before the rest of the items is advantageous because you will still have enough energy to complete the task safely. This is the physical aspect of the heavy-stuff-go-up-first tactic – the more tired you get as time passes, the greater the risk becomes of you sustaining an injury or causing property damage due to exhaustion.
The psychological effect of your decision to take up all the bulky items first is not to be underestimated as well. Once you’re done with the tougher part of the apartment move-in process, you will be able to breathe a sigh of relief that you’re only left with lighter and smaller stuff to take up the stairs.
And this can be a huge bonus from a mental point of view since you should allow yourself to picture the finishing line and you making a final print toward it.
Moving bulky furniture pieces and heavy boxes up the stairs of an apartment building with no elevator is tough work, so it’s only natural that you will get tired pretty quickly.
Make a mental note to take frequent breaks whenever possible to give your body time to rest for a bit between instances of heavy lifting. This way, you’ll ensure you have the required energy and muscle strength to continue work without elevated risks of injuring yourself or damaging the furniture items you’re carrying up the stairs.
Urge your helpers to take meaningful breaks as well to keep things running smoothly. While it’s true that the general idea is to complete the move as fast as possible, you should keep in mind that a serious accident when moving into an apartment building without an elevator would be a huge setback for the entire relocation operation and would cause much more time to be lost in the process.
When moving during a hot day in the summer, use the breaks to drink water so that your body can stay properly hydrated too. You should avoid having any alcoholic drinks during the move, be it only beer. That’s right – it’s safer to leave those alcoholic drinks for when you’re done with the move as a proper way to congratulate yourself for a job well done.
11. Ask your friends to help you out
Moving into a building with no elevator is a time when you may have to rely on your friends.
Moving into an apartment building with an elevator is almost Mission Impossible for one person, so you must understand that moving into an apartment building without an elevator is definitely not a one-man job.
This basically means that in case you’ve opted not to hire professionals to help you carry the heavy items up the stairs, then you’ll have to reach out to your friends to give you a hand.
Don’t underestimate the complexity of the moving job – even when you’re moving up “only” to the 3-rd floor, there will be plenty of steps that you’ll have to overcome on each up-and-down run.
Keep in mind these pointers before you ask your friends to help you lug heavy things up the stairs of a building that has no operating elevator:
Ask your friends for assistance as early as possible to increase the chance of them saying YES to your request.
Tell your buddies exactly why you need their help and don’t omit important details such as the lack of an elevator in the apartment building you’re moving into.
Don’t be quick to judge your pals when some of them refuse to help you out. Bad timing can, in fact, be the real reason for their kind refusal.
Moving into a walk-up apartment often comes down to careful planning for reaching maximum efficiency. No matter the relocation stage you’re in right now, you just have to have a good plan for the task you’re currently working on AND a good plan for the thing you’re about to do next.
Bear in mind that the time of day you plan to move into an apartment building with no operating elevator can make a huge difference in how easy or how difficult the moving process can turn out to be. Why?
Think about this: there isn’t an elevator in the building, so everyone who lives there will be using the stairs to go up and down. What this means is that if you make the mistake to move in during the peak hours when most people (some with their pets too!) will be using the stairs, then your job will become so much harder and riskier due to the extra traffic along the stairs.
So, to avoid unnecessary complications, plan your apartment move for either very early in the morning or very late at night when the building stairs will be less busy. This way, you’ll make things much easier and safer for you and your new neighbors.
When moving into a building that has no elevator, it makes all the sense in the world to hire professionals to move your things up to your place – quickly and safely. Of course, the idea of actually saving that expense by asking friends to help you out may be too tempting, especially when you’re moving on a tight budget.
If you’re still wondering which way to go, one rule of thumb is that if the new apartment is on and above the 3-rd floor in a building with no elevator, then you should definitely pay professional movers to get the job done for you. Just make sure you inform the pros in advance that the building has no working elevator in it so that they come well prepared for the challenge.
Also, the best apartment movers in the country can offer you hoisting services, if necessary. With the help of an appropriate hoisting device, the pros should be able to get heavy and larger household items through a balcony or a large window of the apartment directly from the street.
Get free cost estimates to know how much apartment movers will charge you for the job of transporting, delivering, and taking your stuff into a walk-up apartment.
Thanks for the tip that it’s sometimes better to disassemble furniture when moving to an apartment with no elevator. I hope that I can count on apartment mover to help me with that because I am still recovering from a wrist sprain. Even if it would cost me more, I’d rather have the moving service handle my furniture for me.
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Thanks for the tip that it’s sometimes better to disassemble furniture when moving to an apartment with no elevator. I hope that I can count on apartment mover to help me with that because I am still recovering from a wrist sprain. Even if it would cost me more, I’d rather have the moving service handle my furniture for me.