Regardless if you are moving to a new home or simply relocating a home spa to a different place in your current one, it will not be easy. If you are one of those people who love pampering themselves with a spa-quality treatment at home, you will care to have your valuable piece of "heaven at home" moved in the safest way possible.
This is especially true when it comes to moving a hot tub. As this is the largest, heaviest, and probably the most expensive item in your home spa, we'll dedicate most of this article to hot tub relocation. We'll explain why hiring professional help is a good idea but also give you useful advice on how to do it yourself.
Hiring professional movers
As you want to be extra careful when relocating your home spa, you should definitely consider hiring professional movers. They have the knowledge and experience to handle things that need extra care when packing, including a hot tub. By hiring professionals, you can be sure your belongings will be packed and moved most safely.
Another important thing is the issue of liability. If you decide to pack and move everything yourself, you are responsible for any potential damage. However, moving companies have insurance. This means that when you sign a contract with any reliable moving company, you will find a liability clause. So if any of your precious and expensive things get damaged during the moving process, the moving company has to take responsibility. This way, you and your belongings are protected.
Relocating a home spa on your own
Some things that you might have as part of your home spa are relatively easy to relocate. For example, most massage beds can fold and can be carried by one person. Even if you are moving to a different home, they are relatively easy to pack and keep safe.
However, moving a hot tub, even moving it just a couple of feet, can be quite a challenging task. For example, if you have a 56 square foot hot tub, on average, it weighs around 900 pounds without water. With water, this number is as high as 6.000 pounds. So brace yourself for some really heavy lifting!
Supplies preparation
If you have decided to move your hot tub without professionals, the first thing you need to do is gather and prepare all necessary supplies. You need furniture dollies, moving straps, large pieces of plywood, measuring tape, and cleaning supplies.
Make sure to check how much weight the furniture dollies can handle. Otherwise, you are risking causing damage. You can find all of the supplies you need in a local home improvement store, or you can buy them from a moving company.
Assess your environment
One of the most important things to do before moving your hot tub is to check your surroundings. Depending on where your spa is located, you might need to get creative (for example, if you need to use the stairs as your spa is in your upstairs bathroom or the basement). Make sure to find the route with the least obstacles and stick to it.
Relocating a home spa will require detailed planning and taking precise measurements. Otherwise, you might fail on the first attempt and end up with a hot tub in the middle of your hallway, not being able to fit through your door.
Recruit help
If you thought you could pull this task on your own, you are mistaken. Keeping in mind how much the average hot tub weighs, you won't be able to push it on your own, let alone load it onto a truck. You will need at least three friends to help but the more, the merrier. If you are unable to find any available friends to help, you can hire labor-only movers.
After you and your friends are finished, make sure you thank them. You can even give them small gifts that show you're grateful for all their help or invite them to a spa day once you're completely finished with moving.
Whatever you decide, for safety reasons, do not try to move the hot tub by yourself. You can seriously injure yourself!
Moving truck
The next step is to rent a moving truck. Of course, if you or one of your friends have it already, even better. However, you need to make sure to rent a van that is big enough and can handle the weight of your hot tub. Don't forget - you will need a truck that has a loading ramp.
The best way to determine if the truck can handle your hot tub size is to have all the measures taken in advance. That way, you will be sure that you've hired a vehicle that has enough capacity. If you skip this step, you might rent a truck that is too small which will generate more cost for you and cause delays.
Hot tub preparation
Before you move your hot tub, you need to make sure to do two things - drain and disconnect your spa. A hot tub with water inside weighs six to seven times more, so it doesn't make sense to even think about moving it this way.
Before draining your hot tub, make sure you unplug all cables from the electrical outlets. Remove all cords and wires as you don't want to get them wet while draining. A good idea is to find waterproof bags and put cables in them. This way, you'll be sure that they are safe from getting wet or damaged during the move.
Draining your hot tub differs from one manufacturer to another. Therefore, check the user manual or try getting in touch with customer support if you are unsure how to do this.
Step by step moving
Now that you prepared everything, it's time for actual heavy lifting. Here is a step-by-step guide:
Place wood pieces under the hot tub - this will help create a flat surface for moving it and make it much easier to roll the furniture dollies.
Place furniture dollies - When the spa is ready to be moved, slide dollies underneath it. Do this on its front and back end so that your hot tub sits on two dollies. Secure hot tub to dollies with moving straps.
Roll the tub onto the loading ramp - you will need the help of your friends to carefully push the hot tub to the loading ramp.
Load into the truck - this is the trickiest step. Make sure one person is in the truck to ensure that the hot tube is secured. Once inside, secure the walls - you will want to avoid movement.
Keep the dollies in place - this way, you can easily unload the hot tub once you arrive at your destination.
We hope our advice helped you with relocating a home spa in an easy and stress-free way. Now that you've successfully moved all of your belongings, you can start decorating your home like a spa. Don't hesitate to leave us a comment - we'd love to hear your opinion or any advice you might have.
Meta description: You are ready for your move but not sure how to handle relocating a home spa? Don't worry - it's easy if you follow our tips and advice!
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