Large tank movers, any recommendations?

[smokinreefer]

Hey,

Looking for recommendations of movers to move a large glass aquarium.
any suggestions?!

It's an 8' long tank so awkward as well as heavy.

When I moved it in I grabbed a bunch of guys and they moved it in. The problem is we were in the middle of renos then so there were no railings to deal with by the front foyer. So now with the railings, it makes it near impossible IMO to move out the front without equipment or expertise.

Brute strength may still work if taking it out the back, but that's a much longer route.

Any suggestions appreciated.
Thanks!

[Chin_Lee]

most professional moving companies will not move the tank when i inquired about 15 yrs ago. You may be able to hire some muscles from local craigslist moving companies that only accept cash............

When I had to move a large 300g tank, I built a sled out of 2x4 and 2x6. The tank sat on the inside of the sled so it was an additional 1.5" on each side. The sled bottom that touches ground should be limited to decrease friction but not so thin that it creates too much focused pressure. I used the 3.5" width of a 2x4 for each side of the sled that I wrapped with short matted carpet. The screws and staples used to hold the carpet in place were always on the edges that do not touch the ground. Do use 4-5" lag bolts with washers for the main frame. Do not rely on 3-3.5" deck screws to hold the main frame together. The weight and torque on the main frame when pulling can cause the deck screw to strip or the heads to rip through the 2x4. Deck screws are fine for the cross frames though.
The only heavy lifting was getting it off the stand and onto the sled. Once on the sled, it was secured to the sled with ratchet straps. A long heavy duty thick 1.25" rope (similiar to ones used in tug of wars) was tied to the front of the sled so that multiple people could pull to get it up the stairs while a few people pushed from the bottom end of the tank. All railings were removed to give people more space to move along the stairs.
Getting your tank over railings is going to be very difficult and dangerous. I suggest looking at how your railings are secured to the wall and see if you can remove them just for the move. If you can get it out of the house via the long route, its not a problem on a sled. Just keep pulling and pushing it along the route.
Most railings are a pain in the ass to install but very simple to remove. But once removed, its quite simple to put them back since all the screw holes and joints are already there.
This process will be 3-4 days of prep, planning, and contruction followed by 30 min of execution.
good luck.

[smokinreefer]

Hey,

Thanks for sharing your experience. The details of your endeavor are much appreciated.

Unfortunately, the railings are freestanding, not a wall-mounted handrail. And I'd be afraid the integrity of the whole thing would be compromised if dismantled and reassembled.

The long way looks to be the route of choice.

[Dearth]

I personally have never had to move a large tank but have heard the stories of others. There are movers out there that may move your tank but you would have to call and I would only get reputable movers as many local movers are under equipped and may not be insured or insurable. As with anything Any professional movers you use make sure that they are fully insurable and have the knowledge and equipment to do a move which is another reason I shy away from local companies on stuff like this.

Other than brute force and strength that is the only thing I can help with.

[smokinreefer]

Thanks for the tips!

[Scythanith]

Call Piano moving companies. That's who I got to move my 270 down a flight of stairs.

[smokinreefer]

Thanks for the suggestion!

Down a flight of stairs... giving me anxiety just imagining that!

[smokinreefer]

Two years later I'm revisiting this!
It is almost time.

Anyone do any big tank moves in the last two years?
How did you do it?

I will look into some piano movers again.
I remember I never got any callbacks from my messages when I called 2 years ago lol.

[Guy]

Was covid during the time too. Hopefully you'll get proper call backs now. Money talks right?

You may want to make it easy and put together photos and expected problems for them, so they can quote easily.

[smokinreefer]

Thanks for the input Guy. Good points. I will provide as much details as I can to the potential movers.

So, the transporters will no longer do oversized deliveries to the premise.
So this will need to be picked up by the movers from the depot in Surrey and then brought to my house in Burnaby.