Movers who know how to connect a strap to a moving dolly

If you’re planning a DIY move for your upcoming relocation, there are several things you’ll need to learn, including how to pack your items efficiently, where to find the best packing and moving supplies, and, for your larger and heavier items, how to connect a strap to a moving dolly. This involves more than just plopping items onto the dolly’s platform and throwing a rope or ratchet strap around it—in fact, it’s part of the art of the overall moving process.

What is a moving dolly?

Professional movers tend to use both moving dollies and hand trucks to quickly move around heavy and bulky items. Basically, a dolly is a four-wheeled platform that furniture, appliances, or a large stack of boxes can be placed atop. An upright hand truck dolly tends to have two wheels and requires some strength and leverage to tilt back onto the wheels once the heavy item is strapped to its platform.

Dollies are extremely helpful in the moving process because they literally take the burden off of your shoulders (or the shoulders of your professional movers). Before you start buying or renting moving dollies, though, it’s important to understand what items are well-suited for this equipment and what should be hand-carried.

Items that might require a moving dolly

Not everything in your home should be rolled around on a moving dolly. For example, boxes of delicate items like well-packed glasses, jewelry, or other breakables should be hand-carried to and from the moving truck in order to best protect them. Instead, moving dollies are best for the bigger and often heavier items that you can’t safely carry, such as:

  • Appliances like refrigerators, freezers, dishwashers, and ovens
  • Larger furniture items like couches, recliners, and China cabinets
  • Oversized catch-all boxes like a gaylord container
  • Big boxes that can be a pain to carry, including the wardrobe boxes containing your hanging closet clothing
  • Heavy but sturdy containers like boxes of books or reusable plastic moving totes

Moving dollies make moving life a bit easier by letting the equipment handle much of the heavy lifting, but there’s one more step you’ll need to take before learning how to connect a strap to a moving dolly: how to wrap large furniture and other heavy items.

Protecting furniture and appliances before strapping them to the moving dolly

You’ve already sourced the best packing and moving materials for your upcoming relocation. And you’ve set up a staging area for your moving blankets, tape, and shrink wrap. Now it’s time to get wrapping!

Upholstered items like couches, padded chairs, ottomans, and fabric-covered bedroom footboards and headboards should be wrapped in shrink wrap first. This thin plastic film provides a layer of protection to prevent dust, dirt, and water (if it’s raining or snowing during your Chicago Area move) from affecting the items. Then, even further protect the pieces by wrapping them in moving blankets before you worry about how to connect a strap to a moving dolly to transport them.

Harder or unupholstered items like wooden, metal, or plastic cabinets, tables, bookcases, and appliances don’t necessarily need shrink wrap, but it’s never a bad idea to add that layer of protection anyway. Regardless of whether you use shrink wrap on these pieces, be sure to cover them with moving blankets before you put them onto your moving dolly. And if you’re moving a large stack of books, it’s a great idea to put some shrink wrap or a moving blanket on top of to hold them together so they don’t topple—and to protect them from water if there’s any rain or snow coming down from the Chicago sky.

Learning how to connect a strap to a moving dolly

Now it’s time to learn how to connect a strap to a moving dolly. There are a few steps to follow:

  1. Measure your doorways and hallways. There’s nothing more frustrating than wrapping and strapping a heavy piece to a moving dolly and then realizing it won’t fit. You might have to remove couch or chair legs or take the refrigerator handle or door off for the items to fit. Measure twice, move once!
  2. Clear a pathway. Move any items out of the way so you can easily roll the dolly once you’ve loaded up your item or items. If you’re moving in the winter, this might include shoveling snow or putting down salt to remove slippery ice.
  3. Load the item(s) onto the dolly. Depending on whether you’re using a four-wheeled dolly or a two-wheeled hand truck, you might need another person to help lift or tilt a heavy item to get it onto the platform.
  4. Strap along the equator. If you’re using an upright dolly or hand truck, attach a strap parallel to the floor about halfway up the piece’s height to secure it to the dolly. Pull any slack out of the strap so it’s nice and tight.
  5. Strap over the top. If you’ve placed your item(s) on top of a four-wheeled moving dolly, run a strap underneath the platform and over the top of the piece. You might want to do this on the short and long sides so there are two straps holding it in place.
  6. Start moving. Carefully wheel the load through your home and into your moving truck—or out of the moving truck when you arrive at your new home.

The right method of how to connect a strap to a moving dolly will vary depending on what type of strap you’re using, such as hook and loop straps or ratchet straps.

Tips for using a dolly during your move

Now that you’re a pro and can even teach other people how to connect a strap to a moving dolly, there are a few tips to keep in mind while you’re moving heavy and bulky items around on these wheeled pieces of equipment. First and foremost, balance the load correctly if you plan to put multiple items on one dolly. Put the heaviest and most stable boxes or items on the bottom and the lighter ones on top. This will prevent the load from being top heavy and protect your lightweight and more delicate possessions.  

Next, always have a spotter. Get a friend or family member to help you every step of the way. Wheeling around large items means that you won’t have a clear line of sight, so you might not be aware of any obstacles or stairs—but your spotter can help. This moving buddy can also help you carefully wheel the dolly down ramps or stairs, thus protecting both you and whatever items are on the dolly.

Due to the logistics, heavy lifting, and stress of sourcing and using moving dollies and straps, many people opt to hire a local moving company to handle the packing and transportation of weighty and bulky items. Fortunately, the best movers in Chicago are here to help.

Let the best movers in Chicago handle the heavy lifting!

Whether you’re looking for full-service movers to handle your entire relocation or a labor-only moving company to take care of only the heavy lifting, we’ve got you covered. We offer a variety of packing, moving, and short-term and long-term storage services to make sure you have the best moving experience possible.

Contact us today to find out how we can help and to get a free estimate!

"We want your junk in our trunk"

© 2020 Move-Tastic. All rights reserved. Website design by Bright Spot Studio Web development by Pernix Solutions