Moving a hot tub sounds like a daunting task, but it is not impossible. You may need some extra tools or equipment, but you can do it. It is important that you do it safely so that you don’t injure yourself or the hot tub.
How do you move a hot tub by yourself?
- Cut off the electricity to the tub and shut off all gas and water supply lines.
- Disconnect all the cords and wrap them up.
- Drain the hot tub and close the drain cap before securing the tub with tow straps and drying it off.
- Slowly lift the corners of the hot tub onto wooden planks until you have all four sides lifted.
- Put it on a dolly and roll it to the moving vehicle or other location.
- Set the tub back up in the reverse order.
Safety is key during the moving process. Take your time and don’t rush any step. While it is possible to move the hot tub on your own, it is advised to hire a few people to help you.
Not only in making sure the hot tub doesn’t get damaged, but to protect you from injuring yourself. Read on to learn more about the important details when moving a hot tub on your own.
Moving A Hot Tub To A New Home
Basically, you’ll have the following 2 options when it comes down to moving a hot tub from one house to another:
#1. Move Your Hot Tub by Yourself
This may be the riskiest of the options you can go with, but it may work for you. Especially if you have experience moving hot tubs on your own, and you have all the equipment available.
If you have an inflatable hot tub, then you can easily drain the hot tub and easily move it.
If you are a novice hot tub mover, this option may be a bit too advanced for you. If you invite a few strong friends over to help, it may be possible on your own.
Here’s what you will need to move a hot tub by yourself:
Proper equipment. You’ll need moving equipment to actually move the hot tub to a truck. No matter how strong you and your friends are, you will still need extra help. Stock up on dollies, 4 x 4 wooden planks and moving straps.
Enough people. At least four people will be needed to move the hot tub successfully. Two really strong people may be able to manage the move on their own. If you don’t have any family or friends that are willing to help you, make sure to contact a moving company before trying to move the hot tub by yourself.
Knowledge and experience. Make sure you prepare and plan before attempting to move your hot tub. It helps if you’ve done it before, because you’ll be ready for what it takes to move the tub. If you haven’t done it before and the instructions and YouTube “how-to” videos are too complicated, you’re better off hiring help.
How to Move Your Own Hot Tub
Safety is key when moving something like a hot tub without professional help. It’s heavy and fragile, a risky mix that can end in disaster if you aren’t careful. If you still think you can do it, or don’t have much of a choice, you can read ahead to find out what else you’ll need to do while moving your hot tub.
Step 1. Measurements. Measure the space the hot tub is currently in and the one you want to move it to. This will ensure that your hot tub will fit in your new place. All you need after an exhausting move is to find out your hot tub isn’t going to fit in your new place. It may take some extra time, but it will save you a lot of headaches when you find out that it doesn’t fit after moving it.
Step 2. Moving truck. Measure your hot tub before you move it to make sure it will fit in the vehicle you’re using to take to your new home. You may need to get creative and have it stand up vertically or diagonally to actually fit inside. But it’s better to do it before you rent a truck that is too small.
Step 3. Clear the path. Make sure the path you use to carry your hot tub to your moving vehicle is clear. You don’t need to be tripping over things while trying to move a heavy hot tub. You also don’t want the dolly to get stuck on any ropes or branches along the way and hinder your journey.
Step 4. Power. Your hot tub should no longer be connected to any power sources when you are moving it. Not only is it unsafe for you, but you could also damage the hot tub or the cords. That could prevent the hot tub from working once you get it to your new home.
Step 5. Water. There shouldn’t be any water in your hot tub when you are moving it. Not only is it extra weight to carry, it can also get exposed electrical parts wet or damaged. Make sure to read the instructions on how to drain the hot tub properly before you try it.
Step 6. Drying. You should close the drain and dry off any remaining water from the hot tub before attempting to move it. This will ensure that the hot tub doesn’t get damaged by the excess water or damage other things around it during the move.
Step 7. Hot tub cover. Remove the cover before attempting to move the hot tub itself. If it has many small parts, such as screws, make sure you hold onto them so you can set it back up once you are in your new home.
Step 8. Transport the tub. This is the hardest step since you’re actually dealing with the weight of the tub. Be sure that you’re friends are nearby and ready to help. Don’t attempt to lift it free-hand, either. This is where the wood pieces come into play.
Step 9. Wood pieces. You will stick the wooden pieces under the hot tub after you and your friends lift each corner of the tub to slide a piece underneath. This will ensure that the tub is above the ground, and it’s weight is evenly distributed across the wooden pieces.
Step 10. Two furniture dollies. Using these tools will help you not have to turn the hot tub on its side. Since the wooden pieces are distributing the weight, the dolly can easily slide underneath the front and back of the hot tub. Remember those moving straps mentioned earlier? Now’s the time to strap the tub in to secure it before movement can begin.
Step 11. One appliance dolly. Moving a heavy hot tub can be very dangerous, even with the help from the dollies. The method above may not work if your path to your truck is not flat or not very wide. If this is the case, you may need to try another way.
You could also buy 2-4 pieces of 3/4 inch thick plywood to lay over the ground to allow the wheels to roll easier on the ground if your patch has enough width. If your path is long, pull up the plywood after you’ve crossed over to put in front of the next piece and repeat until you’re at the truck.
You may actually have to move the hot tub on its side to transport it successfully. Have your friends lift the hot tub on one of its sides, and then slide the appliance dolly under it. Strap it to the dolly with those moving straps, and you are good to go. Make sure that you and your friends hold onto the tub as you move it
Step 12. Safety. Never forget that you are moving and pushing an extremely heavy item. Take your time and be sure that everyone is ok while you are moving it. This move isn’t a race, and shouldn’t be treated like one. That truck isn’t going anywhere without you or your hot tub!
Step 13. Loading. Make sure the loading ramp is ready to go before you start loading the hot tub. This will make your trip much easier rather than physically lifting the hot tub off the dollies. Once you are up the ramp, secure the hot tub and be sure to leave the wooden pieces and dollies underneath the hot tub. Those will help you unload it later.
Check out the Moving Tips website here, which lists these steps as well as information about apps that you can use to keep organized and calculate moving costs.
#2. Hire Hot Tub Movers
If you can’t part with your hot tub, and would rather not endanger yourself, hiring professionals can be an option. They are trained and experienced in moving hot tubs of all sizes and makes, and will likely keep your hot tub undamaged through the entire process of the move.
Hiring professionals who know what they are doing is by far the best option when moving your hot tub. You’ll not only protect your back and knees from potential damage, but your hot tub will also be safe during the move. Professionals will also have all the tools and equipment, not to mention manpower, to move your hot tub quickly and safely.
The next topic is the cost of what hiring professionals will be to your bank account. You may not have budgeted for moving your hot tub, and the first quote you get may scare your socks off. Your best bet is to call a couple of hot tub moving companies and get comparable quotes to find the best deal. It will also help you realize if you can afford to move your hot tub.
What Else to Consider When Moving a Hot Tub
Leaving your hot tub behind is essentially the best option. It’ll be hard to say goodbye to your hot tub, especially if you’ve used it a lot. If you didn’t use your hot tub very often, then it won’t be much of a loss, except a financial loss for what you paid to get it installed.
Cost of taking it with you. If you can’t bear the thought of parting with your hot tub, you may just stomach the cost of transporting it. It will be both a financial as well as physical cost on you to move it, especially if you decide to do it on your own.
How much will moving it cost? If you are doing it on your own, you won’t know the true cost until you actually move it. You can talk to a hot tub moving company to get a quote from them, but that too can vary depending on your hot tub size and build.
Timeline. Moving your hot tub will take a tremendous amount of time. There are several steps that you need to take to clean and prep the hot tub to move before you can physically move it.
Dangers. Hot tubs are heavy, one can weigh around 800 pounds! It would be nice if the hot tub could be quickly packed and carried to your new home. Since that is not the case, you could easily throw out your back or pull a muscle trying to move it on your own.
Due to the personal and financial costs outweighing the gains you might get by moving it, you may be better off selling the hot tub with your home and buying a new one at your new place. You could sell it with the price of your house to get more money out of potential buyers. Or, you could sell your hot tub separately and let the buyer worry about moving it out of your yard.
Moving A Hot Tub On Its Side
So, we covered the process of moving a hot tub, but is it possible to move it on its side? Is it safe to do so, both for you as well as the hot tub. Here are some steps to follow when attempting to move your hot tub on its side.
Getting Ready
First things first, you need to secure the wiring underneath the hot tub. Those wires are what powers and runs the hot tub smoothly. It would be a real pain to move the heavy thing, only for it to not work in your new home because of wiring issues. It isn’t cheap to get the wires fixed either, so it’s for the best that you handle them with care.
You can secure them in a number of ways. You can tie them up into one big bundle, or separate them into bins depending on what cable goes where in the hot tub. You could also label each wire with colored tape or labels so you remember what each cable does.
Lifting
We have already talked about how heavy a hot tub is, so it is important that you and your friends are careful when moving it to the side. All of you should be alert and aware of where you and your body parts are when moving the hot tub. Nobody wants stubbed fingers or toes, or broken bones if a hot tub falls on top of someone.
Make sure you inspect your hot tub before putting it on it’s side, just to make sure you don’t accidentally put it on a weak side. If the hot tub is put on the weak side, it can damage or even break the hot tub. It will also help if you and your buddies lift from all four corners rather than two different sides. This will distribute the weight better and make lifting easier.
Moving
Lifting the hot tub is only half the battle when taking it with you to your new place. Moving it is the next step while it is on it’s side. Similar to moving it normally, you will slide the wooden pieces under it to lift it off the ground. Then you will put dollies underneath the tub before securing it with moving straps.
This method works well if you have a narrow space you need to squeeze your hot tub through, such as a fence or sidewalk to get to the moving truck or van. The straps will keep the hot tub secure during the trip, both to the truck as well as the drive to your new home. Make sure you measure your paths to and from the vehicle to make sure the hot tub will fit.
Safety
You should review the correct ways to lift with your knees and back before attempting to lift the hot tub. You won’t be much help if you injure yourself or someone else by accident. You could easily drop or slip if you are distracted, so be sure everyone is present in the moment and not trying to sneak a peek at their phones while moving the hot tub.
The hot tub should be completely dried off as well. If any part of it is wet, it can easily slip out of your hands. Which will either damage the hot tub or your foot.
You should also double check that all plugs and cables are secured or put away so no one trips over it. That would be one dangerous game of dominos that you don’t want to have any part of, trust me.
Is It Hard To Move A Hot Tub?
Yes, it is hard to move a hot tub, whether you’re doing it or a moving company is doing it. However, it is not impossible. We have gone over how you and a few friends could accomplish this task without any professional help. It would also earn you bragging rights to all your handy friends.
Just be sure to take all the precautions and dangers into consideration when moving the hot tub. This will ensure that you are successful in your move. If you forget something, or skip a few steps, you may end up paying for it. Both figuratively and literally.
Check out this video of a man named David Gould moving his hot tub by himself. You can compare it to the first video, and see how much harder it can be on your own.
To Summarize
There are a lot of factors that go into moving your hot tub. Whether it’s moving the tub to another house, or another part of your own home. The moving process can be time-consuming and difficult, especially if you are doing it by yourself.
Just know that if you try to move if yourself, you might have to pay for a brand new one if it gets damaged while moving, which is more costly than it would be to hire a professional moving crew.
So, the next time you want to move your hot tub, remember these steps! It will help promote your safety, as well as the safety of your hot tub.
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