[Closed] ADVICE REQ - loading a 7.5t truck when moving home

Pack it all in nice and tight.

Didn't Top Gear do something about packing trucks? Watch that...

Part time removal man here .

Get loads of pack2 boxes and tape , Do NOT fill your pack2 boxes with books but mix and macth with duvets / clothes as a pack2 full of books is very heavy ,

Right , some straps or bungees would be good but we never used them . Start by standing all the tall items upright against the bilkhead .

Put in Beds , suites , freezers etc upright and then pack on top . You need to sort work on a reverse pyramid , only put ligt things on to , lamps, lampshades etc . Try to wedge large mirrors or fragile items bewteen the mattressess , TRY to remember where they are .

We always left the tail gate about half way up / dowm and used it as a large step .

Continue to load with long itms / large items early on , Do not forget the shed and loft as they will contain all amnner of crap that you really should throw away . Moving is abrill time to de-clutter , be ruthless

Some furniture removal co's use a cardboard clothes box, like a wardrobe , usefull if you have lots and lots of clothes ( girls) otherwise pack2 / suitcase .

Dismantle tables where possible and tape all fixings to the table in an envelope and lots of gaffer tape .

Plants are difficult to move and take alot of room as cannot be stacked on , use your car if poss or place on last .

Work logically , take your time, use the height as much as you can early on and aim to wedge it all in like a huge triangle .

Kitchen appliance make agood base for loading on top of , Ensure help when lifting washing machine / cooker as they heavy as . Some washing machines have bolts to secure the concrete block when moving ,, we never fitted them , just allow the hose to trail to drain out under gravity

Drive really slowly and smoothly and you should be right . Watch low bridges if you are not used to driving something 14ft tall.. Good Luck

How much is it costing to hire a van?

Personally I would pay some one to do it, I bet in the scheme of things it doesnt cost much more

Personally I would pay some one to do it, I bet in the scheme of things it doesnt cost much more

The last time I moved house, a movers wanted nigh on £1500 to move 8 miles.
Or £140 for 7.5t truck for the day, & a full English for my Brother & a mate.
Local builders merchants for 100m of 10mm nylon rope, comes in very handy. Theres usuallu plenty of bar things to lash stuff to.

And make sure you get a Yorkie bar to scoff, for added effect.

Pack the heavy stuff at the front.

Get plenty of old sheet / blankets.

put wardrobe / cupboard on empty and refill.

washing machines are heavy put on last, no point wrestling it to the front of the van. This personally it he exception to the heavy things at the font, because it's a single awkward heavy item rather than medium sized heavy things like tools that are easy to move around.

Cover white good and and scratch-able furniture with blankets.
Expect it to take longer than you think.

Used to pack a lot of marquee kit in vans, pack it nice and tight and you won't need straps. If it's a Luton you can fit a ton of stuff up there. Fill inside wardrobes once loaded. As its a hire truck watch how much you use the tail-lift as it may have been sat for a while, should have a battery saver cut-out, but don't bet on it.

You shouldn't be filling it to the extent that you have to ratchet strap the doors shut or shove them with a tele-handler, though both methods do work 😉

Can you drive a 7.5T on a normal licence? I thougt it was a 3.5T limit?

Personally I would get someone in to do it, it takes much longer and is harder than you think. As well as full english mates will also want lunch and dinner. Are there time restraints - if you don't get keys to new place until say 2pm you'll be doing it in the dark - not fun.

We paid £600inc for 3/4 bed house move 30 miles, dunno who quoted £1500 but that is way over the odds unless you live somewhere inaccessable.

Can you drive a 7.5T on a normal licence?

Depends when you got your licence, IIRC. I've had mine since 1994, and have been able to hire 7.5 tonners.

It's a PITA moving yourself, but the cost of a truck (say no more than £100-odd a day) is way cheaper than a £1k+ pantechnicon.

What singletrackmind just said seems to be about on the money - I moved house 2 Friday's ago & did pretty much what he's described.
>Heavy, squarish stuff in first,
>boxes get flippin' heavy & break when loaded just with books,
>you will end up with loads of odds & ends you can't decide what to do with.

We managed to take the contents of our shed round to a friends and leave it in their garage which lessened the stress of having to move that on the actual day. There were loads of boxes I also wanted to move there, but the other half didn't want to over-load them!

If you can pick the van up the evening before you move & start loading it that will help.
We were told to keep the engine running while using the tail lift, but there was no way we were gonna do that as it would have meant keeping the engine running while the van was unattended or having to constantly start & stop the engine & kill the battery that way instead. So, we did as suggested above & lowered the tail lift half way to use it as a step, only using it for the really heavy stuff like washing machine.

Oh, and the filler cap is probably in the door recess under a flap (well it was in the VW we had).

Be carefull loading all heavy white goods at front bulkhead.
I did
Got pulled by VOSA and escorted to weigh station 😯
2ton overweight overall and 1/2ton overweight on front axle in a huge Vito van borrowed from a mate at local Merc dealer all stickered/logoed up:oops:
Got a restraining order and allowed to complete journey which was only a couple of miles from weigh station 😀

Get caught again and you will receive penalties

Defrost the fridge and freezer, or they will do it forthemselves in the van and make a lot of mess.

Take washing machine outside, plug into extension cable, and put drain hose on floor along with fill hoses , switch washing machine to spin and watch as all the water runs out,or just remove the fluff filter.

Remember to put the kettle/cups/milk/coffee /teabags etc in the cab along with plenty of biscuits.

Kettle/biscuits/beer on last!

I was going to say the same as Trekster...beware overloading the front axle, especially if its a longer 7.5tonner. The rear will have a higher capacity. As a general guide, a 7.5t truck will have a payload of around 3.5t. A 3.5t luton will have a payload of 1t, if you hire one of these to move you will almost certainly go overweight, its extremely easy due to the amount of space! If you passed your test before '97 you can drive up to 7.5t. I've got my LGV license so when I move I'll be hiring the biggest truck I can find...I've only made use of it once since passing 🙂

P.S Don't load too much the night before, most home policies won't cover goods during a house move and I've heard of someone packing their life's possessions, only for the van to get nicked overnight 🙁 So don't leave it unattended whilst you pop to Mcdonalds mid-move!

Marquee firm gave plenty of over-load experience. Make it look tidy (even distribution) and you won't attract attention. Also, I believe you're not obliged to visit a weigh bridge if it is more than 9? miles out your way - failing that, our timber wagon drivers just go early before they open.

Will a van take more weight? Yes, as long as its not a Sprinter. Put our transit on a weighbridge when sending stuff to the Scilly Isles, made an impressive 6 ton.

Ourmanin'tnorth - you are absolutely right. I have the require C1 on my licence, because I passed in 1985. Any time before 1997 means you should have C1.

I have hired them before during house moves, but not from 'ahem' reputable people.

you'd be surprised how little you can get on a 7.5 tonne truck. As you are only going 8 miles i wouldn't worry too much though. If you are worried then hire one without a tail lift, they substantially lower the capacity, that's why removals companies use wagons with a low rear floor and a ramp (plus tail lifts are slow). I'm not sure you'll get near weight limit with household stuff though unless you own lots of really heavy stuff or stack it all near the front. as it's only 8 miles i'd go for repeated runs with less stuff in, you won't need to pack it as well then either

Just don't put a piano in last and then when you arrive at your new home to find the piano has rolled back into the roller shutter and you then can't open the back... 😳