unloading/moving a 60 gal compressor

[toddmorr]

i'm taking delivery of a 60 gallon upright compressor in a week or so, Curtis CT5. But there's a chance the boxtruck driver won't be willing to drop it at the top of my driveway, even with a little $ persuasion. What if I had him drop it onto a furniture dolly upright and I towed the dolly up the driveway. Is that realistic? Assuming of course I strapped it down good.

Another option....take off the pump and/or motor and use a handtruck to muscle it up the driveway?
driveway is probably 50-70 yards long and 15 degrees steep I'd estimate.

 

[MovingAlong]

Wait a minute, that wasn't helpful..

Your center of gravity is simply way to high to move it safely across a garage floor on a furniture dolly, much less up that drive.

Cancel the delivery guy and find a proper mover who will place it in the garage exactly where you want it. Worth every penny...

 

[GRN96WS6]

Truck? Put it in your bed drive it up and get a few buds to help unload. Dolly would not work at all, not on that driveway it would be hell to keep it straight.

 

[toddmorr]

Be sure to post the video to YouTube, I love watching these kinds of spectacular fails...

i can assure you there's not going to be a fail. I'm pretty risk averse in things like this.

 

[MovingAlong]

i can assure you there's not going to be a fail. I'm pretty risk averse in things like this.

Edited my original post, apologies for it not being very helpful.

 

[The Cobbler]

is it on a pallet?
the motor & pump make it somewhat top heavy ,unless you can move it laying down I would remove them if you have any distance to go

 

[toddmorr]

Truck? Put it in your bed drive it up and get a few buds to help unload. Dolly would not work at all, not on that driveway it would be hell to keep it straight.

yeah that's what i worried about, too steep to keep it from tipping over. i don't have a truck but could certainly rent a home depot truck, but then i gotta figure out how to get it off the truck.

 

[toddmorr]

is it on a pallet?
the motor & pump make it somewhat top heavy ,unless you can move it laying down I would remove them if you have any distance to go

yes, it comes on a typical 40 x 48 wood pallet
yeah taking off the motor and pump probably the way to go. A hassle but might not have a choice. I should be able to muscle a handtruck with just a tank up the driveway, not easy but should be doable

 

[The Cobbler]

can you borrow or rent a pallet jack?

 

[mitusa]

If you don't mind laying it down, get a dolly that has the extra two wheels.
Lay it down and pull it up the drive.
Have a neighbor help if needed.

 

[Renegade1LI]

Why not drain the oil then you could lay it down on a trailer or dollys.

 

[toddmorr]

can you borrow or rent a pallet jack?

yes, would think so but i'm not sure they go as high as a truck bed. Guess I could rent a small trailer, those tend to have a bed low to ground

 

[Renegade1LI]

If it's new it might not have oil in it

 

[Renegade1LI]

Make up a gantry with some 2x for laying it down & lifting it back up.

 

[mikedodge]

It's no problem to use a 2 wheel dolly to move one around in a shop, no way I'd want to pull it that far up a driveway.

If the delivery guy wont go to the top your safest bet would be like your thought- take the pump and motor off and lay the tank down on a furniture dolly.

If you have a truck or SUV you could drain the oil and lay it down in the back of that. That's how I got mine home. Took 2 people to get it in and tilt it back up again.

 

[finn]

I moved mine in my 2wd Ranger instead of the full sized trick simply because it was lower. A trailer would be better yet.

Another 80 gal compressor was on a pallet so we used the skid steer with forks. I think we used the forks then, too.

i hope you paid for lift gate service. Because without a dock or lift gate, it’s unlikely it will be dropped at your house / drive.

This is a case where it might be best to rent a trailer and take delivery at the terminal. You can unload the trailer with an engine crane. If you don’t heave one, you can rent one.

 

[JuncleJohn]

Small tractor with a front end loader would ideal. Piece of cake for my Kubota. Do you know anyone with a small tractor?

John

 

[carlaisle]

Forklift, skid steer, or tractor with loader would be easy.

Failing that, rent a drop deck trailer and have the delivery driver set it on there. Strap it down and take it to where it needs to land.

Failing that, removing the compressor head and motor eliminates the top heavy problem. Then you can easily move each component individually.

Don't underestimate how difficult that extra weight 5' off the ground is to control.

 

[PWC Repair]

I bolted a piece of 2x wood onto the bottom feet after I took mine off the little pallet. Then just strapped it onto an appliance dolley and wheeled it around.

 

[Glemon]

This problem was solved long ago, skids, rope, neighbors, offer them drinks

 

[nadogail]

yeah that's what i worried about, too steep to keep it from tipping over. i don't have a truck but could certainly rent a home depot truck, but then i gotta figure out how to get it off the truck.

I have used the pickup i owed at the time as a self propelled wheelbarrow.

 

[Mike65]

When I bought a 60 gal vertical air compressor, I had the store I bought it at load it in the bed of my Ranger with the base towards the tailgate. This way I backed the pickup up into the garage & it was easier to unload it that way & I just had to muscle it to the spot I wanted to be in.

 

[pcmeiners]

Truck? Put it in your bed drive it up and get a few buds to help unload

This thing weighs, have a Curtis but horizontal, close to 540 pounds this vertical unit is dangerously heavy. As mentioned if you can not get a truck lift delivery to your garage cancel it. Even if you disassemble it the compressor and tank will required 2 people just to lift and place on a dolly no less up that driveway. Pump is roughly 150 lbs, tank 300lbs.

 

[matt_i]

I don't think the box truck can make the curve without damaging your landscaping or sending a tire off the driveway which is probably going to sink in. I had a driveway like that once and did about the same with a 24' moving box truck. I eventually got it to the top but not without significant ruts and I got the fuel tank about 1" from severely denting it as the truck sank into the soft dirt outside the concrete.

A refrigerator 2 wheeled truck, just used by itself, is possible but whoever is doing the moving is going to get tired out and that's going to be a problem. A group of people could do the job with some wedges to chock the wheels at various points to take rest breaks. But its going to be a workout for all involved.

If you do decide to lay it down for any reason you are going to need a very strong person doing most of the work. Multiple people can help but the problem is they can't get close enough to it to all share the load. The motor + compressor head makes it very top heavy and that means the 2 wheels are not carrying that part of the load.

The way I would approach this using my own equipment and working alone, is to use the 2 wheel appliance truck to lay it down in a pickup truck bed to then ascend the hill. I would find a 1" ratchet strap and fish it down between the box and the cab and hook it solidly to the truck frame. Then take the other end and adjust the length to use the hook to "catch" one of the looped tubular handles of the appliance truck as the handles lean against the lowered tailgate at the balance-point. Then with it hooked and balanced in this position, go around and lift up the axle until everything is horizontal and slide it into the truck bed. This is the easiest part, as the base of the compressor is relatively lightweight, and the heavy motor and compressor assemblies are being supported by the tailgate. Much better when there is a plastic bedliner but if not you can use a mover's blanket or piece of cardboard to reduce friction. Use same length of the strap and technique to unload it. The first time out, its good to have a couple of helpers to help brace and balance the appliance truck and hook up the ratchet strap so you don't make a mistake and drop it. If you have a truck that's lifted or giant tires this won't work. You want an old school pickup truck (think 70s, 80s, 90s) designed for actual work where people had to constantly load things in and out of it and thus valued the lowest bed-height possible.

Ideally the compressor oil wouldn't be filled because its likely to start running out in the horizontal position.

Its possible a person could use a pallet jack to "tow" the pallet uphill at a creep speed to avoid bouncing over the pavers. Plenty of extra ratchet straps to make sure the compressor doesn't tip over and make sure the pallet doesn't slide back and start digging into the roller wheels. I'd use an independent safety chain just in case something broke.

Absolute luxury: rent a forklift and use it to drive the shipping pallet uphill. Use overhead rigging (usually under the motor and compressor bracket) to lift it off the pallet and place in final position.

 

[Higgins]

This thing weighs, have a Curtis but horizontal, close to 540 pounds this vertical unit is dangerously heavy. As mentioned if you can not get a truck lift delivery to your garage cancel it. Even if you disassemble it the compressor and tank will required 2 people just to lift and place on a dolly no less up that driveway. Pump is roughly 150 lbs, tank 300lbs.

Ditto ! Dont do it!
As it will get away from you!
Lost mine twice when the moving company tried moving it with a large movers dolly! Got away from the three movers. the good news was the 2nd occurance was it fell onto grass!
Still works, bus has some funny sounds !!

 

[CraigStu]

At one point I picked up a heavy something at the truck depot. They guys there obviously had the equipment and they happened to be very helpful. I would rent a trailer and a truck if needed from Uhaul. Having it on a trailer only maybe 18" off the ground makes the unloading at your home a lot safer. A come-a-long and an eyebolt in the ceiling will get it off the trailer.

 

[Hohn]

The vertical-on-pallet orientation only works as long as the ground is flat. So the fundamental assumption is not valid anymore.

A forklift is what you need. Hire a guy to move it on a small forklift.

A pallet jack won't offset the tilt of your drive the way most forklifts can tilt the forks.

Moving a vertical compressor is dangerous. We did it with two men and a (literally strapping) young boy and a combination of appliance dolly and small 2x4 HF dolly on casters.

 

[Hohn]

i'm taking delivery of a 60 gallon upright compressor in a week or so, Curtis CT5. But there's a chance the boxtruck driver won't be willing to drop it at the top of my driveway, even with a little $ persuasion. What if I had him drop it onto a furniture dolly upright and I towed the dolly up the driveway. Is that realistic? Assuming of course I strapped it down good.

Another option....take off the pump and/or motor and use a handtruck to muscle it up the driveway?
driveway is probably 50-70 yards long and 15 degrees steep I'd estimate.

IT's a beautiful driveway, but a logistical problem. I just realized the driveway is UP the hill, not down (yes, a bit slow). That suggests to me that a forklift backing up your drive is the best option.

Short of that, you have no good options. If I was forced to think how I'd do it by myself, I'd probably start thinking along the lines of recovery gear--- ****** blocks, ropes, etc, and only if I could get the compressor level enough.

You might be able to fabricate a leveling platform with some all-thread and 2x4 to offset the driveway incline. Drop the pallet on your platform and then winch or otherwise yank it all the way up the hill, stopping to reset the anchor points.

You might wish to assume you'll need to lay the compressor on its side for transfer up the hill, then separately solve the problem of making it vertical again with a cherry picker or similar aid.

 

[aka Larry]

HD loaded my 60 gallon compressor in the back of a full sized pickup via a forklift. That should have been my clue that when I got it home w/o a forklift it might be a problem. Myself and two buddies lifted the pallet off the truck and somehow made it to the driveway with it, but it was VERY close to tipping over. Once we got it off the pallet, I was able to 'walk' it into place inside the garage where I wanted it.

When I relocated it to my detached shop, I used a hand truck and it was no problem moving it into place by myself.

 

[Glemon]

At 540 pounds you can't lift it, but two decent sized guys could reasonably handle it. Two guys should be able to tip it up/down. As mentioned one guy can "walk" something like this if it is close to where it needs to be. I am just a guy who has worked on a lot of stuff as an amateur my whole life, no heavy equipment unless I rent it too cheap to rent it, so yeah, a forklift would make life easy, but you can do it without.

tip it vertical with a buddy or two, put it it on the pallet that way, put wheel dollies under the pallet, tie it to a car or lawn tractor or whatever, pull it up, or tip it onto a small trailer, same.

 

[Codyboy]

yes, it comes on a typical 40 x 48 wood pallet
yeah taking off the motor and pump probably the way to go. A hassle but might not have a choice. I should be able to muscle a handtruck with just a tank up the driveway, not easy but should be doable

Obtain a 40x48 pallet, two 1/2" steel rods, four dolly wheels.
Make your own dolly to have ready and have the truck load it on to your dolly and screw or bolt it's dolly to your dolly.
Attach rope or strap and drag it up with the car or truck whatever you have, even a riding mower will work.
Turning might be an issue but 2 of the wheels could be casters.

That's a lot of air compressor for a home shop.

 

[finn]

At 540 pounds you can't lift it, but two decent sized guys could reasonably handle it. Two guys should be able to tip it up/down. As mentioned one guy can "walk" something like this if it is close to where it needs to be. I am just a guy who has worked on a lot of stuff as an amateur my whole life, no heavy equipment unless I rent it too cheap to rent it, so yeah, a forklift would make life easy, but you can do it without.

tip it vertical with a buddy or two, put it it on the pallet that way, put wheel dollies under the pallet, tie it to a car or lawn tractor or whatever, pull it up, or tip it onto a small trailer, same.

You have to take age into account, and not just for physical strength reasons. There’s balance, too.

I’m at the point where my friends and associates are rapidly aging out of this type of physical task, and my kids live 500 miles away.

Sometimes it‘s important to know one’s limitations, and that driveway looks pretty steep.

It probably wouldn’t hurt to contact someone like Two Men and a Truck, or some like service. A couple of college age summer help lumpers could have that beast in your garage in thirty minutes. I bet it wouldn’t cost all that much, either.

One reason to live in a college town, and have a house with easy access, I suppose.