Tables come in many shapes and sizes and they are made of many different materials.
Wrapping and Moving Large Tables
If a table fits through every doorway in your move path and there is plenty of room for it on the truck, then its legs need not be removed. Remember when measuring for this, that most tables can be angled through doorways in order to fit the legs through if the opening is tight or if the table is large. Tables that will fit through doorways can just be padded on top and around each leg and moved as they are. Some tables only need their top padded such as the patio pedestal table shown below.
If the legs (or the pedestal) are easy to remove, you might want to take them off just to make the table more compact for loading on the truck. If the legs are difficult to disassemble and reassemble, though, try to move the table without detaching them.
Any table that won’t fit through a doorway, however, must have its legs removed before it is wrapped for moving. Be careful when using a drill to unscrew the legs so as not to wind the screws the wrong way and push them up through the table’s top! Also, take care not to lose the removed hardware parts because they may be difficult to replace.
When padding the table top, lay a big pad (or two smaller pads) on it, draping the excess padding over the sides of the furiture.
Then wrap tape over the pads and around and under the table (avoiding the legs) and back over the top again in one continuous stream.
Do this twice to secure the pads, as shown in the pictures below.
Then you can turn the table upside down without scratching its top to take its legs off. The pictures below show how to detach the legs:
When the legs have been removed be sure to reattach the hardware to each one of them as shown in the above picture.
Then wrap the legs up in a bundle together as shown in the pictures below.
Finish by fully padding the table top:
Even if it’s a round table, never roll it on the ground. Carry it or put it on a dolly! Rolling could cause damage to both the table and the floor.
When the table is loaded on the truck, if its legs are off, place a pad on the floor of the truck, stand the table on end and tie it off against the wall. It can also be put between two mattresses standing on its edge on a pad.
If the table top is not too heavy, it can also be placed on top of the load as shown in the picture below. If it’s braced well up there, it won’t slide around and get damaged while driving.
If the table still has its legs on, it can either be tied off on its side to the truck’s wall or it can just be stood up and boxes can be placed under it and on top of it. Be sure the table legs are sturdy and put more pads on the tabletop if you’re going to stack things on the furniture for truck transport. Do not put heavy items on top of the table and be careful not to gouge or scratch the table surface or edges.
Wrapping and Moving Small Tables
Small tables must be fully wrapped in moving blankets.
Such good padding allows the table to be set down anywhere and on any of its sides.
A properly wrapped small table can be easily carried on one shoulder and flipped it over to the other shoulder if the mover gets tired.
Carrying a table this way also allows the mover to see where he’s going at all times and to adjust the piece up or down when going through doorways or up/down stairs.
