Moving Out of the Ordinary Goods

Though our focus is mostly on residential moves, we occasionally get asked to handle goods that are a bit outside the normal list of bookcases, beds and TVs. We relish opportunities like this because its always neat doing something different and we love to put our skills to use in unusual ways.

Photograph is our own.

We once were asked by a regular customer of ours to move the above stone statues. Each statue was so heavy (approximately 400 lbs) the movers had to use dollies and four wheelers to get them to the truck.

We also once moved a megalethoscope. Its a bit like a very large viewfiender you might have had as a kid. Photographs are inserted and, with the help of a large lens and a light source, the illusion of perspective and depth is created.

One of our favorite jobs ever was moving Peter L. Stern & Co., Inc. They are antiquarian booksellers with some truly amazing stuff. We moved there shop from one address in Boston to another. We also help them with the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair every fall.

Another regular customer of ours had us go down to Rhode Island to get a fire escape for him to put on his new house. It was heavy and bit awkward but it fit in our 26' truck!

We've moved a lot of pianos, from spinets to uprights to grands and even some organs, but we got a do a fairly rare piano one time. It was a Mason and Hamilin Butterfly grand piano. Instead of the cover hinging on one side it hinges in the middle and opens like a butterfly.

This is actually a Wurlitzer, not a Mason and Hamilin. Image courtesy of pianoworld.com

A neighbor of ours in Fresh Pond, E Ink, creates the displays for eReaders like the Kindle and the Nook, among other technology. Another neighbor right around the corner, NK Labs, creates the machines that make the screens for E Ink. We've had the pleasure of transporting those machines for NK Labs multiple times. Not only are the machines themselves interesting, but we get to crate them, which is always a unique challenge.

The Bedford Whaling Museum was getting some large display cases from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and were the lucky ones able to pick up the cases and deliver them to New Bedford. Those cases were quite large and heavy, but what a treat! The staff at both museums were very kind and helpful and it was a joy to assist both of them.

If you have a pieces or pieces that falls outside the "normal" spectrum give us a call. We've handled a vast variety of goods. If we haven't moved your exact item before chances are we've moved something like it! Give us a ring at 617.549.9880 or e-mail us at help@intelligentlabor.com to get a quote. We look forward to hearing from you!

Website Upgrade!

We've just completed a major overhaul to our company website. We're really proud of how it turned out. Here are just some of the changes:

- More information about moving van permits and how they work
- An expanded link section with links to businesses we work with and organizations we belong to
- Information about how and what we recycle
- A section about how we participate in our community
- An expanded section on our rates, including rush rates, extra charges, insurance, and disposal

Go take a look and tell us what you think! We'd love to hear from you about ease of use, comprehensiveness of information, etc. We think we've now got best site for a moving company in the Boston area!

Piano Moving Seminar

The other day we held a piano moving seminar for our guys at the warehouse. One of our movers has spent many years moving pianos at a previous job so we had him show our other movers how to do everything properly. A lot of our guys have piano moving experience already, but it never hurts to have an expert go over the finer points for clarification.

There's a lot more that goes into a moving a piano than with most other goods. First, they're often very expensive. They also have a lot of delicate parts and they're heavy. There's even special equipment, skid boards, that we use just for pianos (though they do sometimes get used for other heavy weight items).

Check out all the pictures from the seminar. I think everyone learned a lot!

Legs have been removed.

A baby grand properly wrapped and strapped to a skid.

Practicing moving the pianos on dollies.

Laying the piano onto a skid.

Piano Technicians Guild

image courtesy of www.ptg.org

We are now a proud member of the Piano Technicians Guild. They are a nationwide organization that serves as a source of piano service expertise. If you need a piano tuned, a piano teacher or a piano restored, among other things, they are the group to check out. PTG is really one stop shopping for all things piano related. There are chapters all over the country, including the Boston chapter we joined, so you can check out the local websites as well.

We're really proud to be a part of PTG and we look forward to working with them.

Moving and disposing of pianos

picture courtesy of www.uprightpiano.org

One of the things we speacialize in is moving and disposing of pianos. Its an interesting time in regards to pianos. Right now a lot of people are trying to get rid of pianos because they are no longer a source of entertainment in the home like they used to be (flat screens and Xboxes now share that honor). So, pianos can often be found for free or cheap or people are just looking to dispose of them so they can free up some space in their homes. We get an equal amount of calls to just haul away a piano and get rid of it as we do from people who have bought a cheap piano or received one for free.

We have a questionnaire for pianos just like we do for residential or office moves. We like to know what kind of piano you have (meaning both upright or grand and the brand if you know it) in particular. The information we get from you about the move helps us give you an estimate. Most of the time we flat rate piano jobs, though there are some occassions where we use our typical hourly rate, particularly if the piano is included as part of a larger move.

Once we get to where the piano is we use dollies and special equipment called skid boards, depending on the situation. Skid boards look like toboggans and they're often made of wood. In fact, our new custom made wooden skid boards are being picked up tomorrow. In either case, the piano ends up on its side and rolled/slid to where its supposed to be. The reason dollies and skid boards are used is because the casters on most pianos are not up to the job of actually rolling the piano to a new spot. The casters also easily damage floors, especially hardwood floors. Using the dollies and skid boards also makes moving the pianos easier and requires fewer workers, which saves you money.

If you'd like us to dispose of the piano there is also a disposal fee on top of the flat or hourly rate. A few times we've had customers suggest they'd do the demolition of the piano themselves, which we strongly suggest you leave to us. There are a lot of parts to a piano and the strings in particular must be dealt with very carefully so as not to cause injury.

In some cases a piano will not fit through a doorway or down stairs. This happens often in older homes that have been renovated. If the piano won't fit there are a couple of options. The piano can be hoisted (which is contingent upon many things, including the piano, the weather and the building, among other things) or it can be craned. Both options are expensive. Hoisting a piano is time consuming, dangerous and requires a lot of man power. Craning is the safer option, but it does require we hire a crane operator and it is expensive. Even with these two options it might not work because the windows might not be removable or the opening won't be large enough even if the windows can be removed from their casings. If this situation comes up its best to go over all the options with our piano experts to come up with the best solution.

If you have any questions about moving or disposing of pianos just give us a call or send us an e-mail. You can also check out our website for more information.