Treadmills, bikes and home gym equipment

When David prepares a quote for a larger home, one of the questions he asks is whether there are special items such as a piano, a safe, large artwork, or gym equipment. A treadmill or a rack of weights can change how long a move takes far more than its size suggests, and it can change how many people are needed to carry it. Garage gyms and spare-room gyms have become common across the South Bay and the Peninsula, and they move with us all the time.

Treadmills are wrapped and moved as part of the service, the same way we handle glass tabletops: blankets around the frame, the console protected, and the deck carried by enough hands. Many folding treadmills lock in the upright position, which makes them easier to carry. Exercise bikes and rowers are lighter but awkward, with pedals and handles that catch on door frames; they are wrapped and carried upright. If your machine has a large touch screen, mention it, because a screen is treated as a fragile item and may need its own box.

Free weights are dense and small, which is exactly what makes them hard on a truck. Loose plates and dumbbells should be packed in small, sturdy boxes, not too many per box, or stacked and blanket-wrapped by the crew; they should never be packed in plastic bags. Power racks, cable machines and benches that bolt together are taken apart and reassembled like other furniture when the design allows it. Anything that cannot be broken down and weighs around 300 pounds or more needs a photo first so David can confirm we can move it and whether to add a mover.

There is no gym-equipment fee. Heavy pieces add time, and time is billed at the hourly rate: $175 per hour for 3 movers or $235 per hour for 4, the same any day, with a 3-hour minimum and 15-minute increments after that. A home with a full garage gym may be assigned a 4-person crew so the heavy pieces go quickly and safely; David sets the crew size from what you tell him. Stairs to a basement or upstairs gym add time, not a surcharge.

• Unplug machines and let them cool; fold treadmills if the model allows.
• Remove loose accessories: water bottles, phone holders, resistance bands.
• Pack small dumbbells and plates in small boxes.
• Keep the manuals and any special tools for your machine taped to it.
• Clear a path from the gym to the door, especially in a crowded garage.

Very large commercial machines, equipment bolted into concrete, and items that would need specialized rigging or a flatbed are outside what a moving crew does. We once declined a pizza oven of about one metric ton for that reason and recommended a heavy-item specialist; we would give you the same straight answer about a commercial-grade machine. See heavy items for how we decide.