Need advice on transporting vacuums

[slash007]

I plan on transporting 7 vacs from what is a 6-7 hour drive and have been getting conflicting opinions on the best way. My two options are to rent a box truck or to rent a 6x12 open trailer with ramp from u haul. The sides on the trailer are about 2 feet high. Total weight of vacs is around 2500lbs. What are your thoughts on the safest and best way to pick these vacs up? Thanks.

 

[Stuart]

This is how I might do this. Back my truck to vacuum with the tailgate down. Lay vac in bed (have some help and blanket or protection in bed for vac.) and attach 3/8 - 1/2 " plywood square to the bottom of vac with bolts. Should be able to buy 2'x2' sheets of plywood at local lumber yard. Load all vacs into a trailer standing up, open or box, and with rope or ratchet straps to secure the load. With either trailer there needs to be sufficient tie-down areas to secure load. Card board or blankets under straps should work. (off the top of my head). Hope this helps.

 

[PaulLovesJamie]

Box truck sounds expensive to me, dont they charge by the mile plus get poor MPG?
2500 lbs /7 ~= 350 lbs per vac. Easily handled with a hand truck & ratchet strap, cheap to buy if you dont have one.
If it were me I'd simply strap them onto a hand truck and roll them up the ramp on a trailer, lay them all down and ratchet strap them.
Yes I'd use foam/blankets/cardboard for protection against scratches, pebble dings, etc.
If you lived near me you could borrow my hand truck & trailer.

No reason to haul them standing up that I can think of, is there?
No reason you need to protect them from the weather, is there? (That is the reason for a box truck IMO)

FYI I've built temporary "custom" racks for my trailer out of 2x4s when I needed to haul odd/assorted/numerous items long distances. (For example 4 kayaks + 6 bikes + coolers, fishing & camping gear for 10 days on a small trailer.)
Bolt the 2x4 rack to the deck, make sure you have good cross bracing. Use lots of ratchet straps for stability. Then when you're done you can take it apart & reuse the 2x4s for another project.

 

[Earl Weiss]

Vacs are very top heavy. If you can lay them down and transport them that way without damage I would do that. Depensds on domes. They are about 2 feet wide depending on model and less than 6 feet tall. You might be able to fit 3 rows of 2 one way or one row of 6. If domes exceed 2 feet you might be able to alternate them with one row of 6 so that the dome of one overlaps the base of the ones next to it.

 

[PaulLovesJamie]

Another question - I'd have to measure, but would 7 vacs fit in the back of a pickup truck? I bet they would with the tailgate down, you could buy one of those tailgate "truck bed extenders" (or whatever they are called).

 

[I.B. Washincars]

I picked up 4 combos some time back. I found a pallet that was about 4X6 and screwed a piece of plywood on top. I took a drill and a bunch of bolts with me. I put them up in the truck, one at a time, and bolted each to the skid. I used several straps to secure them, but I don't know how necessary they were. When I got back home with them I just reversed procedure. My truck has a lift gate which made it easier, but I would think that you could do it with a hand truck and ramps.

 

[cantbreak80]

Remove the domes

Wrap each vac with bubble wrap
Place vacs on trailer…in a bundle

Bubble wrap the domes
Stack the domes on the trailer

Wrap the entire bundle with stretch wrap
Secure the entire bundle to the trailer with ratchet straps

 

[slash007]

I would be picking up Jim Coleman combo vacs. 5 oval shaped (larger and heavier) and two of the round shape. Here is a link to the trailer I was going to rent:
http://www.uhaul.com/Reservations/EquipmentDetail.aspx?model=HO

I had planned on blankets and straps, but bolting them to wood for stability is a good idea. That would give them a more stable surface. I was really hoping to avoid the box truck because it is expensive/pay by mile/crappy gas mileage, so I will probably go the trailer route. I just had never hauled anything this heavy for a 6-7 hour trip and was worried about the safety and stability of the vacuums. Laying the vacs down would offer much more stability, but I'm not sure if they would fit. I will have to measure and see. If I do lay them down, I would probably have to make sure that there are alot of blankets under so that they don't get dinged or bent.