How to Move a Refrigerator Safely and Without Damaging Anything (Including Yourself)

Let’s beryllium real. Moving a refrigerator is 1 of those tasks that sounds elemental until you’re staring down a 300-pound appliance with nary hint wherever to start. It’s bulky, it’s heavy, and if you messiness it up, you mightiness extremity up with a busted appliance, busted house, oregon busted back. 

Fortunately, we spoke with 5 moving pros who’ve wrangled much fridges than astir of america person opened. So if you’re readying to determination a fridge from your home successful Salt Lake City, UT, to your adjacent house successful San Antonio, TX, oregon conscionable crossed the kitchen, work this first. 

Don’t conscionable yank it—prep it

Before you adjacent deliberation astir budging that fridge an inch, it needs to beryllium decently prepped. This isn’t a grab-it-and-go operation.

“Remove nutrient and escaped shelves. Clean the interior. Unplug and unafraid the powerfulness cord. Disconnect and drain the h2o enactment if applicable,” says Landon Franchow of Miracle Movers. Basically, dainty your fridge similar it’s going connected abrogation and you’re the liable roommate making definite everything’s cleanable and unopen off..

And speaking of unplugging, bash it early. Like, the nighttime before.

“At slightest 24 hours earlier moving to let defrosting and somesthesia stabilization,” Landon adds. That gives the fridge clip to defrost if there’s immoderate frost buildup, which is important unless you privation to make an impromptu h2o diagnostic successful the moving truck. “It takes 4 to 24 hours. Plan to usage towels to sorb immoderate h2o runoff.”

Wrapping and strapping, not conscionable for gifts

Once your fridge is prepped, it’s clip to cocoon it similar the fragile beast it is.

“Wrap the fridge with a moving broad and agelong wrapper to debar exterior damage,” says Robert Ball of Uinta Moving Company. “Place the fridge upright against the partition [of the moving truck] and connect a ratchet strap beneath the fridge doorway handles. When securing the strap, guarantee the strap is not putting immoderate accent connected immoderate fragile components.”

Yes, upright. Always upright.

“The fridge ever needs to beryllium placed upright portion transporting,” says Robert. “Otherwise it tin origin harm to cardinal components internally, astir specifically the freezing and cooling units.”

Cost Check: What if you wage idiosyncratic to bash this?

If moving your fridge sounds much stressful than your past radical chat meltdown, you mightiness see hiring pros.

“We bash not person immoderate further complaint for moving fridges if it is portion of a [larger] move,” says Robert. “If it’s conscionable the fridge being moved alone, it would apt beryllium betwixt $200–$400.”

Honestly, that’s a tiny terms to wage to support your spine intact.

Ready to plug it in? Not truthful fast

You yet made it to your caller place. Your fridge survived. You’re hungry. Time to plug it in, right? Not necessarily.

“If your refrigerator was transported successful a vertical position, it is harmless to plug it successful astatine your destination without delay,” says Kevin of Trinity Movers. “However, if it was laid connected its broadside oregon transported horizontally, it is recommended to hold astatine slightest 24 hours to let the lipid and refrigerant to settle.”

No 1 wants a fried compressor due to the fact that you were excessively anxious to chill a soda.

Did thing spell wrong? Here’s however to tell

Even with each the champion prep, sometimes things get bumpy. Keep an oculus (and ear) out.

“Inspect your refrigerator thoroughly for immoderate disposable dings, dents, oregon damage,” says Kevin. “Ensure that the doors are decently aligned and functioning correctly. Pay attraction to immoderate antithetic noises… and cheque for immoderate missing screws, bolts, oregon different hardware.”

If thing seems off, spot your instincts. Or amended yet, telephone successful the pros.

Red flags erstwhile hiring movers

Not each movers are created equal, particularly erstwhile it comes to appliances.

Kevin warns, “Avoid movers that don’t connection a afloat worth extortion plan… marque definite to get it successful writing… [and] debar movers who lone connection basal security coverage, which typically costs $0.60 per lb per article,” which is not astir capable if your fridge ends up busted. 

Also, if your fridge has a h2o line, “Ensure that the movers show the h2o is decently connected and turned on. Inspect the country for immoderate signs of leaks,” Kevin adds.

Rookie mistakes to avoid

Joe from Rocky Movers sees the aforesaid goofs implicit and implicit again:

“One of the biggest mistakes is not decently securing the fridge earlier moving it. Many radical hide to bare and defrost it up of time, which tin pb to leaks and damage. Others determination it connected its broadside for excessively long, which tin origin compressor issues. Skipping due padding and not securing it successful the moving motortruck tin besides pb to dents and scratches.”

In a nutshell: prep it, pad it, strap it, and basal it up straight.

Pro tips for keeping it safe

“To support your fridge safe, commencement by emptying and defrosting it astatine slightest 24 hours earlier the move,” Joe adds. “Secure each shelves and doors with portion oregon straps, and ever transport it successful an upright presumption whenever possible. Use a dolly with straps for support, and marque definite to pad it good to forestall dents. In the moving truck, unafraid it against a partition to forestall shifting.”

And if catastrophe strikes, similar your fridge tipping over?

“Don’t panic,” says Joe. “First, acceptable it upright and fto it beryllium unplugged for astatine slightest 24 hours. This allows the lipid successful the compressor to settee backmost properly. Before plugging it in, cheque for disposable harm oregon leaks. If you perceive antithetic noises oregon if it doesn’t chill properly, telephone a nonrecreational to inspect it.”

Bonus: Here’s however you don’t trash your floors

Your fridge whitethorn past the move, but volition your floors?

“Fridges and different appliances should ever beryllium decently wrapped and secured anterior to moving,” says Vlad of SpyderMoving. “Use premium level mats for doors, rails and grip covers extortion is ever a plus… and should beryllium requested.”

And erstwhile it’s connected the dolly? Vlad recommends utilizing “Strappings and tie-downs erstwhile transporting appliances connected moving instrumentality similar a dolly” to assistance debar dents and dings to some your appliance and your walls.

Moving a refrigerator doesn’t person to suck

With a small prep, the close tools, and immoderate sage proposal from seasoned movers, you tin conquer fridge relocation similar a pro, and debar a travel to urgent attraction oregon an exigency telephone to an appliance repair tech..

As agelong arsenic you support it upright, strap it down, and springiness it clip to decompress (literally), your fridge volition support its cool, and truthful volition you.

The station How to Move a Refrigerator Safely and Without Damaging Anything (Including Yourself) appeared archetypal connected Redfin | Real Estate Tips for Home Buying, Selling & More.