The Framing Letters

Questions To Ask

A guide to the right questions before hiring someone to move or install heavy furniture. Walk through the decision step by step.

The Problem, Stated

Moving a heavy piece of furniture — a pool table, a slate countertop, a stone fireplace mantel, anything that weighs several hundred pounds or more — is not the same as hiring a moving company to relocate your household. It requires different expertise, different equipment, and a different set of questions. Many moving companies will decline the job. The ones who accept it are working with tight margins and high risk. They need you to be clear about what you are asking for, and you need to know whether they actually understand the work.

A professional who knows your furniture is always better than the cheapest quote you received from someone who has never seen it.

Before you sign anything, you should understand what can go wrong, what the real cost drivers are, and which questions separate a contractor who has done this work a hundred times from one who is guessing. This guide walks you through it.

What It Should Look Like When Done

A homeowner proudly showing off their newly moved pool table in its new location
After: Pool table installed level in the new space, with proper clearance on all sides for play.
Before the move: The table secured with protective coverings, ready for careful transport. Look for signs that the moving company assessed your floors, doorways, and the furniture itself before they arrived.

Step Through It

Start by describing the furniture and the job. Does the piece need to be moved within the same room, to another room, up or down stairs, through tight doorways, or out of the house entirely? Is the slate table already assembled or does it need to be disassembled for transport and reassembled at the destination? Many slate tables weigh 800 pounds or more when fully assembled — too much to move intact — but contractors do not always ask. If you do not tell them, they will arrive unprepared.

Ask about their experience with this specific type of furniture. A general moving company may have moved many pianos but never a slate table. A company that specializes in game room furniture will have done it dozens of times. This is not a job where experience with "heavy things" is enough. Ask for references from similar moves they have completed, and call at least one of them.

Get a binding, itemized written estimate after they have visited your home. It should list the disassembly, transport, reassembly, refelting or finishing if needed, and leveling. Ask what happens if the work takes longer than estimated — is it a per-hour rate above a certain threshold, or is the estimate a hard cap? What is included in their price and what costs extra? Do they carry insurance that covers damage to your floor, walls, and the furniture itself?

Additional resources

When to Call a Professional

A technician stretching new green cloth over a slate pool table bed
A slate pool table requires professional-grade tools for refelting. The felt must be stretched evenly and stapled precisely for the surface to play true. This is not a DIY job.

The Options Compared

Three kinds of professionals move heavy furniture: general moving companies, specialty moving companies that focus on pianos and billiard tables, and the contractors who originally installed the furniture. General movers work at high volume with thin margins. They take jobs they understand well and decline the rest. Specialty movers have done this exact job many times. They charge more but you are not paying for their learning curve. Original installers know the furniture intimately but may have moved on to other work. Any of these can be the right choice, depending on what you need.

For a simple move of an assembled table within the same level of your home, a general mover with moving-company insurance may be adequate. For disassembly, refelting, reassembly, or moving up or down stairs, insist on someone with specific experience with that type of furniture. Ask for references. One unexpected cost — a scratched floor or a torn felt — can cost hundreds more than the moving service itself. Insurance protects you both.