July 13, 2022
Are you planning on relocating from one place to another and transporting all the things that matter to you? You’ve prepared a moving-out list and now you are left wondering how to move a grandfather clock that has been in your family for decades.
It is crucial to pack it with the utmost care, using different materials. You don’t want to deal with scratched or dent-in parts.
If you are not up to doing it yourself, you can always hire a company that has the right equipment and a professional, highly trained crew to help you relocate this precious possession.
First Step – Gather Tools and Supplies
When relocating your home, avoiding mistakes when packing is crucial. Starting early and collecting tools will help you avoid rushing things and accidentally breaking something.
Having to relocate family heirloom can be stressful on its own, especially when dealing with a grandfather clock. The first step is to gather all the necessary materials, like bubble wrap, paper, boxes, blankets, and a dolly. Don’t save up on supplies – proper packing is what keeps your belongings safe during the move.
Also, while gathering materials, one of the helpful tips would be to get a pair of gloves. It is not wise to touch the internal mechanisms with bare hands. Soft mittens will keep polished bars and glass parts safe from getting stained. If you want to clean removed parts, use a soft cloth.
Clocks should be safe when you are using tools
How to Move a Grandfather Clock – Disassemble It First
Moving with a big family means you get to take many different items with you. Some will be easier to box up but others, such as your precious clock, will take time and preparation.
You may think that your favorite time teller is a sturdy object. But if you take a careful look, you will see that it is made up of many parts that are quite fragile. This is one of the reasons why you should not just put it on a dolly and roll it away.
Disassembling all the movable parts, like weights and pendulum, is crucial if you want to protect the rest of the device.
Insides of clocks are movable, and there is a way to remove them
Remove the Weights
The first step in preparing your grandfather clock for the move is removing weights from inside of the wooden box. Remember this, because if you forget to remove the parts that could swing around during the transport, they can potentially shatter the glass that is surrounding them.
Take them down one by one, and then put them in bubble wrap or packing paper. While you are wrapping weights, write down their exact place in the mechanism. Having labels will make the reassembling process much easier and faster.
Crucial Step – Remove the Pendulum and Leave Chime Rods Inside
A key part of every grandfather clock is a pendulum, and it will be another piece that you will need to remove. Since it is a mobile part of the mechanism, it needs to come off. Grab gloves and slowly extract it by slightly moving it up. Do not force this. Now that you have the leader of the pendulum, you need to wrap it in paper and use enough material to prevent it from moving freely.
The chime rods might be long and tin and projecting downward inside the clock, but you should leave them inside. Use paper and pack them up in it. One of the more helpful tips is to put a few layers of paper, just to make sure that rods are not mobile.
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Protect the Pendulums and Weights After You Remove Them
Taking down pendulum and weights was a crucial step. Protecting your belongings from damage is another one. You would not want to have an heirloom that is scratched or dented when its reassembled.
Enfold every weight individually in bubble wrap or paper, and then secure them by putting them in a moving blanket. Having additional protection is never a bad thing, especially when it comes to irreplaceable family belongings.
Once you are happy with the way you protected your items, put them in correctly labeled boxes. Writing down what you packed will make the unpacking easier.
Protect the Body of the Clock
When you are done with all the movable parts of clocks, it is time to protect the body. In most cases, it is made out of wood and glass parts, which means it has to be wrapped and protected.
One of the helpful tips is to take the duct tape and make X sign on glass surfaces. Tape absorbs vibrations that occur during the move and keeps the fragile area protected. After that, take a moving blanket and carefully and tightly secure it around the wooden body.
To protect the clock’s glass parts, secure it with a blanket
Hire a Moving Company to Help You
It is simple to take care of your clock when you are not disassembling it. But when you do, things get a little bit tricky. Is relocating it by yourself more trouble than it is worth?
Lets put that down on a paper. Hiring movers to pack your home is less stressful since you don’t have to worry about every single thing. A reliable company with excellent moving services has a crew of people that will take good care of your prized possession and reduce the possibility of damage. And hiring packing services means you don’t have to worry about the correct usage of supplies.
If you are not up to relocating home by yourself, one of the tips would be to do your research on relocation companies and pick one to do it for you.
Make sure to read through reviews and check all the services they offer. You might want to hire them to move and pack your entire home, relocate your car, not only handle your heirloom. When you find the best company, pick up the phone and call them.
