As emotional as moving and leaving memories behind sometimes is, the one part almost everyone dreads the most is actually moving the stuffs – both out of the old house to the new house, especially when there are stairs involved. Here are a few practical ways on how to move boxes up stairs without huffing and puffing your breath away.

How to Move Boxes up Stairs

Slides

These are made from flattened cardboard boxes. Just empty out a few, flatten and tape them together then make a slide that’s the length of the stair. For long stairs, you’ll need to position three people – one at the top who’ll be sliding the boxes, one at the middle who’ll be controlling the movement (so nothing misses its path and fall) and the last person at the bottom who’ll be organizing.

Totes & Backpacks

For small boxes, like book boxes which tend to be smaller, place them inside a backpack – lay them flat at the bottom to allow room for more. When lifting the backpack, slightly bend your knees so you don’t strain them by standing too upright. Backpacks that come with waist belts are even better – to keep the weight balanced. As small as these boxes tend to be, they can weigh a ton.

Dollies

Dollies are great for heavy duty lifting, especially when you want to move more than one box at a time. You can usually take up to 3 boxes at once, then strap them together with a bungee cord. Just pull the dolly while moving backwards one step at a time. Because of how narrow dollies are, you can usually use them to lift boxes up tight spots like trucks with stairs. If you’ll be renting a moving truck, you should be able to rent a dolly from them as well.

Straps

Like backpacks allow you load up boxes on your back. The straps usually have shoulder and chest support so that the weight of the boxes are distributed evenly across your body. Try not to carry boxes above your head level. That’s just a recipe for disaster and you could end up with aches in places you didn’t even know you had.

Moving heavy objects is serious work, most especially when stairs are involved. And if you don’t have an NFL team to help you move your stuff, you’ll be sorely tempted to abandon half of your belongings. Moving your stuffs with either of these tricks can save you in both cash and muscle pain. So the next time you’re wondering how to move boxes up stairs, use one of the above methods to help make your move easier.