Project GuidesMoving specialty items
What makes an item specialty, why it is priced separately, and what to ask a mover before they arrive with the wrong equipment.
By Elijah Canfield, Founder, Hire Best Pros · Updated August 27, 2026
Elijah Canfield is the founder of Hire Best Pros. He writes and edits the site's consumer guides, with a focus on how home service and moving projects are priced, scoped and compared.
Specialty items are priced separately because they need specific equipment, extra crew and sometimes disassembly by a technician. Pianos, safes, pool tables, large aquariums, antiques, artwork and exercise equipment all fall into this group. Declare them at the quote stage so the right crew and gear are scheduled.
Key points
- A specialty item discovered on moving day is a rescheduled or repriced job.
- Some items need a specialist rather than a mover, notably pool tables and large tanks.
- Photograph the condition of high value items before they are wrapped.
What counts as specialty
- Upright and grand pianos, organs and large instruments
- Gun safes and other heavy freestanding safes
- Slate pool tables, which require disassembly and re-leveling
- Aquariums, large mirrors, chandeliers, marble tops and fine art
- Treadmills, home gyms and oversized appliances
How to prepare
Measure the item and every doorway, turn and stairwell it must pass through. Remove doors and railings ahead of time if that is what makes the path work. For anything with fluid, fuel or living contents, plan the drain or transfer days in advance rather than on the morning.
Ask whether disassembly and reassembly are included or quoted separately, and whether a third party specialist will be subcontracted.
Protection and value
- Ask how the item will be crated, padded or strapped
- Confirm how valuation coverage applies to high value goods
- Declare items of extraordinary value in writing before the move
- Keep appraisals and receipts with you, not in a box on the truck
Have something unusual to move?
Describe your move