DIYbanter - View Single Post - Can I haul a new water heater home on its side?

aemeijers

wrote:
On Aug 21, 3:30 pm, "SteveBell"
wrote:
When you're picking up your water heater, splurge on some tie-down
ratchet straps. Put the WH upright in your pickup, and strap it in
place. You just solved both problems at once, and you have new straps
for future use.

I've got plenty of tie-down straps.

What I don't have is overhead clearance to stand the water heater
upright anywhere in the pickup. It's about 5'6" tall in the box, and
I've only got 2' of clearance under the fiberglass topper. Even
raised, I've only got 3'6" of clearance at the back of the bed.

I just checked the box a little more closely. In one warning label, it
depicts a water heater sticking out of the trunk of a car, and says,
"Avoid hauling like this, but if you must haul it like this ensure
adequate padding for the box."

So, they imply that it's okay to lay it on its side if necessary.

I'm only going about 5 miles over smooth road, and I'll drive slowly
and carefully.

BTW, nowhere in any of this have I made the mistake of calling it a
"HOT water heater," so NYAH-NYAH!!!!

Good example of why I always thought those semi-permanent bed-lid
toppers just make a truck into a 2-door coupe with a huge trunk. Yeah,
you can take them off, but it is such a pain that people never do.

But as to how to haul the heater- it isn't so much that you need
padding, it is that you need to avoid kinking. Hauling cheap office file
cabinets and refrigerators presents a similar problem. (Yeah, I know
about the oil in fridges- you just have to let them sit a few days.) I'd
either use some planks, or a sheet of stiff plywood, or a handtruck, and
support the entire length of the item as it was leaned over into the
bed. (I seldom had a helper available.)

--
aem sends...