Pianos. Safes.
Things that worry other movers.
Specialist item handling in London starts from £80 — pianos, antiques, artwork and anything heavy or fragile. We wrap items in protective blankets, use the right lifting gear, and plan the route through tight staircases and doorways in advance. You get a fixed quote in 30 minutes, free cancellation up to 48 hours.
Or call 07432 208003 · Mon–Sat 7am–8pm · Sun 8am–6pm
The pieces that need more than a strong back
Some things cannot go in a box and be carried like everything else — a piano, a safe, a marble tabletop, a large gilt mirror, or a piece of art that is worth more than the van. These need the right equipment, the right hands, and a plan made before anyone lifts.
We move specialist items as their own job, with a crew briefed on that specific piece rather than treating it as one more thing on a house move. The awkward, heavy and fragile is exactly where care shows.
Pianos — uprights and grands
A piano is heavy, unbalanced, and unforgiving of a knock. Uprights are covered, strapped and moved on a piano trolley; grands are usually taken off their legs, boxed or wrapped, and carried on a piano board by a crew that knows how the weight shifts.
The staircase and the doorway are measured first, and the route planned around the turn a piano cannot make. Where a London terrace stair simply will not take it, we plan the alternative — including, on occasion, a window and a hoist.
A grand comes off its legs, an upright rides a piano trolley, and the staircase is measured before anyone lifts. Never improvised.
Ace UK Removals
Safes, marble, art and antiques
A safe concentrates a great deal of weight into a small footprint, which is its own hazard on a wooden floor or a shared staircase; we move them on the right equipment with the floors protected. Marble and stone are carried on edge, never flat, to stop them cracking under their own weight.
Art, antiques and mirrors are wrapped to their shape — corner protection, a fitted box or crate where needed — and handled by people who treat the frame as carefully as the canvas.
Access, stairs and the awkward turn
With specialist items the access is the whole job. We survey the route in advance — the width of the door, the turn on the landing, the lift dimensions, the parking outside — and bring the equipment the specific piece and the specific building call for.
That planning is why a grand piano can leave a second-floor Kensington flat without a mark on the piece or the plaster. Nothing about it is improvised on the day.
QUOTED
per piece and access
Pianos & safes
moved on specialist kit
In-transit cover
throughout the move
Cover and care
Tell us about a high-value or awkward piece at booking rather than on the morning. It changes the crew size, the materials and the loading order, and where something needs specialist handling or crating we say so up front.
Special-item moves are always quoted as a range once we know the piece, the access and the distance — a piano out of a walk-up is a different job from a mirror on the ground floor, and the price reflects that.
See our house removals service
Why movers choose Ace
The things that make a move go right.
Reliable Service
A planned move with a crew that turns up when we say, briefed on your access before the day.
On Time, Every Time
Routes checked for traffic and charging zones, with buffer built in so a 9am start stays a 9am start.
Safe & Secure Handling
Wrapped, blanketed and carried properly, with floors and doorways protected on the route.
Home Moves Done Right
Furniture dismantled and rebuilt, boxes landed in the right rooms, the old place left clear.
Typical prices
What it usually comes to.
| Item | How we handle it |
|---|---|
| Upright piano | Route and staircase planned in advance |
| Baby / concert grand | Legs and lyre handled separately |
| Floor or wall safe | Correct lifting gear and crew |
| Marble / stone top | Moved flat, edge-protected |
| Fine art / antique | Custom crating where needed |
A guide to the crew and time involved, not a price. Every job is priced individually and sent to you in writing.
Where we cover
Special items across London.
Plus Surrey, the Home Counties and UK-wide moves — see full coverage.
Questions
Special items, answered.
Do you move pianos in London?
Yes — uprights, baby grands and concert grands, priced on access and the piece. We plan the route through the tightest doorway and staircase turn before we lift anything.
Can you move a safe or heavy stone item?
We handle floor safes, marble tops and heavy stone with the right lifting gear and a crew trained for it — the sort of job standard removal teams tend to decline.
How do you protect antiques and artwork?
Blankets, straps and custom crating where needed. For listed or high-value pieces we plan the handling and the route in advance.
What if another company said it could not be done?
Ask us first. A lot of our specialist work is pieces other crews turned down — a window hoist or the right equipment usually makes it possible.
Do you install the item at the other end?
White-glove installation is available — the piano put exactly where it is going to live, not left in the hallway for you to shift.
They moved. Here's what they said.
“Arrived exactly on time and handled a narrow Victorian staircase without a scratch.”
Priya S.
Islington
“Fixed quote, no surprises, ULEZ included. Genuinely the easiest move we have done.”
Marcus T.
Hackney
“Great crew, careful with the piano. Ten minutes late but kept us informed.”
The Okafors
Clapham
Get a real price in eight keystrokes.
No site visit, no obligation. Two postcodes and you'll have a figure you can trust, written down and sent to you.
Prefer to talk? 07432 208003