Bathtub Delivery: What Does It Take to Move a Cast Iron Bath?
An acrylic bath is a one-person carry; a Victorian roll-top is a four-legged anvil with a delicate skin. Smart Taurus finds the crews and vans that get both kinds from seller to bathroom without a chipped edge.
Bath transport splits cleanly along material lines. Acrylic and steel tubs are bulky but light — awkward doorway geometry, trivial weight. Cast iron is the opposite: compact enough to fit any van, heavy enough to injure an unprepared lifter, and coated in vitreous enamel that shatters like glass at a hard knock because that is essentially what it is. Most of what follows concerns cast iron, since that's where jobs go wrong and where second-hand value concentrates.
How heavy is a cast iron bath, really?
A standard 1,700mm single-ended cast iron bath weighs roughly 100–120kg empty; double-ended roll-tops and larger slipper baths push 130–150kg and beyond. That's the weight of a large motorbike engine concentrated in a smooth, hard-to-grip shell with a wet-look surface and feet that snag on every threshold. The practical rules that fall out of those numbers:
- Two people minimum, always — one per end, lifting from under the rim, never by the feet, which unbolt or snap.
- Straps or a stair-climbing trolley for any change of level — hands alone don't safely control 120kg on a staircase.
- Three or four handlers for upper floors — quotes for a first- or second-floor bathroom should name the crew size.
- Feet off before transport where possible — bolt-on ball-and-claw feet are the most breakable part and travel better wrapped separately.
How do you protect the enamel in transit?
Treat the surface as glazed, because it is — vitreous enamel is fused glass over iron, and a dropped spanner or a ratchet hook against a bare rim leaves a permanent chip that costs serious money to re-enamel. Good crews wrap the rim in foam pipe lagging or folded blankets, lay the bath on its side on padding (never enamel-down on a bare van floor), strap through the waste hole or around blanketed sections, and keep other freight from resting against it. The outside of a painted roll-top scratches too, so wrapping isn't just for the basin. Acrylic baths need the opposite caution — they flex, so they travel upright and unweighted rather than under load, and they crack if strapped down hard.
Why do stairs and corners change the quote?
Because with cast iron, the route is the job. On flat ground a 120kg bath rolls on a trolley; on a staircase it's a controlled two-to-four-person lift where someone is always below the load, and a winding stair or half-landing turn may require standing the bath on end and pivoting — slow, skilled work. Expect quotes to itemise floor level, stair type and any tight turns, and expect a surcharge when the honest answer to "straight staircase?" is no. Measure the tightest point (often the bathroom door itself, or a banister pinch) against the bath's width; a bath that won't make the turn horizontally may still go up on its side, but the crew needs to know before the day. This is precisely the kind of job the two-man delivery service exists for — and where the post should say if two won't be enough.
Where do transported baths come from?
Three main streams, each with its own collection quirks. Salvage and reclamation yards sell restored and unrestored roll-tops and usually help load — but confirm, and confirm their opening hours, since yards keep trade schedules. Private sellers on eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree sell baths still plumbed in surprisingly often; the bath must be disconnected and drained before the van arrives, because couriers don't do plumbing. Bathroom showrooms clear ex-display stock at deep discounts with zero delivery support. Reclaimed radiators frequently travel from the same yards in the same van — pairing the jobs in one posting is common, and cast iron radiator delivery covers that half. Genuinely valuable period pieces deserve the handling standards described under antiques delivery.
How does bathtub delivery work on Smart Taurus?
- Post your job free — material (cast iron, steel, acrylic, stone resin), length, floor level at both ends, stair details, photos, and whether feet are attached.
- Receive quotes from verified transporters — crews quote with the manpower the route needs; check reviews for heavy-and-fragile experience.
- Compare, book, track and pay in the app — book the crew you trust, follow the job live on the day, and pay securely through Stripe.
What will bathtub transport cost?
The spread is wide because the labour spread is wide. A ground-floor-to-ground-floor acrylic tub is a light one-person van job priced near the bottom of large-item rates; a 140kg slipper bath to a second-floor Victorian bathroom is a four-person lift that's priced like one. Distance adds less than people expect — baths fit any van, so backload space along an existing route often carries them cheaply, and flexible dates let those quotes find you. If the bath is part of a full bathroom refit, add the basin, toilet and tiles to the same posting; one man and van visit beats three.