# A hand truck, or a dolly? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 13, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081 "2014-12-13T00:55:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/1 "2014-12-13T00:55:29Z")
Which would be more valuable for moving heavy objects (furniture etc) in, out & around a condo? A hand truck, or a dolly? ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/2 "2014-12-13T00:57:49Z")
As I understand it, they are both the same thing by different names. I call it a Hand truck. Of course, there’s the furniture dolly, that may have two wheels or four. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/3 "2014-12-13T01:01:56Z")
Depends on what we’re describing. [This](http://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-1000-lb-Capacity-4-in-1-Hand-Truck-60137/203875537?N=5yc1vZc89rZ1z0tur1) is a hand truck. [This](http://www.homedepot.com/b/Storage-Organization-Moving-Boxes-Shipping-Supplies/Dollies-and-Hand-Trucks/N-5yc1vZc89rZ1z0tur1) is a dolly. Let the crazy talk begin. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/4 "2014-12-13T01:02:05Z")
Hand truck–upright, & metal. Dolly–flat wooden platform with wheels. Often stronger, always cheaper, but not always easier to use. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/5 "2014-12-13T01:03:17Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Depends on what we’re describing. [This](http://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-1000-lb-Capacity-4-in-1-Hand-Truck-60137/203875537?N=5yc1vZc89rZ1z0tur1) is a hand truck. [This](http://www.homedepot.com/b/Storage-Organization-Moving-Boxes-Shipping-Supplies/Dollies-and-Hand-Trucks/N-5yc1vZc89rZ1z0tur1) is a dolly. > > Let the crazy talk begin. On target as always **Chefguy** ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/6 "2014-12-13T01:39:54Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Which would be more valuable for moving heavy objects (furniture etc) in, out & around a condo? > > A hand truck, or a dolly? A dolly where the handle can be removed and moved turning it into a hand truck? [![](http://c.searspartsdirect.com/lis_png/PLDM/00025583-00001.png) ](http://c.searspartsdirect.com/lis_png/PLDM/00025583-00001.png) ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/7 "2014-12-13T02:20:25Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Depends on what we’re describing. [This](http://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-1000-lb-Capacity-4-in-1-Hand-Truck-60137/203875537?N=5yc1vZc89rZ1z0tur1) is a hand truck. [This](http://www.homedepot.com/b/Storage-Organization-Moving-Boxes-Shipping-Supplies/Dollies-and-Hand-Trucks/N-5yc1vZc89rZ1z0tur1) is a dolly. > > Let the crazy talk begin. Thank you, drives me nuts (you can nitpick all you want) when people call the upright thing with the two wheels a dolly. BTW, if you’ve never used a hand truck before, it does take a little bit of learning. There’s a trick to scooping things up (tip them back and kick the handtruck under them), there’s a trick to unloading them (put your foot under the metal bar and pull it out), there’s a trick to tipping really heavy things back (wedge your foot on the bar like you’re holding a door closed and have someone push it over on you. Pull it over bumps, don’t push it doesn’t upright itself and go all the way over and a few other things. Oh, and then there’s furniture movers, hand trucks with a [kickstand thing](http://i21.geccdn.net/site/images/177x177/30051241.jpg). Super helpful for moving heavy stuff a long way. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/8 "2014-12-13T02:24:09Z")
But if you’re just trying to move things around a condo, one time, not that often, those plastic ‘moving men’ or ‘furniture movers’ that you can pick up at places like BB&B work pretty well for things like heavy chairs and couches. Moves them right over most surfaces. I keep a set just for when I need to, say, move my bed around to clean under it. If you need to move things up and down stairs you’ll have to get a hand truck, a dolly won’t work for that, a hand truck can go up and down stairs. Get one with inflatable stairs, it’s easier to use and won’t mark up your floors as much. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Joker_and_the_Thief)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/9 "2014-12-13T02:39:16Z")
IME, a hand truck is easier to use and much better for going up/down stairs. A dolly is somewhat more versatile and is especially useful for moving exceedingly large, heavy objects, like safes or refrigerators. I’d go with the hand truck if I could only pick one. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/10 "2014-12-13T03:16:08Z")
if moving especially taller heavy stuff down stairs then an appliance hand truck is best. ---
**Author:** ![JWT\_Kottekoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@JWT\_Kottekoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JWT_Kottekoe)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/11 "2014-12-13T03:55:04Z")
Where I grew up, a hand truck was called a “dolly.” When I worked on a construction site, it was called a “two wheel truck” or just “two wheeler”. If you called it a “dolly” they laughed at you. Any kind of cart with four wheels was called a “four wheel truck,” or “four wheeler.” ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/12 "2014-12-13T05:10:07Z")
Then there’s the [Pallet Jack](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pallet_jack). From my days working on a loading dock, I remember these _also_ referred to as “hand trucks” or “dollys”. ---
**Author:** ![hyperspaz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a587f6/32.png) [@hyperspaz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hyperspaz)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/13 "2014-12-13T05:46:26Z")
If you want to be macho about it, you could always use a Johnson bar. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/14 "2014-12-13T09:59:26Z")
There’s a larger hand truck that’s the best to use. It might be called an appliance truck [or appliance hand truck]. It looks like a standard 2 wheeled hand truck but there’s a longer bottom piece that’ll flip down so what you’re moving can rest on more of 10" of base. And there’s a strap or 2 you wrap around whatever you’re moving and tighten it. I moved just over a year ago and one of these came with the truck I rented. It was great! ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/15 "2014-12-13T10:17:23Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > There’s a larger hand truck that’s the best to use. It might be called an appliance truck [or appliance hand truck]. It looks like a standard 2 wheeled hand truck but there’s a longer bottom piece that’ll flip down so what you’re moving can rest on more of 10" of base. And there’s a strap or 2 you wrap around whatever you’re moving and tighten it. I moved just over a year ago and one of these came with the truck I rented. It was great! I bought one of these at a garage sale many years ago. Great tool - not something I need often but really, really handy if one has the space to store it. I’ve used it several times in situations where I would have otherwise had to enlist the help of two or three strong people, and have loaned it to friends. Plus with a hand truck you can get large bulky items up and down stairs with relative ease. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/16 "2014-12-13T10:54:28Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > There’s a larger hand truck that’s the best to use. It might be called an appliance truck [or appliance hand truck]. It looks like a standard 2 wheeled hand truck but there’s a longer bottom piece that’ll flip down so what you’re moving can rest on more of 10" of base. And there’s a strap or 2 you wrap around whatever you’re moving and tighten it. I moved just over a year ago and one of these came with the truck I rented. It was great! I was in a band when I was a weeeee bit younger. We were all-in so we owned our own PA system and had a big truck to haul it (and the rest of our gear) all around in. Though I didn’t fully realize it at the time, we kinda sucked. We had no roadies. We WERE our roadies. I’ve described it as moving a two bedroom apartment twice a week. Good times. We had several hand trucks to help to move the things we couldn’t pack into a flight case with casters. For the super, super-heavy stuff (e.g. the amplifier racks) we used a dolly like the one described above. As far as I knew, they were called “refrigerator dollys” though I s’pose they can move all different sorts of super-heavy stuff. Yeah. That’s my post. A reminiscence of moving tons of gear around twice a week. Yea. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/17 "2014-12-13T13:17:07Z")
Guys–the whole idea is to buy an item for furniture, that would be used rarely. Not pallet jacks. The convertible hand truck that doubles as a dolly sounds good. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/18 "2014-12-13T13:26:29Z")
I’ve seen “dolly” used for both, with hand truck used just for the version with a handle. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/19 "2014-12-13T13:55:22Z")
When I was working construction, ~40 years ago in northern Virginia, the terms were used interchangeably. ---
**Author:** ![donkeyoatey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47c2d/32.png) [@donkeyoatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/donkeyoatey)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2014, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081/20 "2014-12-13T14:04:13Z")
And if you have a vending machine in your condo use this. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-hand-truck-or-a-dolly/707081.md?page=2)