# How can I get this heavy stuff up 3 flights of stairs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 18, 2019, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671 "2019-06-18T03:29:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/21 "2019-06-18T12:12:25Z")
Buy four appropriately sized containers with lids from the dollar store. Fill them up with the litter, leave them in a stack, and every time you head up the stairs, take one up. You’ll be able to reuse the containers endlessly. And pretty soon the neighbours could be helping with the kitty litter relay. I bet everyone gets a kick out of it, and is happy to help. Good Luck! ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/22 "2019-06-18T12:19:45Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > Long story short, lady on the third floor of an apartment building has a cat urgently in need of kitty litter. The lady is a little thing with tiny wrists, elevator has been broken for months and for the foreseeable future. I want to help, but I can’t haul up a 20 lb. jug of kitty litter (heart problems and arthritis) , nor can she. She can do it, but not easily. (she has tried the cedar-shaving litter and her cat hates it! he does use it.) . Just wondering, any way to get a good supply up those 3-4 flights of stairs by a couple of ailing weak women, other than taking turns and alternating every other flight? In a backpack, perhaps? You’d be surprised with how much your back can carry. > [@Ethilrist](#): > > Got $10 and a local teenager with time on his and/or her hands? For me, I’d offer $5 for this simple task. That’s plenty. It’ll be done in less than 3 minutes, including the conversations and payment. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/23 "2019-06-18T12:28:42Z")
Is there somewhere (near mailboxes/stairs?) that you can post a sign, asking if any neighbor could help out? Yeah, we all like to be independent, and a lot of us prefer anonymity. But this is the sort of potential benefit you get from having decent relations w/ your neighbors. Either offer a kid/young person (if there are any) $5-10, or some able-bodied person will just be happy to do it as a good turn. Or she could get rid of the cat. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/24 "2019-06-18T12:35:50Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Is there somewhere (near mailboxes/stairs?) that you can post a sign, asking if any neighbor could help out? Yeah, we all like to be independent, and a lot of us prefer anonymity. But this is the sort of potential benefit you get from having decent relations w/ your neighbors. Either offer a kid/young person (if there are any) $5-10, or some able-bodied person will just be happy to do it as a good turn. > > Or she could get rid of the cat. Good point. She must have neighbours. I’ve always managed to find a neighbour to help in the past (for carrying TVs and the like). But 20lb isn’t much. I agree that a backpack could probably solve the problem. ---
**Author:** ![Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tired_and_Cranky)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/25 "2019-06-18T13:35:23Z")
Take out the amount she needs now. Leave the rest in the entryway with a sign that says, “Mrs. Dalrymple in apt. 301 can’t lift this. Could someone please drop it off to her?” If anyone in the building has a heart it will be upstairs within the hour. If someone actually rings the doorbell to drop it off, volunteer a $5 tip. In the future, she should get delivery to her door or use smaller containers. ---
**Author:** ![LionelHutz405](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lionelhutz405/32/536_2.png) [@LionelHutz405](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LionelHutz405)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/26 "2019-06-18T13:45:45Z")
Stand outside your building and ask the first person who comes along that looks fit enough to do it. It’s not an unreasonable request. You aren’t asking them to lift a refrigerator. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/27 "2019-06-18T13:50:43Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Got $10 and a local teenager with time on his and/or her hands? That was my suggestion too. Maybe not even a teenager; a 11 year old ought to be able to lug a bag of kitty litter up to the third floor, and will probably be more excited to make $5 or $10 to do it than a 15 year old will be. Or just ask a younger person- had someone asked me when I lived in apartments, I wouldn’t have thought twice about helping someone like that for no pay or anything. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/28 "2019-06-18T13:54:43Z")
Oh, hell - I’m in my 50’s I’d do it for free for a neighbor, no problem. Except I’m not always conveniently available. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/29 "2019-06-18T14:04:19Z")
Assuming the third floor apartment has windows facing the street that can be opened, a trebuchet could solve your problem. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/30 "2019-06-18T14:08:57Z")
I’m wondering how many floors there are in this apartment building? Because I remember an article in the real estate section of the New York Times about an apartment building in NYC that had to rebuild its sole elevator, so it was unavailable for months. In the meantime, building management hired some young people to help tenants carry stuff upstairs. The OP’s building management could have done the same thing or barring that, some entrepreneurial youth might post a sign offering to do so for upper-floor tenants, either for a small fee or just to be neighborly. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/31 "2019-06-18T14:12:29Z")
Surely one of the other residents in the building will help out. I have helped complete strangers with heavy lifting, let alone helping people in the building where I live. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/32 "2019-06-18T14:13:07Z")
They sell light weight litter, not the cedar shaving you mention. They also sell litter in smaller quantities. Seems like the solution is already provided. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/33 "2019-06-18T15:27:32Z")
Obviously a smaller size package is the best. While the larger units are cheaper on a per pound basis when you add the cost of hiring someone then the smaller size turns out to be more economical. Look at cat litter at [walmart.com](http://walmart.com). They have several weight classifications–for example 5 to 9 pounds and 10 to 14 pounds. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/34 "2019-06-18T15:44:26Z")
Ooh! Ooh! I got it. Transfer the litter into ten two-pound containers, then juggle them on the way up the stairs. What? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/35 "2019-06-18T16:25:52Z")
LOL I bought a small storage building at Sears in 2012. They loaded the large box into my friends truck with a forklift. How did I get it unloaded and into my backyard? I cut the box open and carried the prefab panels a few at a time into the backyard. Took maybe 15 mins and 20 trips back and forth. It would have taken three strong men to carry that large box. ---
**Author:** ![Dana\_Scully](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5daacb/32.png) [@Dana\_Scully](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dana_Scully)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/36 "2019-06-18T16:44:52Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Maybe call the scouts? Boy or girl. Or Mormon missionaries. Service in situations like this is part of what they’re supposed to do, no matter what your own religious persuasion (or lack of same). I was also thinking you could take up the kitty litter in sections; i.e., put a few pounds that you **can** carry is some kind of holder and carry all 20 lbs. bit by bit. ---
**Author:** ![Dana\_Scully](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5daacb/32.png) [@Dana\_Scully](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dana_Scully)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/37 "2019-06-18T16:47:34Z")
> [@LionelHutz405](#): > > Stand outside your building and ask the first person who comes along that looks fit enough to do it. > It’s not an unreasonable request. You aren’t asking them to lift a refrigerator. I think that’s a really _ **DANGEROUS** _ thing to do. Who knows what kind of people are roaming the streets these days? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/38 "2019-06-18T17:06:36Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > They sell light weight litter, not the cedar shaving you mention. How do you know they didn’t already buy the lightweight litter? All we know is that whatever type it is, it’s in a container that weighs twenty pounds. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/39 "2019-06-18T17:24:45Z")
We rented an apartment on the second floor of a building in NY (no elevator) and I was able to shlep our suitcases, which weighed way more than 20 pounds, upstairs with no problem. And I’m 67. So a lot of people could get the cat litter upstairs. If not, the divide and conquer approach should work. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2019, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671/40 "2019-06-18T18:42:30Z")
We’ve reached the point of outside the litter box thinking right? Move the litter box downstairs. Install cat door. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-get-this-heavy-stuff-up-3-flights-of-stairs/835671.md?page=3)