Scope of service · Appliances
Moving an appliance is the easy part. What causes almost every appliance problem on move day is the thing attached to it — a water line, a gas line, a hard-wired connection — and who is responsible for dealing with it.
Quick answer
Movers move appliances. The question is the connections. Under LIOO Moving’s terms the default is that our crews do not disconnect or reconnect appliances, water lines, gas lines or electrical equipment, and disconnecting appliances is listed as a customer responsibility. The terms allow for an exception where it is specifically agreed in writing, so if you want it handled, get it onto your written quote rather than mentioning it in passing. Gas is never touched by the crew — that is licensed-technician work. And the terms treat appliances that have not been disconnected differently from ones that have.
Three clauses govern this, and it is worth reading them together rather than one at a time.
Put plainly: transporting the appliance is our job. Getting it disconnected from the wall, the tap or the gas line is yours, unless something different has been agreed in writing.
Movers are movers. A connection is a trade.
The generic version of this advice, repeated across most moving sites, is “movers will never disconnect your appliances.” That is not quite right, and the imprecision costs people.
Our terms create a specific carve-out: the default does not apply where disconnection or reconnection has been specifically agreed in writing. Separately, our moving preparation page asks customers to tell us at booking so that standard washer, dryer and fridge disconnection can be planned into the job.
The conservative reading, and the one to act on
We are not going to tell you that mentioning it on a phone call is automatically the written agreement the terms describe — that is exactly the kind of assumption that falls apart when it matters. Raise it when you book, then check that it appears on your written quote or confirmation before move day. If it is not written down, plan on handling the disconnection yourself or through a technician. This is good practice with any mover, not just us: where a contract carves out an exception “in writing”, the writing is the part that counts.
This is the part almost no article on this subject mentions, and it is the reason disconnection is more than a chore to get out of the way.
Our damage-protection terms carry a list of exclusions — items and situations that limited damage protection does not extend to. “Appliances not disconnected” is on that list, alongside things like unboxed electronics and customer-packed boxes.
Read that precisely, because the precision matters in both directions. It does not mean a disconnected appliance is guaranteed, insured, or covered for its replacement value — basic protection remains limited, calculated by weight, and is not insurance. What it means is narrower and still worth knowing: the terms specifically address the status of an appliance that was not disconnected, and it is not a favorable one. An appliance still plumbed or wired to the wall when the crew reaches it is in a different position from one that was ready.
If you want the full picture of what limited damage protection does and does not extend to, that is the subject of our guide to what movers are actually liable for in Georgia.
The installation clause does not stop at saying we do not do this work. It goes on to allocate the risk if we do it anyway at a customer’s request: where our crew performs such a task at your request, LIOO Moving is not liable for any resulting damage, and you agree to hold us harmless for damage arising from that request.
That is worth sitting with for a second. Asking the crew to pop a washer hose off on the day is not a small favor with no consequences attached — under the terms you are accepting the outcome. For a straightforward connection that may be a perfectly reasonable trade. For anything involving a supply line behind a finished wall, a hard-wired unit, or gas, it is not, and the answer is a technician.
There is no version of this where a LIOO crew works on a gas line. Gas appliances must be disconnected by a licensed technician before the crew arrives — we do not touch gas lines, and that is not a preference we will negotiate on the day.
You will also see advice elsewhere suggesting the mover caps the line and a licensed professional finishes the job. Whatever other companies do, that is not our practice: the disconnection and the capping are the technician’s work, completed before we arrive. If your dryer or range runs on gas, book that appointment when you book the move, not the week of.
Not sure which you have?
Electric dryers use a heavy plug into a dedicated outlet. Gas dryers have both a plug and a gas supply line. If there is a pipe with a shutoff valve behind the unit, treat it as gas and get a technician.
Our terms name the specific things a moving crew does not install or uninstall — washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, ice machines, water lines, gas lines and electrical equipment. That list maps neatly onto what makes each appliance its own small problem.
| Appliance | What it is connected to | Who handles the connection |
|---|---|---|
| Washing machine | Hot and cold supply lines, a drain, a standard outlet | You, or a technician — unless disconnection is agreed in writing |
| Electric dryer | A dedicated high-voltage outlet, plus a vent | You, or a technician — same rule |
| Gas dryer or gas range | A gas supply line | Licensed technician only. Never the crew |
| Refrigerator | An outlet, and a water line if it has an ice maker or water dispenser | You, or a technician. Empty and defrost it beforehand |
| Dishwasher | Supply and drain plumbing, often hard-wired, usually fixed under a counter | You, or a technician — typically the most involved of the four |
One practical footnote on weight rather than connections: a single item over 300 pounds carries our $100 specialty-item fee and cannot be taken up or down a full flight of stairs — five steps is the limit. Most household appliances sit under that line, but commercial-grade or oversized units may not. If yours might, say so when you book so it is priced and planned rather than discovered.
Short version, because the full move-day list lives on our moving preparation page:
An appliance that is still connected when the crew reaches it does not simply get skipped — it becomes time on an hourly clock while everyone works out what to do, and it sits in a worse position under the damage-protection terms than one that was ready.
A company that can answer those five in writing before you book is telling you something useful about how the rest of the move will go.
Say which units are coming, whether anything runs on gas, and whether they will be disconnected before we arrive. It gets planned into the job and written onto your quote instead of becoming a conversation in your laundry room.
Yes. Transporting appliances is standard moving work. What is not standard is the connections: under LIOO Moving’s terms our crews do not disconnect or reconnect appliances, water lines, gas lines or electrical equipment unless it has been specifically agreed in writing, and disconnecting appliances is listed among the customer’s responsibilities. Have the units disconnected and pulled clear before move day, or arrange a technician.
Not by default. Our terms state that movers do not disconnect or reconnect appliances unless specifically agreed in writing, and separately that LIOO Moving does not install or uninstall washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, ice machines, water lines or electrical equipment. Raise it at booking if you want it handled, and check it appears on your written quote — the exception in the terms is a written one.
No. Gas appliances must be disconnected by a licensed technician before the crew arrives — our crews do not touch gas lines under any arrangement. Book that appointment when you book the move. If there is a pipe with a shutoff valve behind the unit, treat it as gas.
Two things. It becomes time on an hourly move while it is sorted out, and it sits in a different position under the damage-protection terms: “appliances not disconnected” appears on our list of excluded damages. Disconnecting does not make an appliance guaranteed or insured — basic protection stays limited and is calculated by weight — but an appliance that was ready is not in the excluded category that one still plumbed to the wall is.
Our terms address that directly: where our crew performs such a task at your request, LIOO Moving is not liable for any resulting damage and you agree to hold us harmless for damage arising from that request. For a simple connection that may be a trade you are happy to make. For anything behind a finished wall, hard-wired, or involving gas, it is not — use a technician.
Your next step
When to bring in the pros: stairs and long carries, heavy or fragile pieces (pianos, safes, glass), a building that requires a COI, or a timeline that slipped. See how a LIOO crew runs it →