How to Move or Take Apart a Tonal Safely With 2 People and 3 Tools

If you want to know how to move a Tonal, here's the short answer: two people can do it in an afternoon with a 4mm Allen wrench, a 10mm hex socket and a ratchet with a 7/16" socket, but Tonal's own long-distance relocation service starts at $500 and Tonal's warranty does not cover damage caused by an improper uninstall. The unit weighs roughly 150 pounds, it hangs on a steel bracket bolted into two studs, and it has to travel lying flat on its back with the screen facing up. Get those three facts right and the move is boring. Get them wrong and you're buying a new screen.

I help people buy and sell Tonals for a living, and I've watched a lot of them come off walls. Most of the horror stories I hear start the same way: someone treated it like a TV, carried it upright down a staircase alone, and set it on its face in the back of an SUV. This guide covers whether you can move a Tonal yourself, the exact tools, how the take-apart works, what the pros charge, and how to protect your floors, door frames and the machine itself.

Can You Move a Tonal Yourself?

Yes, you can move a Tonal yourself if you have two adults, the right three tools and a padded surface to lay it on. It's not a one-person job. Ever.

The panel is about 150 pounds of steel, motors and glass packed into a shape that's tall, narrow and awkward to grip. Two people can lift it off the bracket and walk it out of a room. One person can't do it safely, because the moment you tip it to get a better grip, all that weight swings toward the screen side.

Here's how I'd decide between DIY and paying someone:

1. Same house, different wall: DIY is fine if you can find two studs at the new spot. You'll still want Tonal's guidance on new mounting hardware.
2. Local move under 50 miles: DIY the transport, and seriously consider having a pro handle the uninstall and reinstall.
3. Long-distance move over 50 miles or across state lines: this is exactly what Tonal's relocation service is built for.
4. Selling it: don't move it at all. Let the buyer's crew take it off the wall (more on that below).
5. Walk-up apartment with stairs: hire help. Two people on a staircase with a 150-pound panel is where screens break.

So the honest version is this: moving a Tonal yourself is doable. Taking a Tonal apart yourself is the part that can bite you.

What Tools You Need to Move a Tonal

Tonal's uninstall guide lists a 4mm Allen wrench and a 10mm hex socket to release the unit, plus a ratchet with a 7/16" socket to take the mounting bracket off the wall. That's the whole tool list for the take-apart. Everything else on this list is about not breaking anything.

Item	What it's for	Skip it?
4mm Allen wrench	Releasing the Tonal from its mount	No
10mm hex socket	Releasing the Tonal from its mount	No
Ratchet with 7/16" socket	Removing the bracket bolts from the studs	Only if you're leaving the bracket up
2 to 3 thick moving blankets	Wrapping the panel and padding the truck floor	No
Stretch wrap	Holding blankets in place, keeping the arms tucked	Painter's tape works in a pinch
Furniture dolly (flat, 4-wheel)	Rolling it across floors while it lies flat	Yes for short carries
Ratchet straps	Securing it in the truck	No
Cardboard or Ram Board	Floor protection along the carry path	Yes on carpet

Notice what's not on the list: a hand truck for standing it upright. A two-wheel hand truck wants you to carry the Tonal vertically, and Tonal's guidance is that it travels flat on its back with the display facing up.

How to Take Apart a Tonal Safely

Taking apart a Tonal means removing the panel from its wall bracket, and then optionally removing the bracket from the studs. You don't disassemble the arms or open the unit. Nothing inside a Tonal is meant to come apart for a move.

Here's the sequence I'd follow, in plain terms:

Power down and unplug. Shut it off from the screen, pull the power cord, and coil it so it can't snag. Fold both arms in flat against the sides of the panel and wrap a few turns of stretch wrap around them so they can't swing while you lift. Pull off any accessories you've left clipped on.

Release the unit from the bracket. This is where the 4mm Allen and 10mm socket come in. Follow Tonal's current uninstall guide step by step, because it shows which fasteners hold the unit to the mount. Have your second person holding the panel before the last fastener comes out. Then you both lift it straight up and away from the bracket.

Lay it flat on its back. Put it down on a thick moving blanket with the screen facing up. Not on its face. Not on its side. Flat on its back, display up, is how Tonal says it should travel, and it's also the position where nothing is pressing on the glass.

Decide about the bracket. Tonal's relocation page tells members to keep the existing wall mount after uninstall. It also says hardware isn't reused during relocations for safety reasons, and new relocation hardware gets installed at the new home. So pull the bracket with the 7/16" socket, bag it, label it and keep it with the unit. Patch the lag-bolt holes after.

One warning I give everyone. Tonal says plainly that it doesn't recommend installing Tonal yourself, and that its warranty doesn't cover damage caused by improper uninstallation. If your unit is still under warranty and you care about that coverage, the cheapest insurance is letting a pro do the wall work.

How Much Does It Cost to Move a Tonal Professionally?

Tonal's long-distance relocation service starts at $500, or $550 if you add Wide Mount Adapter Bars. That covers an installation partner uninstalling the Tonal at your current home and another partner reinstalling it at the new one, with new relocation hardware. Each appointment runs about two hours.

Read the fine print, because it surprises people. The service is for moves of more than 50 miles or across state lines. You're still responsible for packing and transporting the Tonal and its wall mount between homes. Damage during the move isn't covered under warranty, and Tonal suggests insuring it with your movers the way you would a TV. And you need to buy the relocation kit at least three weeks before your preferred appointment date, since the uninstall gets scheduled first and the reinstall only after that.

The Wide Mount Adapter Bars matter if the studs at your new place are 17 to 24 inches apart instead of the standard 16. If you don't know, Tonal lets you buy the bars and return them on reinstall day.

For the transport leg, your moving company will quote it as part of the household move. I won't throw out a number for that, because it depends entirely on your mover, your distance and your building. Ask them directly whether they'll carry a 150-pound flat panel down your stairs and lay it flat on its back in the truck. If they hesitate, find another mover.

How to Protect Your Floors, Door Frames and the Tonal During a Move

The Tonal is narrow, so it clears most doorways easily lying flat on a dolly. The real risks are corners, stairs and the truck.

Floors. Lay cardboard or Ram Board along the carry path before you start, taped at the seams. A 150-pound panel on a dolly with one sticky caster will gouge hardwood. Carpet is more forgiving, but runners still help.

Door frames. Measure the tightest turn on your route before move day. Wrap the corners of the panel in an extra blanket layer, since the corners are what hit trim. On stairs, one person goes below, one above, and you take it one step at a time with the panel kept as close to flat as the stairs allow.

The screen. Wrap the whole unit in two moving blankets and stretch-wrap them in place. Nothing goes on top of the screen side. Not a box, not a lamp, not "just for a second." If you're stacking anything in the truck, the Tonal goes in last and on top, or alone on its own padded section of floor.

The truck. Lay it flat on its back on a padded floor and run two ratchet straps over it to the truck wall. Snug, not cranked. It shouldn't slide when you brake, and it shouldn't flex under the straps either.

Should You Move a Tonal or Sell It and Buy Another?

Sometimes the smartest Tonal move is no move at all. If you're relocating far, add up the relocation service, the mover's charge for a fragile 150-pound item and the risk of damage the warranty won't cover. Then compare that to what a used Tonal sells for. Our used Tonal price index tracks what they actually go for, and the full breakdown of Tonal cost new versus used covers the membership side.

Selling is also the only scenario where you don't touch the wall. When a Tonal sells on Commonplace, our drivers come to your home, take it off the wall, inspect it, load it and handle the delivery. One seller, Katie, sold her 2023 Tonal with us, and her review says the team came, disassembled it and moved it. She didn't pick up a wrench. Another seller, Marjorie, said all she did was list it.

If you're on the buying end at your new place, you can browse used Tonals on Commonplace and have one delivered and installed by a crew instead of hauling yours across the country. Before you buy, read our used Tonal review so you know which generation you're getting.

Common Mistakes When Moving a Tonal

I've seen every one of these. They're all avoidable.

• Carrying it upright on a hand truck. It wants to travel flat on its back, display up.
• Laying it face down. All 150 pounds on the glass. Don't.
• Letting the arms swing. Fold them in and wrap them before the lift.
• Losing the bracket. Tonal tells you to keep your wall mount. Bag it with the unit.
• Booking the relocation service late. The kit needs to be bought at least three weeks ahead.
• Assuming any wall works. The new spot still has to meet Tonal's install requirements, including stud spacing.

FAQ: Moving a Tonal

How many people does it take to move a Tonal?

Two adults, minimum. The Tonal weighs roughly 150 pounds and is tall and narrow, so one person can't control it while lifting it off the bracket. Add a third person for stairs.

Can you move a Tonal without taking it off the wall bracket?

No. The panel has to come off the bracket to move, and the bracket is bolted into the studs. You can leave the bracket on the wall if you're moving the Tonal within the same room temporarily, but for any real move both come down.

Does Tonal move it for you?

Partly. Tonal's relocation service, starting at $500, sends installation partners to uninstall at your old home and reinstall at your new one. You're still responsible for packing and transporting the unit and its mount between homes.

Will moving my Tonal void the warranty?

It can. Tonal states that its warranty doesn't cover damage caused by improper uninstallation, and damage during the move isn't covered either. That's why many owners use the relocation service and insure the unit with their movers.

Which way should a Tonal lie during transport?

Flat on its back with the display facing up. Never on its face, never on its side, and never with anything stacked on top of it.

Moving and don't want to deal with it? Sell your Tonal on Commonplace. Our drivers handle the uninstall, the inspection and the pickup, and you get paid when they load it. You never meet the buyer and you never touch a wrench.

Setting up a new home gym after the move? Browse inspected used Tonals, or read how Commonplace works to see how delivery and the in-home test window work before you pay.