A truck on the street is a reach-and-capacity problem, not a boom-lift problem. If you can get next to the trailer, a warehouse or 22k conventional forklift (when we have one on the lot) is faster. If you are stuck in the yard or the street, a telehandler is the tool. A scissor is for people. Do not invent a method with straps off a basket.
In This Guide
Equipment for unloading a delivery
Primary machines
Optional / nice to have
Compact 19 ft telehandler
Optional5,500 lb / 19 ft.
Residential deliveries and tight gates.
Skip it when the crate is heavy and far — chart it, then step up.
BrowseTilt-deck trailer
Optional24 ft 15k tilt.
If the “delivery” is a machine you are picking up from us, not a freight truck.
Skip it when we are delivering the equipment to you.
BrowseTypical pairing
Freight on a job site: 8k telehandler (or 19 ft compact on a house lot) staged before the truck, not after it has been sitting on a red flashing light for 40 minutes. Indoor pallet work: conventional forklift, not a boom.
Know the weight and the side of the truck
Pallet weight, whether it is a side-unload or a liftgate, and how far you can get the machine. A 5,500 lb 19 ft compact will not save a 4,000 lb HVAC crate at 20 feet. An 8k 44 ft often will — if the chart says so at that radius.
Ground
Asphalt is not always a pad. Soft shoulders eat telehandlers. Protect decorative concrete. HOA cul-de-sacs need a flagger more often than the driver wants to wait.
Indoor vs outdoor
Indoor warehouses want a conventional forklift, not a telehandler in the aisle. See the warehouse guide. Outdoor job-site drops want the telehandler.
FAQ
Can a boom lift unload a truck?
No. People machine. See boom vs telehandler.
Do you have a 22,000 lb forklift?
Sometimes on the lot — it is a different class than the reach forklifts. Ask. Do not assume it is a telehandler.
Driver said they have a liftgate.
Liftgates are for curb weight, not for a 3,000 lb spa up a driveway. You may still want the telehandler at the top of the drive.
Machines on the lot
Live inventory rotates. These are current machines in the related rental collections — not a promise that a specific used unit is still here.
Need a quote on the right class?
Call or text — we'll match height, width, and capacity to the job instead of renting you a bigger machine than you need.