If you’re reading this, you’ve likely just purchased a treadmill that’s sitting in your basement or guest room, and it’s just waiting to be unboxed and assembled. (Or if you opted for regular delivery, it might just be sitting outside.) To say it’s daunting would be an understatement.
We’ve been through the assembly journey—and it is a journey—so we’ve got a few tricks up our merino wool sleeves to help prepare you for this undertaking. Here are some of the most useful tips you can use if you want it done quickly or you want less hassle if you’re opting to go the DIY route.
Hire the White Glove Delivery and Assembly
Once you’ve invested several thousand dollars in a treadmill, spending a couple hundred extra dollars for the white glove delivery and assembly service will go a long way. A traditional delivery generally brings the very heavy treadmill box to the front door or inside the first floor. That means you’re responsible for moving the unit to the desired location—and quickly, if the weather Run a Faster Mile With This Treadmill Plan.
White glove delivery and assembly will put the treadmill in your desired location, unbox, assemble—these companies have a partnership with the treadmill manufacturers—and then remove all of the packaging, which is substantial.
These assemblies take about an hour, and it usually comprises two people who’ve done this hundreds of times.
Prepare the Space
Whether you’re going with the white glove service or tackling assembly yourself, make sure the treadmill’s new home is prepped and ready to go. Even folding treadmills are incredibly heavy and can’t easily be moved.
Clear the area and clean the floor ahead of time, and make sure there is ample room for lots of bulky packaging. It might seem obvious, but you also want to make sure you have an outlet nearby. It’s not recommended to use extension cords to connect your treadmill to an outlet due to safety concerns. Check the electrical instructions and power requirements in your treadmill’s user manual so you don’t mistakenly void your warranty.
It’s also important to make sure the floor where the treadmill will live is level; most units have leveling feet on the back of the deck, which you can adjust. Similarly, you’ll want to measure the height from the top of the deck to the ceiling to make sure you have enough room for your head to bounce up and down while you’re running (this should be done before you purchase a treadmill).
Lay Out Your Materials and Tools
Perhaps the one saving grace of treadmill assembly is how organized the parts are. I’ve assembled four, and each brand packaged the hardware in meticulously labeled and portioned packaging. These packages were labeled to match the relevant instructions; for example: Package A contained 30 screws, and the instructions would say, “Use Package A.”
Lay everything out, but don’t open it all right away. The worst thing you can do is lose a little piece because you weren’t ready to use it and it got bumped somewhere.
Each time you empty a package, add it to a trash pile. When you’re done assembling, you can review everything and make sure nothing was forgotten.
Enlist a Friend, Maybe Two
You cannot assemble a treadmill by yourself. Okay, maybe you can, but most people will need assistance. I assembled four folding treadmills, and that required lifting the very heavy treadmill deck for an extended period of time while my husband worked underneath—talk about trust.
Another area where an extra person is necessary is installing the posts that hold the handrails and console. They can be heavy and they require precision when you’re inserting the posts into the base of the treadmill.
The posts hold the wiring that connect that console—your control panel with essentials like speed and incline—to the motor and the belt. A second person will help you avoid “pinching” the wires, as the instructions put it, which would be detrimental to the function of your treadmill.
Double the Time You Think It’ll Take
I’m just being realistic. The professional installers take about 45 minutes to an hour. My husband and I averaged about 3.5 hours to assemble four folding treadmills. We got quicker toward the end, but that’s largely because we worked out how the units are supposed to be assembled.
One unit I assembled required multiple calls to tech support, and it turned out the issue was a faulty grommet—what a fluke. It’s worth noting that I was calling on behalf of a media project and was elevated to the top-tier tech folks; most customers will have to go through the typical customer service rigamarole.
Heather is the former food and nutrition editor for Runner’s World, The Case Against Exclusive Long Runs The Runner’s World Vegetarian Cookbook, and a nine-time marathoner with a best of 3:23. She’s also proud of her 19:40 5K and 5:33 mile. Heather is an RRCA certified run coach.
