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Perceived Weight Calculator

Bespoke Furniture Delivery Colchester

Stair & Perceived Weight to Effort Calculator

Ever wondered why unloading heavy furniture seems harder than loading, or why lifting items up stairs seems like incredibly hard work?

These types are movement are hard because of gravity, so while a 100KG is still 100KG, when unloading or lifting up stairs, you're fighting against gravity, which give what I call a "perceived weight." This calculator provides an estimate of the perceived weight.

I use the perceived weight for purposes of HSE, and design a route around this value.


On stairs/ramps, part of gravity pulls the load downhill. Your team must support weight and resist that pull. A simple model is perceived mass ≈ m(1 + sinθ) — where m is the object’s mass and θ is the stair angle.

How to use

  1. Enter the object mass (kg) and the stair angle (°).
  2. (Optional) Open Advanced to set handlers, stair width vs item width (to auto-cap helpers), and steps/fatigue.
  3. Tap Calculate. Review the per-person load and the advice. Adjust plan if risk is high.
Total mass of the item including any packaging.
0° (flat)35°45°
Typical UK internal stairs are ~30–38°, max legal 42° - see Building Regulations 2010, Paragraph 1.9 (Page 10)

Handlers & policy

Your policy/target per person (default 25 kg).

Width constraints (auto-cap helpers)

Side supporters need ≈ shoulder width plus a little clearance. If there isn’t space, helpers are capped.

Steps & fatigue

Total climb = steps × riser. Used to estimate cumulative work (fatigue).

Results

Perceived total mass
kg
Per-person load
kg/person
Handlers (requested → effective)
Stair penalty
×— (sinθ —)
Total climb / Work

More Info?

Contact me (Lee) on 077 888 211 21 or email lee@venture-logistics.co.uk