Stone and marble furniture is unforgiving during transit. Marble cracks along invisible crystalline grain lines under flex stress. Polished edges chip from single impacts. And the sheer weight of stone — a marble dining table can exceed 400 lbs — means that the crate structure must be engineered to distribute load, not just contain the piece.
Marble and stone present risks that wood furniture does not. The first is weight — a large marble dining table can weigh twice what an equivalent wood table weighs, and that weight produces much higher impact forces during any loading, corner, or braking event. Standard furniture crates are sized and built for wood-weight assumptions; undersized crate floors can fail under stone.
The second risk is stone's tendency to crack along grain lines under flex. A marble slab that is allowed to flex even slightly during transit — because it is under-supported midspan — can propagate existing micro-fractures into visible cracks. Face-up vs. face-down orientation is a meaningful engineering decision: face-up for thick slabs, face-down with edge-pad support for thin ones.
Tops and bases typically ship separately. We detach the marble or stone top, crate it independently on a foam-lined plywood base with corner foam blocks, and crate the base separately. This keeps each element fully supported and eliminates any relative movement between stone and wood/metal during transit.
Weight-rated crating, orientation engineering, and surface protection at every step.
Crate floor panels are selected and framed to the actual weight of the stone piece. We calculate point loads at support contact areas to ensure no single crate stringer is over-loaded.
Stone tabletops are detached and crated independently. This eliminates the risk of the heavy top shifting and cracking, and allows each piece to be perfectly supported.
Polished stone edges are the most vulnerable point. We use dense polyethylene foam cut to the exact edge profile, then overwrap with foam padding. No rigid material contacts the polished surface.
Stone corners are individually padded with shaped foam blocks. Corners are where chipping almost universally initiates during transit, and our corner protection eliminates relative movement at these points.
Polished marble faces are covered with a layer of Tyvek (to prevent transfer), dense foam pad, then the outer crate panel. No stretch film, no moving blankets alone, no direct foam on polished surfaces.
For large marble slabs (60"+ dining tables), we add midspan support blocks under the slab so the crate floor is effectively continuous support from edge to edge. This prevents any flex during transit.
Every stone type and application, from residential dining tables to gallery pedestals.
Yes, with proper crating. Marble that is fully supported across its span, with polished edges protected by dense foam, and loaded in the correct orientation, will arrive safely across any distance. The risk comes from under-built crates or improper orientation — both of which we engineer against.
Yes. Round and oval tops are among the pieces most prone to chipping at the edges during shipping (because the entire perimeter is edge). We use continuous edge foam that follows the full circumference of the table, not just corner blocks.
No — we will detach it during the packing appointment. We document the original assembly with photos so the top can be reinstalled correctly at the destination.
Local Austin marble table delivery typically starts at $350–$600 depending on weight and dimensions. Long-distance pricing depends on the freight lane and crate size. Call (512) 240-9818 for a specific quote for your piece.
Granite is generally harder and less prone to flex-cracking than marble, but it is often heavier — both require the same weight-rated crating approach. Our process is the same for both: separated top crating, continuous edge protection, and oriented face-up with midspan support.
Austin Crate & Freight serves the entire Austin metro — custom crating, white-glove pickup, and specialty freight for items that standard carriers cannot handle.
Weight-rated crating, polished surface protection, and safe delivery for every stone type. Serving Austin and all of Texas.