Forklift Hire in Melksham, Wiltshire
A timber yard on the edge of town and a builders merchant behind a Bath stone frontage both need a forklift that fits their own gate. Our Melksham depot checks the gap before the machine.
A narrow yard gate rules out more forklifts than a heavy load ever does. Our Melksham depot asks about the gate before asking about the pallet.
Market-Town Yards Have Their Own Limits
A builders merchant built behind an older market-town frontage often has a gateway set generations before any modern forklift was designed, and that gateway rarely widens.
Timber yards further out usually have more room, but softer or uneven ground can cause its own problems for a standard counterbalance model.
Measuring the actual gate width, not the yard beyond it, settles most of these questions quickly. A forklift chosen for the load alone can still turn out to be too wide for the one gap it needs to pass through every day. A delivery lorry too wide for the gate is one of the more common problems reported, usually solved the same way as a forklift itself would be: measure first, order second.
Our Forklift Range
Our Melksham stock runs from compact counterbalance models for a tight market-town yard through to larger machines suited to open timber yard ground. Every other hire service from this depot is listed on our Melksham Forklift Rental Service page, with tyre and mast options for each forklift set out on our Forklifts collection.
Give the gate width and ground type over the phone and our team will usually name a suitable model right away.
Call 01380 828988 with those two details and a forklift for your Wiltshire yard gets booked on the same call. Tyre options are also listed per model, since a loose chipping surface wears standard tyres faster than a sealed yard floor does.
Forklift Hire for Melksham and Chippenham Yards
Yards tucked behind older market-town buildings near Melksham tend to have the tightest gateways, often set by walls that cannot be widened without planning permission.
Timber and builders yards further towards Chippenham usually have more open access, where ground surface becomes the bigger factor instead.
Mention which problem your yard actually has, a tight gate or soft ground, since the two call for a different kind of forklift even at a similar load weight. A yard taking deliveries from more than one direction, front gate and a side lane, should mention both when booking, since the narrower of the two is the one that decides the model. A written note of both access points also helps the driver plan the delivery before arriving.
What's Included With Every Forklift
A load chart, a service record and a short walk-round happen before any forklift leaves the yard, whichever model has been booked.
Fork extensions can be added on request, fuel or battery charge goes out full, and ordinary wear through the hire is never charged for.
Need a narrower machine once the gate is actually measured on site? Call 01380 828988 and a swap can usually be arranged without losing the working day. Fork extensions ride along on most deliveries too, since a timber load one week rarely matches the length of the next. Fuel or battery charge always goes out full, so a working day never starts behind before the machine has even reached the yard gate.
Why Choose Coppard
Decades of plant hire across Wiltshire have put our Melksham depot into enough market-town yards to measure a gateway before quoting a machine, not after delivery.
Constructionline and CPA membership sit behind a flat rule: every machine is checked and logged before it leaves our yard.
Call 01380 828988 for a straight answer on price and timing. A forklift that cannot clear the gate costs a yard more in delay than the slightly smaller model would have cost to book from the start. A forklift stuck at the gate on a busy delivery day costs a yard more in lost time than measuring the gap properly before booking ever would. That single measurement usually settles the whole question.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if a forklift will fit through my yard gate?
Measure the gate itself rather than the yard beyond it, since older market-town gateways are often narrower than the space they lead into. Give that figure when booking and a model confirmed to fit gets sent from the Melksham range, rather than one chosen on load weight alone. A gate post or an old stone pillar sometimes narrows the usable width further than the opening itself suggests, so measure between the actual obstructions rather than the frame.
Can a forklift handle soft or uneven timber yard ground?
Yes, a model with wider or solid tyres suited to the surface usually solves this. Describe whether the ground is loose chippings, bare earth or a sealed surface, since that detail changes which tyre option gets sent with the forklift. Loose chippings in particular can cause a standard tyre to dig in under load, so mention this specifically rather than simply describing the yard as outdoor.
How quickly can a forklift be delivered to Melksham?
Ring early in the day for the best chance of a same-week delivery to a market-town yard or timber site, since our drivers plan their Wiltshire rounds from the morning calls first. A firm slot is only given once the actual model wanted has been confirmed as free, never as a rough placeholder based on a guess. Where two models would both do the job, we say so plainly rather than quoting only the one already sitting idle on the yard.
Can attachments be fitted to a hired forklift?
Yes, fork extensions are available on most models in our range on request. Describe the actual load shape rather than just its weight, since a longer or awkward load often needs an extension rather than standard forks to handle it safely. A standing arrangement can also be set up for a yard that regularly needs the same extension fitted, so it travels out automatically with every booking.
What UK rules cover using a forklift at work?
The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 set out duties for equipment used at work, forklifts included. Coppard checks and records every machine before hire, so that side is sorted before it leaves our yard. Training the operator stays the responsibility of the hirer. This matters just as much for a short one-day hire as it does for a longer running contract. This matters just as much for a short one-day hire as for a longer running contract across several weeks.
Looking for Forklift Hire near me?
Call Coppard at 01380 828988 to discuss which forklift fits your yard, and to book a delivery date.
