Construction forklift covers three different machines, and picking the wrong one is the usual reason a hire goes badly. A rough terrain straight mast lifts high and straight on uneven ground. A telehandler reaches forward as well as up. A warehouse truck does neither outdoors. Rates run from about $250 a day for a small rough terrain mast to well past $500 for a big telehandler.
Three machines answer to the same phrase
A straight mast rough terrain forklift is a mast truck on big tires, often with side shift and sometimes with a swinging carriage for unloading trailers. A telehandler puts a boom where the mast was. A warehouse forklift has small solid tires and belongs on a slab. Yards stock all three and will ask which you mean.
Tires are the whole point
Cushion tires are solid rubber for smooth concrete and will bog down in a rutted lot. Pneumatic tires carry a machine across gravel and packed dirt. Foam filled pneumatics do the same without picking up a nail on a site full of offcuts, and most rough terrain rental fleet is specified that way for exactly that reason.
Straight mast or telehandler
A straight mast is cheaper, simpler and better at repeatedly unloading deliveries at ground level. A telehandler earns its money when a load has to travel forward over an obstacle or onto a deck, which a mast cannot do at all. Masonry and lumber unloading often runs a mast; framing and roof loads want the boom.
What the yard adds to the rate
Haul out and back on a trailer sized to the machine, fuel returned full, the damage waiver as its own line, and any attachment beyond the standard forks. On a rough terrain machine also ask about the swing carriage and side shift, because a unit without them makes trailer unloading slow enough to cost you a day.
Questions people ask about construction forklift rental
Can a warehouse forklift work on a jobsite?
On a poured, level, dry slab it can. On gravel, mud or any grade it will get stuck, and its small tires drop into every rut. If the ground is not finished concrete, hire the rough terrain machine and skip the recovery call.
What size do I need for a masonry delivery?
Cube loads of block and bagged material usually sit inside a 6,000 lb machine, and the height needed is the trailer bed plus a lift, not a roof line. If the same machine must also feed a second floor scaffold, that is the point where a telehandler earns the extra cost.
Will the yard deliver a rough terrain forklift?
Yes, on a trailer sized to the machine, and the charge is quoted each way. Give them the site access details when booking, because a machine that cannot be offloaded at the gate turns into a return trip you also pay for.