rosefarts

So here is the "not on a budget" option. Pedal Truck

Pretty sure if you got one with an E-bike conversion kit, that you could run a landscaping business out of this thing.

It'd carry chairs and maybe a loveseat if you're half crazy. Nothing is going to carry a couch.

I'm not car free but I'm recently truck free (and still have mixed feelings about it). Lowes will rent you a truck for $20, you get it for 90 minutes. It's designed for people like me, who might want a bunch of stuff from their store with no real way to get it home. The thrift stores I've been to have always had a pile of furniture that's being held, so that must be an option. Buy it on your bike, ride home, rent the truck and pick it up.

Funny thing about the trajectory trucks have taken, I had a 1995 Toyota T100 and it was just about right. Anything new is so big, bulky, and less fuel efficient than the 90's and early 00's. The entire industry moved away from people who enjoyed 20+ mpg, didn't mind a few dents, and didn't have anything large to tow. If I bought a new truck today, it would probably be 25 years old just to avoid the "features" I don't want.

Maelochs

I have a friend (no, really) a musician who did a sponsored "Bike across America" solo ride to raise money to fight cancer. He carried his 12-string, a battery/generator, tiny PA, mic, and all his other gear in big sealable plastic bins on a trailer like the one i post #23. (I have pics somewhere but who knows where?)

His load was probably a quarter ton ... using replaceable big-box bikes, because five of them cost less than one really nice bike and pulling that load, those distances, even a nice bike could break. He had more trouble with the trailers ( he tried a couple as I recall) with hitches and wheels and bearings breaking .... but he made it, busking for money along the way.

As @soyabean notes, throughout southeast and east Asia, bikes are considered tools and are used to haul ... whatever. The bike is just used, no one thinks about what the bike can stand .... if the bike can't hack it, build a new one out of scraps, like the old one was probably built.

I have seen rickshaws operated at auto races, where some college kid hauls two full-sized Mid-Westerners around .... that load has Got to be over 500 pounds ... but steel is steel, and gears are gears, and the bike is after all, just a complex machine---a series of simple machines assembled so as to convert human energy into motion.

For not a lot of money (so long as you are willing to replace your cheesy cheap bike frequently (and even less if you are willing to maintain it) you can run a lawn-service business on a bike. Just figure 5-7 mph average transit speed, bring a ton of water and sports drink, and on your way home each day, collect all the scrap bikes you see to use for parts.

Chuck M 

Pulled a lawnmower all over town behind my Flying-O when I was a boy. Fortunately by the time I was old enough to worry about how to haul home furnishings, I had better resources and options.

tomato coupe

I tried to pull my lawnmower with my gravel bike, but it didn't go well. Would waxing my chain save enough watts to make a difference? FYI: my present setup is 50/34 with a 12-29 11-spd cassette, the mower weighs 1400 lbs. and, other than a short (2.3 mile) 10% grade, my route is fairly flat.

phughes

Here, the very best bicycle cargo trailers available. https://www.bikesatwork.com

Maelochs

^Those folks are going to hit some hills .... and their wonderful trailers won't seem so wonderful.

The good part is, the trailer helps hold the bike upright as you push it.

phughes

A lot of people use those trailers. They are very good. People use them every day, and are great for what they're designed for. The company has been around since 1991. They stay in business because their trailers are perfect for those who need them.