5 Tips for Taking Care of Your Piano
A piano is an organic instrument made from many mechanical parts including wood – which expands and contracts depending on climate – as well as felt, cloth and wool. Each time it is played, its internal workings shift slightly. This means pianos do go out of tune and their sound may change over time.
These five top tips for piano care should help you keep your piano sounding its best.
1. Choose a good position
Positioning your piano in a room that has a fairly stable temperature will help to keep in well maintained. You may hear people say “choose an internal wall”. This is because internal walls tend to be more stable in temperature than external walls.
2. Keep the room temperature even
Don’t expose your piano to variations in heat and cool. Avoid placing your piano on a wall which is west-facing and exposed as these walls get hot in summer and can cause variation in temperature. Keep your piano away from the air conditioner, heater and open fireplace.
3. Keep your piano hydrated
If you have an older piano (made before about 1930) it is a good idea to place a bowl of water in the bottom of the piano to keep it ‘hydrated’. This will help with the expansion and contraction of the pianos wooden components. A small margarine container is perfect. Check regularly and top up as required.
4. Tune your piano regularly
Pianos should be tuned regularly – we recommend an annual tuned annually by a professional piano tuner. Your piano tuner can advise you on what your piano needs if it hasn’t been tuned for a while.
5. Have your piano regulated ocasionally
Over time, changes in the wood, wool, felt and cloth elements can affect how your piano feels to play and how it sounds. Regulation is like an in-depth service for your piano. Tuning is about pitch and focuses on the strings and pins, while regulation means adjusting the mechanical parts of a piano.
Piano Moves
We move pianos all over Melbourne, country Victoria, Brisbane and South East Queensland as well as interstate. We also provide piano tuning, storage and hire. Call our friendly team on 1300 553 592 or 03 9580 7788 to discuss your needs.
