Frequently asked questions.
Why Do Pianos Need Tuning?
First, new pianos are a special case; their pitch drops quickly for the first few years as the new strings stretch and wood parts settle. It’s very important that a new piano be maintained at proper pitch (A-440) during this period, so the string tension and piano structure can reach stable equilibrium. Most manufacturers recommend three to four tunings the first year, and at least two annually after that.
Aside from this initial settling, seasonal change is the primary reason pianos go out of tune. To understand why, you must realize that the piano’s main acoustical structure, the soundboard, is made of wood (typically 3/8-inch thick Sitka spruce). And while the wooden soundboards produce a wonderful sound, they also react constantly to weather. As humidity goes up, a soundboard swells, increasing its crowned shape and stretching the piano’s strings to a higher pitch. During dry times, the soundboard flattens out, lowering tension on he strings and causing the pitch to drop.
Unfortunately, the strings don’t change pitch equally. Those near the soundboard’s edge move the least, and those near the center move the most. So, unless it’s in a hermetically sealed chamber, every piano is constantly going out of tune!
The good news is there are some simple things you can do to keep your piano sounding sweet and harmonious between regular service appointments. Although it’s impossible to prevent every minor variation in indoor climate, you can often improve conditions for your piano.
Start by locating the piano away from direct sunlight, drafts, and heat sources. Excess heating causes extreme dryness, so try to keep the temperature moderate (below 70 degrees) during the winter heating season.
Get a portable room humidifier, or install a central humidification system to combat winter dryness in climates with very cold, dry winters. A portable dehumidifier or a dehumidifier added to your air-conditioning system can remove excess moisture during hot, muggy summers.
If controlling your home’s environment is impractical, or if you want the best protection possible, have a humidity control system installed inside your piano. These are very effective in controlling the climate within the instrument itself. Besides improving tuning stability, they help minimize the constant swelling and shrinking of your piano’s wooden parts. The critical part of such a system is the humidistat, a device that monitors the relative humidity within the piano and adds or removes moisture as needed. Jars of water, light bulbs, or other “home remedies” have no such control and can actually do more harm than good.
How Often Should I Have My Piano Tuned?
A piano typically needs to be tuned at least once a year, with twice a year being the general recommendation to maintain its pitch and condition, especially in an average household. However, new pianos, pianos in humid or temperature-varying environments, or pianos that are played frequently may require more frequent tunings, potentially up to four to six times per year.
General Recommendations
A minimum of one tuning per year is sufficient for many pianos to maintain a tolerable level of tune.
Tuning every six months is a good practice for most average users and recommended by the industry to account for seasonal changes in temperature and humidity. Some clients schedule tunings every quarter. This happens usually in churches where the piano is accompanied by large bands and orchestras.
Factors Influencing Frequency
Age of the Piano:
New pianos require more frequent tuning, possibly four times in the first year, as their strings stretch and settle into their environment.
Environment:
Fluctuations in humidity and temperature cause the piano's wood and strings to expand and contract, affecting its tuning. Pianos in stable, climate-controlled environments need less frequent tuning.
Usage:
Frequent playing puts more stress on the piano's strings, making it go out of tune more quickly.
Professional vs. Home Use:
Pianos in professional settings, like concert halls or recording studios, or those used in classrooms, may need tuning weekly, before sessions, or even more frequently to maintain absolute accuracy.
What is an Action Regulation?
Piano action regulation is the process of meticulously adjusting and balancing the complex mechanical parts of a piano to restore its original responsiveness and consistency, compensating for the wear and tear of use, and changes caused by humidity. This intricate work involves detailed adjustments to around 35-40 different settings and parts within the "action" (key-to-hammer mechanism), "trapwork" (pedal connections), and "damper system" (string-stopping mechanism) to ensure a predictable and uniform touch for the pianist.
What happens during action regulation?
Replacing Worn Parts:
The first step is to identify and replace any parts that are too worn to be adjusted, such as compressed felt or leather, or broken components.
Fine-Tuning Adjustments:
Skilled technicians make hundreds of tiny, precise adjustments to parts like regulating screws, keys, and levers.
Ensuring Uniformity:
The goal is to make every note feel and respond identically, providing a consistent and reliable playing experience for the pianist.
Correcting Mechanical Issues:
Regulation addresses symptoms of wear, including uneven key height or dip, keys that are slow to repeat, loss of touch, or a general lack of responsiveness.
Why is it necessary?
Wear and Tear:
Over time, felt parts compress and leather wears, altering the mechanical relationships within the action.
Humidity and Temperature:
Fluctuations in humidity can cause wood parts to swell and shrink, impacting the action's alignment and performance.
Player Experience:
A well-regulated piano allows the pianist to control the full range of dynamics and expression, making it easier to produce beautiful music.
How often is it needed?
The frequency of regulation depends on the piano's use, age, and environment.
New Pianos: Often require their first regulation within 6 to 12 months of purchase.
Regular Use: Typically need regulation every 5 to 10 years.
Professional/Studio Use: Pianos used for performance or in studios may benefit from annual regulation.
A piano technician can assess an instrument and determine if it is due for regulation, helping to maintain its playability and longevity.
Why Do You Only Schedule Services On Fridays?
A piano is a very complex instrument and only responds to service on Fridays.
Just kidding.
The reason we only service pianos on Fridays is because Javan is a full time worship pastor at Baxley Church of God in Baxley, Georgia. On Monday - Thursday you’ll find him at the church 9am - 5pm and of course on Wednesday Nights and Sundays. He reserves his Saturdays to spend with his family. However, in very special cases, Javan will schedule on a week night or Saturday if the need arises. We will do everything we can to accommodate you but please be mindful that Javan’s number one priority is first his family and his ministry then J. Anderson Piano Services.
Does A Piano Need Tuning After It’s Moved?
It depends. The piano is a complex instrument, with over too individual strings and thousands of moving parts. Each string must be painstakingly adjusted to put the piano in tune. Even the tiniest change in a string’s tension can be heard by a practiced ear.
You might think, then, that trucking a piano down the highway or even rolling down a hall could “knock it out of tune.” However, pianos are actually quite tough. They’re built to withstand up to 20 tons of string tension and decades of heavy usage, so the physical movement of a piano usually has very little effect on its tuning or other adjustments.
It’s the climate change associated with the move, rather than the actually move itself, that makes pianos go out of tune. A substantial difference in humidity between its previous location and its new home will change the shape of the piano’s soundboard, changing tension on the strings.
For instance, a well-tuned piano moved fifty miles from a heated, dry apartment to a cool, humid home will sound fine immediately after the move. But a week later, after adjusting to the higher humidity, the piano will sound out of tune. Even moving a piano from one room to another in the same building can affect it if heating or air-conditioning patterns are different.
An exception is the vertical piano. Because they have four casters (grands have three), they occasionally flex enough to distort there tuning pattern immediately if moved to an uneven floor. Moving the piano back to a flat surface will return the tuning to normal. This is most noticeable with light built spinets and consoles, and can occur simply by moving the piano a few inches if one caster rolls off the carpeting or into a low spot on the floor.
So, do you have to tune your piano after moving it? Pianos need periodic tuning anyway, whether they are moved or not, so it’s likely that a piano that has just been moved was already due for tuning before the move. If so, it’s best to let the piano adjust to its new environment for a week or two, then have it tuned. On the other hand, if the piano had been recently tuned before the move, you might just hold off and see how the piano sounds after a few weeks. If the climate of the new location is similar to the old, your piano will probably sound fine until its next regular service date.
Does J. Anderson Piano Services Sell Pianos?
We are not a piano retailer. However, we do offer free consignment services. Meaning, we will market the “evaluated” piano that you are selling as if it was from us. You get the money you want for it and I charge the buyer the delivery and tuning fee on top of that. If you are the buyer, just reach out to us and we will find a piano for you. We work with several used and new piano dealers.
I Found a Piano For Free Online. Should I Get It?
Short Answer. No. Most pianos for free online have a tremendous amount of problems. However, sometimes you may get lucky. Usually if someone is selling one for a price, that means they have put money into it and it may be in better shape. You can always reach out to us and we will help you find the right piano! We know what brands are good and which ones to stay away from.
Does It Hurt My Piano When Kids Pound On It?
Because it’s so annoying, the racket of keys struck at random may rattle your nerves, but it won’t damage the piano.
Most pianos are built to withstand very heavy use. Next time you see a serious pianist perform a flamboyant classical piece, notice how forcefully he or she attacks the keyboard. Or listen to how hard your tuner pounds each key when tuning your piano. In comparison, a child’s small hands couldn’t possibly play that hard.
The real danger of children playing with, as opposed to playing, a piano is that they often can’t resist dropping small toys inside, slipping coins into the slots between the keys, or running toys across the finish.
But remember that music exists to give pleasure. Encourage your child to have fun with the piano, not to be afraid of it. Don’t worry if young children play haphazardly and loudly. If you teach respect for the instrument and they discover how enjoyable playing can be, they’ll treat it properly. And if your children learn that playing the piano is fun, you won’t have to plead with them to practice when they’re older.
How Long Will A Piano Last?
Pianos are among the most durable of personal possessions. Admired for their fine cabinetry and treasured for their beautiful sound, pianos usually lead a pampered life in the best room of the house. They’re often thought of as permanent family fixtures, passed down to children and grandchildren. Their large size and weight give them the illusion of being able to last forever.
While pianos do last a long time, remember they’re really just large machines made of wood, felt and metal. Over the years, seasonal changes take their toll, stressing the wooden parts and straining glue joints. Felt hammers are pounded flat after thousands of collisions with the piano’s strings, and metal parts corrode and weaken. Years of friction wear out the one thousand felt bushings in the action. How long a piano will last varies greatly, depending upon maintenance and repair, usage, climate, and quality of manufacture.
Here’s a sketch of the life cycle of a typical home piano:
First Year
The pitch of a new piano drops considerably, as the new strings stretch and the structure settles. If the piano receives the manufacturer’s recommended three to four tunings during this time, it will stay at the correct pitch, allowing strings and structure to reach a stable equilibrium. Without these important first tunings, any later tuning will involve a large pitch raise, leaving the piano unstable.
Two to Ten Years
The pitch stabilizes, assuming regular tunings (and additional climate control devices if needed). The mechanical parts of the piano’s action wear and settle too. This causes two changes: first, the touch of the piano becomes less responsive as the parts go out of adjustment. Secondly, the tone changes as the hammers flatten and grooves develop from repeated collisions with the strings. Periodic regulation and voicing, important parts of a complete maintenance program, correct these changes.
Ten to Thirty Years
Wear of action parts continues, the extent depending upon how hard and how often the piano is played. Normal regulation and voicing will maintain good tone and touch if usage is moderate.
If the piano suffers wide temperature and humidity swings, it will being to show permanent deterioration during this time: loose tuning pins, rusty strings, soundboard cracks, and aging of the finish.
Thirty to Fifty Years
After years of playing, the hammers and other action parts will be quite worn. Years of seasonal changes cause bass strings to sound dull and treble tone to lost clarity. Eventually, adjustment alone will not correct these problems, and some parts will need replacing to restore the original tone and touch.
Over Fifty Years.
A few geographic areas with mild climates have older pianos still in good condition. Well-built, well-designed pianos can still be playable at this advanced age if they’ve had good care and moderate use.
However, at some point in a piano’s life, an important decision must be made:
Should the piano be replaced? Is its life over?
Should it be reconditioned or rebuilt (made functionally new again)?
Should it continue to limp along with an ever worsening tone and touch?
The needs of the pianist are the real variable in judging a piano’s useful life. Good performance requires a piano in good condition.
Older, high-quality instruments can often be rebuilt to like-new condition for less than the cost of a new piano. Even economy grade instruments can often be dramatically improved by judicious reconditioning. Your piano technician can help you make this decision.
Eventually, it becomes les and less practical to continue maintaining a very old piano. The undeniable end of a piano’s life comes when the repair cost exceeds the value of the repaired instrument. Medium-quality old uprights reach this point sooner than do high-quality large grands. Rare and historically important instruments may never reach this point unless totally damaged in a fire or other disaster.
Happily, almost any piano that has received reasonable care will have served the art of music for decades by the time its days are over.