For hundreds of years, the piano has been one of the most popular musical instruments and a fixture in many family homes. Whether for your children’s education or your own enjoyment, a piano has pride of place in any room. A piano in the house provides a novel form of entertainment in everyday life or on special occasions. However, a piano is a big investment, and certain steps should be taken to protect it.
Leave Piano Moving to the Professionals
After purchase, the first hurdle for piano owners is getting the instrument into the home. A full upright piano (the most common type for a home setting) is about five feet wide and almost as tall, and generally weighs somewhere around 300 pounds.
To transport something so large and unwieldy is a delicate process which presents serious safety concerns. Attempting to move a piano yourself is a guaranteed hassle and, if done wrong, a catastrophe. Hiring the services of professional st. petersburg fl piano movers ensures your instrument is handled with the requisite care.
The Well-Tempered Clavier
However meticulous you are about maintenance, all pianos eventually go out of tune. You can prolong the time your piano keeps its proper pitch by keeping it under climate-controlled conditions with relatively low humidity. Too much humidity will warp the wooden parts of a piano, including the keys.
At some point, your piano will sound noticeably off-key and will have to be re-tuned. Inside the solid piano case is a complex network of numerous fragile components. Due to this complexity, the tuning process requires a great deal of technical skill. Unless you are a qualified piano tuner, this is another area which should be entrusted to the experts.
Cleaning and Polishing Your Piano
A piano is a notoriously finicky musical instrument. In a domestic environment, it is also effectively an item of furniture. If you think of and treat your piano as both things, you can take appropriate actions to keep your instrument in the best possible shape.
It’s best to keep liquids well away from your piano, as a spill can destroy the inside of the instrument. Likewise, getting dust between the keys can hinder performance. To avoid accidental damage, most people keep the piano lid closed when the instrument is not being played. Depending on the finish, the lid may be dusted lightly with a cloth or vacuum cleaner.
With a well-tended piano, you can find amusement in tickling the ivories for decades to come. Perform regular maintenance to make the most of your instrument.
