Although the damage to the piano in the picture above was
caused by a severe accident or vandalism, a piano may have
unseen damage from a variety of causes.
Your piano tuner/technician can note any items of concern
during regular tuning visits. Below are some potential issues
and guidelines related to purchasing and maintaining your
instrument.
Issues:
Issue - Pre-purchase evaluation
Guidelines - You should have a tuner/technician look over a
used piano before purchasing one. I am often called to tune a
used piano that was recently purchased and moved into
someone’s home. In several cases, the piano was not worth
moving and the new owner was unaware of serious issues
with the condition of the instrument. The previous owner
was either unaware of its condition or didn't want to pay to
have it scrapped, so they gave it away. On the other hand,
I've seen used pianos that were a terrific bargain. Most piano
tuners cringe when they get a call to come tune a "free
piano" since it could be in any condition. It's not a pleasant
experience to tell someone that the instrument they just
obtained is not repairable, without significant cost, or that it
cannot be tuned.
Considerations:
•
You don't necessarily avoid a used piano that needs
some repairs. But a piano tuner/technician can provide
an estimate of what it will take to restore it to good
playable condition.
•
There are many items to be checked prior to purchase
that you will not be able to detect yourself. These would
include condition of: pitch (and related implications),
pinblock, bridge, strings, pins, action, hammers, felt,
pedals, regulation, sound board, humidity-related
environmental issues, rodent damage, etc. It is well
worth an evaluation fee to know you avoided a problem
instrument.
•
There are some pianos that
are no longer tunable due to
age and conditions caused
by temperature and
humidity damage. A
technician can tell you if
the piano will be able to be
tuned. Two of the most
common issues are dryness
(affecting tuning stability)
and corrosion (as shown in the photo).
•
Is the piano close to concert pitch (A=440). If not, that
doesn't necessarily mean much other than it hasn't been
tuned for a long time and will need a pitch-raise. But it
could also indicate that the tuning pins are loose and the
pinblock has dried out.
•
If the seller states that "it has been a few years since it
was tuned", experience has revealed that this usually
does NOT mean a literal duration of several years. It
often indicates that it has been many years since the last
tuning.
•
Generally speaking, the condition of a used piano will
be discussed privately with the prospective purchaser
once the instrument has been evaluated. There may be
things to discuss that are between the technician and the
prospective buyer that could contradict or offend the
seller if discussed in their presence. The purchaser who
is paying for the evaluation wants to make an informed
decision. The owner / seller is not entitled to a free
evaluation. However, if the prospective buyer wants to
share the information with the seller, that is their choice.
Issue - The “Free” or Donated Piano
Guidelines - Piano technicians find that pianos that are in
the worst condition are often a free or donated piano. It’s not
uncommon that the previous owner had already suspected
that the condition of the piano was questionable. The
instrument may have reached a condition where it cannot be
tuned, with mechanical parts that are too costly to repair.
Receiving such a donation or free piano can actually cost
money.
For an excellent article on how a church or an institution can
avoid donations of inappropriate instruments, see this link on
pianobuyer.com where having a written guideline for the
donation of used pianos can solve some issues before they
happen. Below is an excerpt adapted from the referenced
article. These guidelines are intended for a church, school, or
non-profit organization but are a good general guide.
Sample Guidelines for the Donation of Used Pianos:
•
No spinets (some organizations also say no console
models either). Small pianos 36″ to 43″ tall were built
for home use and won’t have the durability and sound
needed. Spinets and consoles with freestanding front
legs unsupported by toe blocks won’t hold up well if the
piano is frequently moved. Spinets are also more costly
to repair due to their compact design.
•
No grand pianos smaller than 5′ 6″. Most grands
smaller than this are not made to survive the hard life of
an institutional piano, and they lack the longer bass
strings and the projection needed to produce enough
sound to fill a large space. Attempts to get a big sound
from a small piano inevitably result in broken strings
and other damage.
•
No pianos over 20 years old, except, perhaps, premium
brands such as Steinway and Mason & Hamlin.
•
No Chinese, Indonesian, or Korean pianos made
before 2000. Today, most of these brands are well made,
but anything made before 2000 could have problems
that may be expensive to service. Many older Chinese,
Indonesian, and Korean pianos were designed as as
consumer-grade instruments for the home market.
•
No Imported pianos not made for the American
market. Imported pianos intended for North America
are seasoned to minimize the damage caused by extreme
dryness. Pianos made for other parts of the world (so-
called gray-market pianos) may be more susceptible to
environmental damages.
•
Piano must have a current evaluation by a piano
technician. Despite a venerable brand name, any piano
may have been in a fire, a flood, a wet basement, or
been damaged by mice, spillage, abuse, or simply be too
costly to service & repair.
•
Valuable old premium-quality grands need to come
with an estimate of needed repairs. Churches and
institutions may also require a corresponding donation
for reconditioning or rebuilding. Having a Steinway, for
example, but not not one that can be used due to its
condition or cost of repair, is of limited value.
Issue - Damage caused by cleaning sprays and chemicals
Guidelines - It's great to keep your piano looking good,
shiny and free of dust. But there have been piano owners
haphazardly causing significant damage using cleaning and
dusting sprays. A technician friend knew a customer who
was determined to take good care of their new piano and
dusted it several times a week using a common household
dusting spray. Within about a year, enough spray had gotten
into the pinblock around the tuning pins that the damage was
permanent. The only solution was a new pin-block and
tuning pins. The cost to repair would be in the thousands of
dollars.
Keep the following in mind:
•
Dusting spray on the piano, or even its use on furniture
in the same room, will likely get into the tuning pins.
This can cause pins to become loose and eventually the
piano will not hold a tuning. Sprays such as Pledge or
Liquid Gold may contain chemicals that will damage
pianos or interact with an older piano finish. Do not use
this type of product on the piano including the keys.
•
In addition to the impact on tuning pins, older pianos
may have a finish that can become sticky from use of
modern cleaning chemicals. (One of my customers had
an older piano bench that became very sticky as a result
of cleaning chemicals.)
•
For dusting and cleaning, a very small amount of white
vinegar (e.g. a teaspoon of white vinegar in a spray
bottle of water) is suggested by piano experts as a
cleaning solution. Mixing in some Windex should be ok
for cleaning keys. Windex contains some ammonia that
should be fine. However, other brands of glass cleaner
could have some other additives. Therefore we cannot
speak confidently about the other brands.
Issue - Cleaning and polishing the piano
Guidelines
•
Wash a new rag before use to remove any dyes or oils
that may be in the cloth.
•
Do NOT use any cleaning spray or cleaning chemicals
anywhere on or near the piano. These chemicals can
find their way into the tuning pins and make the tuning
unstable.
•
For dusting and cleaning, a very small amount of white
vinegar (e.g. a teaspoon of white vinegar in a spray
bottle of water) can be used as dusting spray. Spray onto
the rag, then use to dust and remove fingerprints.
(Fingerprints are especially visual distraction on the
high-polish pianos.)
•
Some "micro-fiber" cleaning cloths may be somewhat
abrasive and could dull a high-gloss polyester finishes.
A soft cotton cloth may be better.
•
For old keys that have some dirt stuck on them, the
vinegar solution tends to work. Mixing in some Windex
should be OK for cleaning keys. Windex contains some
ammonia that should be fine. However, other brands of
glass cleaner could have some other additives. Therefore
we cannot speak confidently about the other brands.
There is also a special piano key cleaner (called "Key
Brite") available specifically for cleaning piano keys.
Issue - Accidental or well-meaning lubricants
Guidelines
•
Do NOT try to lubricate anything in or on your piano.
There are a few parts where lubrication is necessary. But
many lubricant types should NOT be used. Your
technician knows what type of lubricant is appropriate
and for which parts.
•
If the piano is close to the kitchen, note that when
cooking bacon or anything greasy, the grease is easily
carried through the air. If you smell the bacon, the
grease is probably in the air and could be lubricating the
tuning pins, especially in a grand piano. Use the
fan/filter in your cooking hood to reduce this possibility.
•
Grease / lubricant should not be used near a piano. I had
one customer, many years ago, try to remedy rusty
looking strings and tuning pins by spraying WD-40 all
over the pins and strings which ruined the piano. Check
with your piano tuner before attempting to fix "sticky
keys" yourself. Most of us would much rather give out
free advice on the phone than see someone ruin their
piano.
•
Your piano technician uses some special lubricants that
are NOT petroleum-based. These special lubricants are
specifically formulated for the piano industry and do not
contain sticky lubricants or grease. This works great
since most of the piano actions have moving parts where
a metal pin turns in a felt-lined hole. The special
lubricants lubricate this mechanism with a non-greasy
lubricant that cleans the contact surface. It then
evaporates away leaving the surfaces to move and
function as designed with no sticky residue that will
cause problems later.
Issue - Humidity along with temperature is a top cause
for piano damage and tuning instability
Guidelines - To have a reasonable chance of being able to
pass your piano on to future generations, humidity needs to
be managed.
Considerations:
•
Relative humidity should be maintained between 40 and
50 percent.
•
The best approach is to manage the building/room
humidity. If you are not sure what your humidity level
is, you can get a humidistat for roughly $10 that will
help you keep an eye on it. Some of the newer
communicating thermostats also have a built-in
humidity sensor and some can even be read remotely via
your cell phone.
•
A second approach is a room humidifier. You can obtain
these for well under $100. Although some of these
contain humidity sensors and automatic operation, you
will probably want to keep an eye on the room humidity
to see if you need to adjust the settings and fan speed.
•
A third approach is to have your piano technician install
a "Dampp-Chaser" system inside your piano. These
manage both high and low humidity automatically.
However, you will need to add water to the internal
container whenever the add-
water light indicates. These are a
bit pricy, but for an expensive
instrument they are a good
investment over the long term.
GR Horst has become certified
by the manufacturer as a trained
installer of the Dampp-Chaser system.
Example of corrosion on
strings and pins
Issues in Piano
Selection and Care: