Whether you're a hobby musician, a piano teacher, or just a patron of the arts, your piano is probably one of your favorite pieces of furniture. But unlike your other furniture, it has several idiosyncrasies that make it a real challenge to transport. In order to move it safely on your own, you'd need to be equipped with not only superhuman strength but also specialized piano moving equipment and lots of experience. Here are three reasons why you should go the professional route whenever you have to move your piano any farther than the next room.
1. Pianos are incredibly heavy
Although you may not realize it until you start pushing, your smallish upright piano could actually weigh five hundred pounds. This not only makes it extremely hard to lift but also puts you (and any friends who help you) in peril if you attempt to move it without the correct experience and equipment. Professional movers use blankets and straps and piano dollies, among other things, to help them move pianos safely. Since pianos should always be carried rather than pushed (the wheels installed on the piano are usually too small for its weight and tend to freeze up and start gouging the floor), correct moving requires a lot of manpower. This can make for an extremely hazardous situation in tight areas such as stairwells, where there may only be room for one or two people at each end. In this situation, gravity causes almost all of the piano's weight to rest on the person or people downhill of it, which can be completely overwhelming if you're trying to deal with a 500-pound instrument and a long staircase.
2. Pianos often have valuable, easily damaged surfaces
This may not be the case if you got your piano for free online, but many pianos have a beautiful, glossy finish that can easily be marred by scratches. When you're moving an object that weighs hundreds of pounds, its momentum can cause it to scrape against things very hard and its enormous, unwieldy size can make it difficult to maneuver around danger spots.
3. Pianos are finely balanced musical instruments
If you've moved with a piano before, you know that pianos require tuning after transportation because their internal working parts are so sensitive to the vibrations and humidity encountered during transport. If one of these sensitive instruments is improperly handled during the move, it can easily suffer damage that will be extremely costly to repair. Pianos are much less sturdy than they look, which is why it's important to use a company that specializes in safe piano moving rather than just choosing an experienced general mover.
These three reasons show why you should never attempt to move a piano to your new house by yourself and should instead hire a professional piano mover, like Extreme Piano Moving. If you ever need to move your piano from one room to another, make sure you have plenty of manpower available and no staircases along the route. If you do have a staircase along the way (especially a long, narrow one), don't be embarrassed to call in the professionals just for that. Piano movers understand how tricky the process can be and will be happy to help you get your beloved piano safely where it needs to go.
Share18 April 2016
After my company merged with another business in another country, I realized they might be asking some of us to relocate to a new area. I was nervous about the idea, but I realized that if I wanted to keep moving up, it might be necessary to move. I decided to volunteer, and my bosses really appreciated my willingness to work with their changing business model. However, I realized that moving might be expensive, so I spent a little time estimating my moving costs before I negotiated my relocation package. This blog is all about figuring out your moving expenses so that you don't get stuck with a steep bill.
