Everything You Need to Know About Piano MovingPosted by Nick Niesen on October 26th, 2010 Moving can be a very stressful time in a person?s life, especially if he or she has not hired appropriate help to move their furniture. Piano moves can be especially stressful, because the mover needs to have special knowledge and skills to safely move the piano. In this article I have outline a few frequently asked questions about piano moving in order to help understand what is involved in moving a piano and prepare you with the information to choose the right mover. At the end of the article, I have listed some questions that you can ask to help you choose your piano mover, as well as the information that you should have ready in order for the mover to be sufficiently prepared for your move. Why do I need to hire a professional piano mover? Many of you may be wondering why you would need to hire a professional piano moving company to move your piano, rather than using the household mover who is moving the rest of the contents of your house. The main reason for hiring a professional piano mover is that many household movers do not have adequate training or equipment to properly move a piano. The average upright piano weighs between 400 and 900 pounds. Grand pianos can weigh between 650 and 1300 pounds. The value of a piano can vary from a few hundred dollars to 500,000 dollars depending on the make, model, age and condition of the piano. The majority of piano moves involve moving the instrument through a tight space such as a small door frame or staircase. In some cases, the piano may need to be dismantled in order to get it out of your house. Using and experienced professional piano mover will drastically minimize the risk of damage to the instrument and to your home. As a piano mover, I have come across many cases where a customer has hired a household piano mover to move their piano and has had to make an emergency call to us because the household mover could not get the piano out of his or her house. In other cases, I have received calls from customers who had hired a non-reliable piano mover because their price was much lower, and had to book an emergency move with us, because that piano mover did not show up to move their piano or call to explain why they were not there. How are pianos moved? When you hire a professional piano mover, you can expect 2-3 people to come to your home equipped with piano skids, moving pads, ramps, slings, and the knowledge of how to move your piano safely. They will use special techniques to maneuver the piano out of your house. When the piano is put on the truck, it will be safely secured to the vehicle in order to avoid damage during transport. In the most difficult moves, 4-6 people may be used. Generally when a piano is moved by someone other than a professional piano mover, this equipment, knowledge and these safety precautions are not employed. While hiring a professional piano mover does not completely eliminate the risk of damage, it will drastically reduce this risk. Furthermore, a good piano mover will assess the situation and inform you if there is a chance of damage before he or she begins the move, and will give you the option of proceeding or not. Are all professional piano movers equal? Unfortunately, as in any trade, each piano moving company varies in their level of quality and experience. Some piano movers are better equipped and more prepared than others and act with more care and integrity than others. The best way to find a good piano mover is to call around to your local piano stores, piano technicians and piano teachers to find out which company they use. Piano stores in particular have a high stake in ensuring that they use reliable, high quality piano movers who have the least risk of damaging their instruments and are properly insured in the event that the unforeseen does happen. Are all piano movers similarly insured? Sadly, the answer to this question is no. Why is worker injury important to me? You may be wondering why it is important that you ensure that the piano mover you hire has Workman?s Safety Insurance. When you contract a moving company, they are considered your employee for the time that they are working for you. If you hire a moving company that is not covered for Workman?s Safety Insurance, you are accepting full liability for any employees who are injured while working for you. Your liability will extend to medical bills, lost wages and possibly civil law suits. A company who is covered for Workman?s Safety Insurance will take care of most of these problems for you. Some companies do not pay their required insurance premiums and are therefore not covered for all injury insurance claims. You may ask the company that you are hiring to provide you with an up-to-date workman?s safety insurance clearance certificate, in order to ensure that you are properly covered. To be absolutely sure that the moving company?s coverage is up to date, you can contact your local Workman?s Compensation or Workman?s Safety Insurance board to check on the company?s status. Does moving the piano affect the sound of my piano? The actual move of the piano does not affect the sound or tuning of a piano. Generally piano tuning is affected by changes in temperature and humidity which cause the wooden and steel parts of your piano to expand and contract. You will probably need to tune your piano a few weeks after moving it, after it acclimatizes to its new location. Other factors that may affect the sound of your piano are the size and acoustics of the room in which the piano is located. Carpet absorbs sound, while hardwood reflects it. Sound reinforces in small spaces, seeming louder, while in large spaces the sound gets lost, seeming quieter. How much does it cost to move a piano? Piano moving is generally billed in one of two ways: How much notice do I need to give the Piano Mover? The amount of notice needed will depend on when and where you need the piano to be moved. Most piano movers book their deliveries on a first come, first served basis. If it is a high traffic time of year, you may need up to one month?s notice. In a lower traffic time of year, you may only need one or two day? notice. Generally, if you need your piano moved on a specific day, you should book the delivery well in advance to make sure it?s available to you. Below are listed some recommended questions to ask when you are looking to hire a piano mover: 1.How long have you been moving pianos? Listed below is the information that you should have prepared when you book your piano move: 1.What type of piano is it that you require to be moved? (Upright or Grand Piano) The more information you can provide the piano mover, the more accurate your quote will be. If you are vague and provide few details, do not be surprised if you incur extra charges for your move. A good, reputable piano mover will make the process as painless as possible for you and usually be the highlight and most stress-free part of your whole moving process. They key is ensuring that the mover meets all of your requirements and providing them with the information they need to help you properly. Like it? Share it!More by this author |