Moving Your Piano In the Winter? Things You Should Know

Sometimes, you have to move during the colder, winter months. A new year, a new home, a new job and a new place to settle. One of the biggest (literally) challenges you may face is moving your piano from the comfort of your home to a new one. Accomplishing this challenge may become harmful to your physical body, and especially your piano. We know you love your piano and don’t want any harm done to it. Therefore, here are some things to keep in mind during the moving process:

Pianos hate extreme weather.

Imagine your piano behaving like Goldilocks from the fairy tale story. Your piano does not like the weather to be too hot and neither too cold. They like it just right—around 70 degrees Fahrenheit to be exact.

But, that’s not all your piano is specific about.

Humidity levels that are too high or too low will affect your piano, too, especially if drastic changes in levels occur. Your piano is made out of wood. Wood stretches when the outside is humid and of course shrinks when it’s dry. This will affect the tuning on your piano, as well as the tension and equilibrium between the strings and frames.

However, if you had to choose, go humid.

Just like the trees your piano was made from, there aren't any plants that like to go dry, not even cacti. Therefore, if you’re having difficulty managing the humidity levels, try to stick to the more humid side with levels of around 50 to 60 percent. Plus, you may have heard the phrase, “Watering your piano.” Don’t take it literally! It just means the process of adding humidity to your piano. There are devices that you can add to the interior of your piano that manages this.

So, how do you keep your piano weather safe?

Your piano will react very quickly to extreme weather changes. Since most moves take a long time, the best way to avoid harm to your piano is by protecting it with a cover to avoid any extra moisture. However, a blanket will only do so much to stop the weather affecting your piano. Therefore, when it’s in the moving truck, the truck should be temperature controlled.

And don’t forget about the extra safety factors!

Covering your piano will help fight against any bump and scratches that can occur. Since it’s cold outside, it can become harder to adequately move your piano.

If you’re gifting a musical instrument to friends and family this holiday season and need some transportation help, give us a call! We’re here to help you with all of your storage and moving needs for any musical instrument.