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Writer's pictureMartha Williams

How Do I Move The Piano?

There are lots of reasons you might want to move the piano. Perhaps your moving home, or even having the floor recarpeted. Read more to find out our suggestions and cautions on how to move your piano and when to call in a professional.


There are two different types of piano moves: internal and external. An external piano move is usually for when you move home or for when you hire a piano for a venue. The piano is taken out of location from property A, transported in a van and resituated in to property B.


External Moves

The good news is that if you are hiring a piano, a reputable company will arange the piano transport for you. If however you are moving home this is something you will need to consider yourself. The temptation is to do this yourself but let us give you one piece of advice from the offset:


Do not move your piano yourself


This is a recipe for stress, disaster and injured people. It is very easy to underestimate the weight of a piano and then how cumbersome it actually is to move. In the instance of moving your piano from one building to another we can not reccomend highly enough a piano moving company.


You might also be tempted by a handyman or house moving company. We would caution against this as although they have experience in moving weighty and difficult items, their liability insurance might not cover an item as expensive as a piano. It is also important to remember that a piano is a beautiful piece of furniture which has integral moving parts. The last thing you want is an inexperienced mover to knock the casework - which is very easy to do - or bash it so hard that it affects the internal mechanism.


In terms of external piano moves we can highly recommend Stephen Blades at Piano Speed. Stephen's team has years of eperience in simple ground floor moves all the way to complicated crane jobs on multistorey buildings!



Internal Moves

In terms of internal moves this might be as simple as moving the piano a couple of feet for a change of design, or something more complicated where you move the piano from one room to another.


The good news is that this is a much more manageable feat than an external move but should still not be taken on lightly. If your piano is on castors - wheels - then this is relatively simple as you can move it a few feet without too much struggle. It is however very important to consider the floor you are pushing it along, the surroundings and the people doing the pushing.


Is the floor wooden and smooth? Thin or thick carpet? Scratch resistant? Are there valuables near by? Are children near? Are the people doing the moving fit, strong and healthy? Are people aware of the Health and Safety? This might seem like a lot to think about but when you are considering moving a cumbersome heavy item it is vital to think about all of the factors before you start.


If in doubt, then don't do it


At the end of the day your health and the safety of those around you is more important. If you are in any doubt of your capability to move the piano then ring a piano moving company who will be happy to price you a cost effective internal piano move.


If the piano is not on castors then we do not reccomend trying to push it even a short distance as this might scratch the floor or catch the carpet. The additional friction of the flooring pushing on the piano will add more kinetic mass than you might imagine!


In this case the best option is to dead lift the piano - which is heavy. If you want to try this yourself then make sure you are aware of the Health and Safety of lifting heavy objects, are wearing steel toe cap shoes and that the two people doing the lifting are strong enough to manage. There is a handle on each side of the back of the piano to help but otherwise it is a "simple" matter of lift and move.


This might be ok for piano moving a couple of feet, but for moving any further a reputable company would put the piano on to a moving trolley and then lift it off at the other end. We do not reccomend trying this yourself as it can be more complicated and dangerous and there is considerable technique to make sure that the moving board doesn't slip out and the piano wobble off the top.


Use these simple bullet points to help you remember the key elements:


  1. If in doubt then don't move it

  2. Always hire a professional piano moving company for external moving

  3. If you want to try internal moves yourself then make sure you are aware of all of the health and safety considerations, wear steel toe caps and plan before you move

  4. If the piano is moving more than a couple of feet, hire a professional piano moving company


We hope that this blog How Do I Move The Piano? has helped you understand the intricacies and dangers of moving a piano and how to do this safely. This blog is not an endorsement for moving the piano yourself and in our opinion it is always safer to hire a professional.



Piano being lifted with a crane over a garden How Do I Move The Piano?
Source: https://www.pianospeed.com/

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