Whether musicians are planning to move across town or to an entirely new city, they need to make plans in advance for how to transport their most treasured possessions. Transporting a Professional piano is much harder than moving other bulky items. Pianos may be large and heavy, but they’re also surprisingly delicate and have thousands of moving parts.
No responsible person would recommend taking a DIY approach to piano moving, or even hiring a regular mover. It takes specialized equipment, knowledge, and experience to ensure these instruments’ safety. Read on to find out what to expect when working with professional piano movers and how to prepare to ensure that everything goes smoothly along the way.
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Step One: Request a Quote
The first step is to get in touch with a company like Piano Movers of Texas and request a quote. The cost of hiring professional piano movers varies depending on the size and weight of the piano and the complexity of the move. Reputable piano movers will ask relevant questions and get sufficient information about the piano and its current and intended location before coming up with a quote.
Factors That Affect Cost
Most piano movers will offer at least some idea of what to expect in terms of moving costs on their websites, but every situation is different. These factors may influence how much it costs to get the instrument from point A to point B safely:
- The piano’s size, shape, and weight
- The distance of the move
- How many steps the homes’ entryways have
- Whether the piano will be placed on the first floor
How much leeway clients have in terms of timing?
The least expensive moves are those that involve transporting an upright piano from the first floor of one house to another nearby home. Moving pianos up and down stairs safely takes a good deal of work, especially if they are larger models. In some rare cases, it may even require hiring a crane. Needless to say, unusually complex situations cost more to resolve.
Step Two: Ensure Accessibility
Musicians know that it’s unwise to keep decorative items, books, or other objects on their pianos, but not everyone listens to that advice. If the piano is going to be moved soon, it’s time to pack up anything on or around the piano to ensure accessibility. Pianists are paying specialists to move their pianos, not to pack up their homes.
Step Three: Clear the Route
Before transporting the piano out of the home, the movers will need to verify that there is an easy path of egress. Piano owners can do their part by walking the most obvious route out of the house and taking note of potential problem areas like staircases, narrow doorways, and sharp turns. If there are rugs on the floor or large furniture items in the way, those will also need to be removed. The piano movers may be able to help with any heavy lifting required to clear the route.
Step Four: The Move-Out
The piano movers will have a truck waiting at the curb outside that is outfitted with everything required to transport an upright or grand piano safely to its new home. The movers will utilize straps to keep the piano closed and a combination of dollies and moving planks to remove the piano from the home. To transport grand pianos safely out of the home, the legs may need to be removed, as well. It’s always best to leave all that preparation work to the professionals.
Step Five: Securing the Piano in the Truck
There are right ways and wrong ways to secure a piano for transport once it’s in the moving truck. Professional piano moving companies have vehicles that are outfitted with everything required to make the move safely. They use piano boards and furniture blankets to protect the instrument while it’s in transit and carry extensive liability insurance policies to protect clients’ interests in the unlikely event that an accident occurs.
Step Six: Planning the Move-In
Once the piano arrives outside its new home, the movers will check to make sure that they have a clear path to get it into its new position. Feel free to ask questions about the best position for the piano in the room. Factors like heat sources, sun exposure, and humidity can all impact how well a piano play and stays in tune, so it’s important to get it right.
Step Seven: The Move-In
It’s finally time to move the piano into the home. If the movers had to detach the legs or take other steps to prepare the instrument, they’ll make sure everything is back in order. Before they leave, the pianist may want to evaluate the instrument to make sure no damage occurred during the moving process.
Step Eight: Hire a Tuner
With careful handling, the piano may not go out of tune during the moving process. That said, pianists can expect their instruments to take some time to settle in. If the climate conditions in the new house are different, it may be necessary to have it tuned.
Can Musicians Move Their Own Pianos?
It may be tempting to think it’s worth saving a few hundred dollars to move the piano without professional help, but it isn’t. The risks associated with DIY piano moves include not just damage to the instrument, though that is a common consequence of attempting to move a piano without professional help, but also property damage and a very real risk of incurring personal injuries. It’s always worth hiring a professional.
Final Thoughts
Pianos are beautiful instruments that deserve to be treated with the utmost care and respect. Piano movers work with everyone from concert musicians who practice on baby grands to amateurs who want to make sure their beloved uprights don’t get banged up in transit. Hiring professional piano movers eliminates the vast majority of potential risks and helps to ensure that everything goes smoothly so that musicians can focus on other essential aspects of planning their new lives in their new homes. It’s always worth the money.
