How to care for your piano
A well maintained piano can accompany you for many years. Its placement, room humidity, cleaning and professional maintenance help preserve its function and the pleasure of playing it.
Where should you place your piano?
Choose a room where temperature and humidity remain as stable as possible. Keep the piano away from heat sources, direct sunlight and places exposed to excessive humidity.
Avoid sudden temperature changes. Wood, felt and the instrument's other materials react to ambient conditions: a stable location helps preserve its action and structure.
Maintain 40% to 50% relative humidity
At Piano Expert, we use a stable environment between 40% and 50% relative humidity as the reference for warranty conditions. Monitor room humidity with a hygrometer, especially when heating or air conditioning is running.
Air that is too humid can affect the action and promote corrosion of metal parts. Air that is too dry can shrink wood and felt components and make tuning less stable.
If humidity is difficult to maintain, contact us to discuss solutions suited to your instrument, such as a Dampp-Chaser piano climate control system. This system does not replace regular professional maintenance.
How to clean your piano and keyboard
Dust the case regularly with a soft, clean cloth. Use a separate soft, dry cloth for the keys.
If additional cleaning is necessary, use a cloth lightly dampened with soapy water and thoroughly wrung out. Never pour liquid directly onto the keys and avoid products containing alcohol, solvents or aerosol sprays. If you are unsure about the finish or keyboard materials, ask for advice before using a product.
Playing with clean hands helps keep the keyboard in good condition. Keep drinks, vases and other liquids away from the instrument. Objects placed on the piano can also cause unwanted vibrations.
How often should your piano be tuned?
Tuning frequency depends on use, condition and the stability of the piano's environment. Piano Expert's care guide generally recommends one or two tunings per year for recreational useand more frequent attention when the instrument is played for several hours a day.
This maintenance recommendation is different from the minimum stated in our warranty conditions: a tuning every one to two years by a qualified technicianeven if the piano is rarely played. A technician can help establish a suitable schedule for your instrument.
To arrange a visit in the Quebec City and Lévis area, see our piano tuning service.
When should you call a technician?
If a key responds poorly, a pedal works less well or an unusual noise appears, have the piano checked. Tuning adjusts the pitch of notes; action regulation addresses the keyboard and pedal operation, among other components.
Leave internal work to a specialist. For a piano covered by our warranty, no modification or repair should be performed by a technician not authorized by Piano Expert.
Read the piano warranty conditions for coverage and exclusions.