piano advice as I am being given one for free

[lashes2508]

Hi , I have been offered a piano for my son to practise on , it is very old but has a couple of keys that stick, Can these be easily repaired , i am enquiring as I will have to pay for it to be transported as well as retuned and dont want to accept if the keys can not be remedied
Many Thanks
Lashes

[Colin Nicholson]

Sticking keys is a quick & easy job, and if just a couple of keys, it takes about a minute & a tuner shouldn't charge if piano tuned aswell. This usually happens if the piano has been kept somewhere damp/cold (perhaps storage?).
Does the key stay down after you have played it?
Do you have to pull it back up, or does it eventually return itself?

If you pull the key back up, and it plays the note OK when you press it down, (but sticks down again) - it'll be fine. If the note doesn't work at all, it will be something wrong inside the mechanism, but I can't say exactly what it is without seeing it.

The sticking keys will be the least of your worries if the piano is free! Have you checked that the piano is tuneable? Do all the notes work? Your tuner should also be able to see if other keys may 'follow suit' in the near future & stick, but I think if the piano is moved into a home, it should dry out OK & the key may unstick itself after a few days (or return slowly). Make sure though you keep it away from direct heat - like a radiator or heater fan.
When a wooden door doesn't shut properly in the winter/wet weather - its the same as a piano key, but they can be quite sensitive to changes in weather.
I would leave it about a week before calling a tuner out, so everything can dry out in a warm room (but not over-warm)....

Hope that helps

[lashes2508]

Thanks Colin,
I am actually going to view it tomorrow so will check the keys properly, it has been kept in a hallway for last few months but previous to that always indoors so i've been told. I know it is rather tatty interms of scratches but it is around 100 years old , which makes me wonder wether i should accept, but have been trying for ages to get one and have only a very small budget. If I do accept it ,it will be quite near a radiator which is unavoidable but not in front of it !

Thanks
Lashes

[Colin Nicholson]

Whether a hallway, or a palace hallway - that spells DAMP! Personally I would get it checked first to see if it CAN be tuned. Free pianos can spell danger & us 'trade' lot, alarms bells would ring. It should cost about £30-£40 call-out for someone to check it out - and if any notes HORRENDOUSLY out of tune, it may have been condemned by a previous tuner. Also if its a spring & loop action, and/or over-damped, or the worst senario - the wrest plank is cracked, then the tuning pins may be loose & it will never tune again. Also depending on the mechanism - if the above, many tuners walk away - trust me! If 100 years old, would you buy a car of this age without spending another few hundred quid to get it started?

Ring a tuner ASAP - they will be pleased to help. They won't give it a 'full monte' tuning - but will tell you if you are wasting your delivery & further tuning money. I even got a hug from an old lady when I found a note inside the piano that it had been condemned in Sept 2010 by Mr XX Tuner (know him well) - I rang him up, and yep - the plank had cracked. Saved the old lady about £80 - £100 delivery and a further £50 to tune it. So, save your money for now and have it check over - your son can wait!!

Just some kind advice.... HUGE RISK!!!!
£30 IS well worth PEACE OF MIND? mmmm?
Colin

[lashes2508]

Thanks again for advice Colin - i think you just confirmed some of my doubts , will go have alook tomorrow and have just sent email to a local tuner found via this site , like you say it's worth spending a few quid now to save more in the future !! Thanks again , so glad I found this site today

[Colin Nicholson]

No problem, and you are welcome.
Tell the tuner you are thinking of buying it, and just want a quick 'look over' and make sure he checks the tuning pins for their tightness. A single piano string (thats 1 out of about 215) has to bear about 80kg of tension EACH! - thats 16 tons of weight pulling down on the whole piano - thats why they are so heavy, and why so many old pianos are queuing up for 5th November.
Depending on what he/she says, they may even 'throw in' the view for less money if the piano is tunable at a later stage - and that you book them again for the home visit..

Good luck & keep everything crossed!!

[lashes2508]

Hi Colin,
decided not to take piano , am thinking that my best option would be to rent one , any comments on this ?? all advice welcome
Thanks
Lashes

[Colin Nicholson]

Renting is another option as you say, but it may involve DD/ SO & deposit.
Some piano shops may not rent brand new pianos in case they are damaged/ scratched etc., even though you are paying rent, but they may offer a good 2nd hand. But some shops only rent/hire on a short-term basis, then they might give you the option of buying later, and some shops I know don't rent at all! coz I know someone who never saw their piano again when the customer moved house!

Have a word with your local shop, and see what options they have.
One good thing about renting, is that the delivery and tunings should be included - so ask how frequently they tune them - should be every 6 months.

[Gill the Piano]

If money is an issue, look on Freecycle.com. You might get a goodish one for nothing. Three of my customers have got decent ones from Freecycle, one of which I quite fancy for meself!

[Colin Nicholson]

Yeh, forgot about that option. I tune a piano in the Lake District, of which the customer acquired a Bechstein from Freecycle a year ago. A few small tuning issues & 'tired' strings, but it plays really well & sounds OK. I did some veneer repairs, and its also polished up nicely. Just be careful though what you find!

[TrentH]

Hey,
You'll learn to do much more than just play piano music from the written sheet music. You'll learn to add chords and all kinds of runs and fills and exciting piano playing techniques. You'll learn to turn your sheet music into a map, and create your own improvisations (and your own free piano sheet music) from that map..

Thanks!!!

[joe]

Would go and buy a cheap piano from your local reputable dealer they give you a year warranty also deliver and tune and if you have a problems they should sort it for you.Nothings for free and free pianos are usually free cos nobody else wants it.