Hey Jim...Do I need to tune my piano even if nobody plays it?

When a piano sits for years without tuning, the strings loosen up and adjust to a new normal. When a piano is tuned after many years sitting idle, it will take several tunings before it holds a tune. I will have to tune it 2 or 3 times before it becomes stable and in tune. The strings stretch, the pins are under a lot of tension and they tend to slip back towards where they were...extremely flat. And, there is a much higher chance that a string will break when it is tuned. I ran into this twice yesterday. I tuned two pianos yesterday and they both had not been tuned in 8 years or more. Both tunings ended up with a broken string.

First piano was a very old WM Anderson piano and E5 broke. Piano still plays with one of the three strings on that key. Sounds ok and owner chose to leave it as is. I am working with them to upgrade to a nicer piano so they did not want to spend the money to replace that string. It also has a broken leg, which is more common than you'd think. On most uprights, the front legs are just decorative and don't support any weight. And, they tend to get broken when pianos are moved by moving companies or your buddies. I recommend always using a professional piano mover...they have the equipment and know how to move your piano without any damage.

Second piano was a very nice Baldwin 7' grand and E1 broke, which is a bass string, wound with copper. Have to special order bass strings and will cost over $100 to replace. But, owner wants to have the work done and we'll get it replaced.

Tuning a piano every couple years, even if no one is playing it, will help to hold its value. And, if you decide to sell it or someone starts to play it, the piano will sound great and be ready to go.

Contact Missouri Piano Tuning & Repair for all your piano tuning and repair needs in the St. Louis and Columbia, Missouri areas. We work to make your piano sing!