Piano Humidity Control | PianoDisc Installation

Many people are not aware that humidity can have a profound effect on the tuning and performance of your piano. Humidity is a measure of how much water vapor is in the air, relative to the maximum amount of water vapor it can hold (that’s why it’s called relative humidity!).  Your piano is subject to wide swings in humidity. This is particularly true in the Hudson Valley, where the majority of our clients live. In the summer, humidity levels can go as high as 100%, while in the winter, your heating system can drop the relative humidity in your home into the single digits.

What does this mean for your piano? When the humidity is high, the soundboard and bridges absorb moisture and swell, increasing the tension of the strings and forcing the piano sharp. When the humidity is low, the opposite happens - the soundboard and bridges release moisture and shrink, reducing the downward pressure of the strings and forcing the piano flat. This is why almost all piano manufacturers - and your piano technician - recommend that your piano is tuned twice a year. In addition to forcing your piano out of tune, increased humidity affects the action parts, swelling the wood and increasing friction, which can make your action respond sluggishly (a major cause of “sticking” keys).

How can you mitigate the effects of humidity on your piano? There are several options. The absolute best solution is to have your whole house humidity controlled. This involves either attaching a humidifier to your HVAC system or installing a separate humidifier/dehumidifier system in your home. While this is the best solution, it can be very expensive to install and maintain, and is usually cost prohibitive.

The next, and we think best, solution is to install a humidity control system directly in your piano. The Dampp Chaser company, makers of the Piano Life Saver system, is the only company making these systems. Over the past 74 years they have perfected their system and adapted it to work in all pianos. This system maintains the relative humidity of your piano within a few percent of the ideal level of 45% Relative Humidity. A humidistat regulates the humidity, similar to the way your thermostat regulates temperature. If the humidity is high, the humidistat activates low power dehumidifier bars to dry out the piano. If the humidity is low, the humidistat activates a humidifier - a gentle version of that which you might put in a room. Periodically, you must fill the humidifier tank with water. This can be disconcerting the first few times, pouring water into a tube that disappears into your piano!

Get More Info : Piano Humidity Control

Website : https://www.newyorkpianoworks.com/

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Polyester Piano finish repair | PianoDisc Repair

A standard tuning is for those pianos that have been tuned in the past 6 months to a year. It involves manipulating the tuning pins to bring all 230 strings to their proper and harmonious pitch. We use a combination of aural and electronic tuning to ensure your piano sounds great! We also tighten the plate bolts, check for problems, and tighten the bench.

If we haven’t seen your piano in a while, it may need one or more Pitch Adjustments to bring the strings up to a tension where fine tuning is possible without stressing the piano.

Do you have a stuck key or broken string(s)? We can help! Our technicians are well trained in all manner of repairs, from a simple stuck key to major action work.

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Website :  https://www.newyorkpianoworks.com/

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Why It’s Important to Tune Your Piano | The Alexander Technique for Back Pain in New York

There are around 230 strings on the average piano. Each string on the piano has a unique pitch and frequency that must be tuned to the other strings. The sound quality of your piano is determined by these strings, so they must be maintained properly. Due to stress, these strings can stretch over time, causing the piano to become out of tune. Seasonal Changes in humidity also cause the piano to become out of tune.

When pianos are tuned regularly, they are easier to tune, stay in good condition, and maintain their value. Piano tuning regularly also avoids damage caused by overstretched strings. It will be more expensive and time-consuming to get a piano back into tune if it hasn't been tuned in a long time.

If a piano hasn't been tuned in a long time, a piano tuner may attempt to correct the problem by raising the piano's pitch. This involves pulling all of the strings, resulting in a sharp pitch. When the strings naturally stretch over time, causing the pitch to go flat, this overcompensation should keep the piano in tune.

You should have your piano checked every six months to a year to ensure that the strings last as long as possible. If the strings are damaged too much or the keys are not properly working, you should take a piano repair service. 

If you buy a new piano, you should tune it four times in the first year since the new strings stretch more and go out of tune more quickly. If you tune your piano regularly throughout the first few years of ownership, it will be more likely to stay in tune for longer periods of time and during the later years of its life.

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Contact Us : Grand Piano Regulation

Humidity Control for your Piano | Piano Regulation And Voicing

 Many people are not aware that humidity can have a profound effect on the tuning and performance of your piano. Humidity is a measure of how much water vapor is in the air, relative to the maximum amount of water vapor it can hold (that’s why it’s called relative humidity!).  Your piano is subject to wide swings in humidity. This is particularly true in the Hudson Valley, where the majority of our clients live. In the summer, humidity levels can go as high as 100%, while in the winter, your heating system can drop the relative humidity in your home into the single digits.

What does this mean for your piano? When the humidity is high, the soundboard and bridges absorb moisture and swell, increasing the tension of the strings and forcing the piano sharp. When the humidity is low, the opposite happens - the soundboard and bridges release moisture and shrink, reducing the downward pressure of the strings and forcing the piano flat. This is why almost all piano manufacturers - and your piano technician - recommend that your piano is tuned twice a year. In addition to forcing your piano out of tune, increased humidity affects the action parts, swelling the wood and increasing friction, which can make your action respond sluggishly (a major cause of “sticking” keys).

How can you mitigate the effects of humidity on your piano? There are several options. The absolute best solution is to have your whole house humidity controlled. This involves either attaching a humidifier to your HVAC system or installing a separate humidifier/dehumidifier system in your home. While this is the best solution, it can be very expensive to install and maintain, and is usually cost prohibitive.

Read More About : Piano Restoration

Website : https://www.newyorkpianoworks.com/

Contact Us : Piano Humidity Control

Rebuilding vs. Restoration

Every week, I speak with at least a couple of people who are interested in not giving up on their older piano, but rather bringing it back to a playable condition. There are two ways to do this: Rebuilding and Restoration. Both attempt to restore the piano to its former glory, but the philosophy behind them differs.

Rebuilding can involve anything from an action overhaul to replacement of soundboard, strings, and pin block. Where possible, new parts are used. I say where possible because while the industry became standardized around the 1920s, pianos prior to that often have parts for which it is impossible to find replacements.

For example, we are doing a rebuild right now for a client in Albany, a piano from 1909. The hammer butts and hammer assemblies are able to be replaced, but the whippens (the mechanism which transfers the energy from the key to the hammer assembly) are non-standard and must be reconditioned by cleaning and by replacing leather and felt where possible. 

Rebuilding often gives the best musical results, as newer parts are often superior. However, some people want their piano as true to the original as possible. That is where restoration comes in.

Read More About: Piano Tuning And Repair Service Albany Piano Regulation Piano Restoration Upstate New York.

Basics of Piano Care [Grand Piano Repair Kingston] [Piano Restoration Kingston]

FIRST POST! Thanks for checking out this blog page. We will be adding content every week or so, as long as we keep coming up with interesting and informative things to say.

I’d like to start by talking about basic piano care… The aspect of piano care that everyone is familiar with is tuning. Pianos go out of tune due to changes in humidity, which swells and shrinks the wood of the soundboard, bridges, and action parts. This happens regardless of how much or how little the piano is played. We STRONGLY recommend having your piano tuned twice a year. This is in line with all manufacturer’s recommendations. If you put it in terms of car maintenance (the other big, complicated machine in your life), tunings are the oil changes of piano care. It’s important to note that your piano may be out of tune and still sound relatively ok, but not be at the correct pitch. More on this in a future post. Is your piano out of tune? Find out how to determine this here.

A piano is a very complex instrument, with up to 10,000 parts - many of which move and are subject to wear over time. This causes the piano to function at a sub-optimal level, lessening your enjoyment and making playing and learning more difficult. The good news is this is a relatively easy condition to combat. Every 3 years or so, the action should be serviced. To do this, we remove the action, clean it with compressed air, lubricate all action centers, and tighten all screws (over 200 in uprights!). This serves three purposes: it makes the piano play better, avoids problems due to contaminant buildup, and allows for the detection of small issues before they become big ones. If it were a car, this would be the inspection and basic tune up.

Read More About: Piano Tuning And Repair Service Upstate New York Piano Regulation Grand Piano Repair

Regulation/Action Work, Voicing, Rebuilding

Action Service $225 Regulation $150/hour

Your piano is made up of more than 10,000 parts, many of which move and all of which are subject to wear. An action service includes action removal and replacement, cleaning, lubrication of all action centers, and tightening of over 200 screws.

Regulation is where we can truly make your piano the best that it can be! We adjust 37 steps of movement for each note so that they play with optimal control, power, and dynamic range. Who knew that pianos were so complicated! 

Voicing $150/hour

Does your piano have notes that sound too bright or too dull and tubby? Voicing is the solution. Voicing is the act of working on the hammers with needles to soften the tone or chemical hardeners to brighten it.

Get More Info : Piano Regulation

Websites : https://www.newyorkpianoworks.com/

Contact Us : Piano Restoration Hudson Valley