There are a few questions that we at J Roach Piano Services are often asked. I have attempted to answer some of these questions below, but please bear in mind that the answers reflect my own opinions, and thoughts, and have been generalised to make them easier to understand. I hopefully have also injected a little humor into my answers, and so please do not take them to seriously. If you have any questions that you would like answering, then please send them to me, and I shall try and answer personally, or respond here. Also if you have any comments about this page, then please do not hesitate to contact me. FAQ@pianoservices.co.uk

Why should I purchase a piano, when electric keyboards sound just as good?

I wish to purchase an old piano. What should I look for to ensure that I do not waste my money, and buy one in poor condition?

How often should I tune my piano?

How often should I tune my piano?

The answer to this depends upon several factors.

To summarise, in general, a frequently played piano, in a central heated domestic home, will require tuning between two and three times a year. A less frequently played piano might be tuned as little as once a year. A well played piano, used for stage performances will require tuning prior to every performance, possibly twice a day.

Go to tuning page.

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I wish to purchase an old piano. What should I look for to ensure that I do not waste my money, and buy one in poor condition?

By asking this question, it suggests that you are not experienced enough to make an accurate assessment of a pianos condition! Fortunately, there are plenty of people who are, and the best advice I can give to you is to take some one along with you who can help. This could be an experienced pianist, your piano tutor, or your local piano tuner. However this is not always practical, especially if you initially have several pianos to look at. Below is a list of some of the most important things to look for when making a preliminary inspection of a piano.

1	Ask the owner of the piano as much as possible about the history of the piano. How long have they owned it? Where did they get the piano from? Where has it been kept? Why are they selling it? Has it been refurbished? etc. Try and build up a picture about the history, and try and get a feeling for the piano and the owner.
2	Play the piano, or try the notes. Do they all work correctly? Is it in tune? If not why not? Tuning a piano is relatively inexpensive, especially if you are trying to sell it! Are there any odd noises (vibrations, rattles, buzzing etc.)?
3	Is the case in good condition? (This might not be important to you, but might give some indication as to how the piano has been looked after. It might also improve the resale value).
4	Look at the keys. What are they covered in. Ivory covered keys always have some graining evident (quality ivory keys have very little graining) and are expensive to replace if damaged or discoloured. Plastic key covers are cheaper to replace if necessary.
5	Open the lids, and remove any covers on uprights, and have a good look inside. Lots of dust indicates a piano that has not had any significant repairs, and could be a good thing. A clean interior might indicate a recent reconditioning. What did the owner tell you?
6	The sound board (the flat board under the strings) is one of the most difficult, and expensive, parts of a piano to repair, and should be thoroughly inspected for splits or cracks. Also look for surface defects, and poor repairs. Dismiss any piano you see with possible problems here!!
7	What are the tuning pins like? Rusty pins indicate a long storage in a damp conditions, rounded off corners indicate bad treatment in its past.
8	All the dampers should be level, and lift positively and evenly off the strings when operated by the sustain pedal.
9	The hammer faces should also all be level, and the face should be free from deep cuts where they strike the strings. There should be no significant side to side movement in the hammers.
10	What condition is all the fabric (leather, tapes, etc.) and has the piano been the victim of moths. A quick test is to determine the free movement in the keys. Lightly touch a key, and depress slowly until the piano action can just be seen to activate. This initial movement (play) in the key should be hardly be noticeable. If it is only one or two keys, then it could be as a result of wear, if it is in all the keys, then moths have probably destroyed the leather cushions. Also listen for excessive mechanical noise in the action, again possibly due to damage to the cushions, or other fabric parts.
11	The soft pedal operates in one of several ways. Either it slides the keyboard to the right, in which case check it operates smoothly, and that the hammers now strike one less string (Very common on Grand Pianos). Alternatively it might move the hammers closer to the strings, in which case they should all move together, freely. Another method is a felt damper brought, lightly, between the hammers and their contact with the strings, check is action and condition.
12	Carefully inspect the wrest pin block (the wooden block where the wrest, or tuning, pins are fitted).On upright pianos this is often quite easy to see, but on Grand pianos (and some upright pianos) it is more difficult, as the wrestpin block is covered by the iron piano frame (harp). In these cases you need to see behind the pin block if possible (this is best done on grand pianos by removing the keyboard cover and looking up through the gap to see the underside of the board, and see the holes that the tuning pins are fitted). Look for splits, or other damage, especially between these holes. If you can not see the block, then try and feel for any defects. This will affect the ability of the piano to stay in tune, and is considered a serious defect, so reject any pianos with problems here.

Piano inspections

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Why should I purchase a piano, when electric keyboards sound just as good?

Any one who suggests that the above it a little biased, coming from a piano services company, I would have to agree!! So to balance the argument a little, here are the things that make a keyboard better than a piano:-

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