Some exceptional piano moving techniques developed by professional piano movers over the last 15 years. Those techniques ease the solid task of piano removal.
1. Analysis of size and weight of piano
a) Height tops out at 60 inches weight hitting more than 700 lbs. is very complicated to move.
b) The smallest piano starts at 50 inches long (which is equal to a 55-inch vertical piano) with a weight of more than 650 lbs.
c) Grand piano can extend up to 100 inches long with a weight of about 1000-1200 lbs.
d) Normally piano weight comes from its cast iron harp that holds the strings. Small vertical piano only has a weight of 300 to 450 lbs. because they have smaller cast iron harp than large vertical or grand piano.
e) The vertical piano over 150 inches high or any grand piano 15meters long is not able to move without help of moving companies. These large pianos should be moved by trained workers or professionals because of their extra-large size and tremendous weight.
2. Handling piano casters
Piano should not roll around on their metal casters. The casters are just attractive and not very useful because when used, they can easily scratch a hardwood floor finish. Casters are quite small and the way a piano created they spaced on 3 or 4 corners of the piano so the piano weight is at the center. On vertical piano two casters are on the front two (fragile) stands. On grand piano, all 3 stands have a caster on them. So, piano removal companies keep these aspects in mind and do removal according to the situation.
a) Usually, piano remains at one place and because of this caster tend to get worse.
b) When you try to move vertical piano, casters stuck and piano flattens on you.
c) Pushing a grand piano around on its stand casters can cause a stand to split.
d) Pushing a vertical piano on them could split both front stands.
e) If casters stick in place they will scratch your hardwood floor and can rip your carpeting.
So it is better to hire professional piano movers. Piano moving companies are well-aware of these situations and handle it with great ability.
3. Lifting piano on dolly
Piano movers lift piano on the dolly by using following steps:
a) This piano will end up on the dolly on its feet (on its bottom) on the dolly’s padding rails.
b) The approach to move your vertical piano is by using a small tip of the piano on dolly up and down as it pushed along. To do this you will use the strap to lift one end of the piano on the dolly.
c) In the moving trade this named as “doing a little cheat”. Because we deceive gravity out of one step of transportation effort without having to take the piano off from the dolly. They carry it over step and then put it back on the dolly. Also, the angle of tip will over to keep the piano in balance on the dolly.
4. Moving piano through stairs consciously
Moving the piano up and down through stairs is the riskiest part of piano removal. This is the reason we want you to avoid moving piano at your own and acquire piano removal service. Once the piano is being carried, even if raised or lowered 1 or 2 steps at a time, it can easily unbalance and get away from the workers. This can cause awful things to happen resulting in rigorous injury or piano damage.
5. Using 4-wheel piano dollies
a) When a 4-wheel piano dolly used to move the piano; piano movers do not need to use muscle power to move piano it will cut to almost zero.
b) Minimum power need to move piano because the weight of piano is centrally supported by the dolly.
c) A balanced piano on a dolly is almost weightless and easily overcomes inertia on level surface.
d) On inclined surface the piano is weightless on the dolly at flat ground ends and its actual weight expressed on the low side of the incline.
e) Therefore, at least 3 workers required when moving a small piano because one man controls the light side and 2 workers need positioning on the heavy part (low-side) of the incline to handle the weight of piano.
6. Moving piano to van
a) The piano lifts with the help of dolly through slope on the van.
b) When vertical piano lifted on the van then it must dismount from the dolly and placed on its stand, keyboard side padded and facing into the wall of the van.
c) Because of the huge weight, piano movers use double belt around piano to the wall of van for the sake of safety.