FAQs

Contrary to popular belief, playing the piano does not generally cause it to go out of tune unless the piano player is playing extremely hard. Pianos go out of tune because of slight changes in temperature, humidity, and settling of the piano’s wooden structure itself.

A new piano less than a year old should be tuned 4 times a year because the strings and wooden structure are still settling. If a piano is not new, two times a year is recommended to keep the strings good and stable.

If moving a piano to a different room in the home, generally not. If moving to a different location however, then yes the piano should be tuned again a few weeks after the move so that the piano can adjust to it’s new environment in the mean time.

A standard tuning runs around an hour and a half if the piano is at standard A440 pitch. However, if the piano is flat, around two hours. The piano is always tuned in one appointment.

This will only be done if requested by the customer. While a piano can be tuned below standard pitch, if playing with other instruments or CD’s the piano will not match in pitch.

While we do not have anything against electronic tuning devices in the hands of a properly trained tech, at Valley Piano Tuning we tune completely by ear for the time being. The smaller the piano, the less accurate the electronic tuning devices are.

If a piano has gone a long time without being tuned, the pitch drops from the standard A440. When this happens it becomes impossible for the piano to be properly tuned in one pass because the tension of 240 different strings are being adjusted. This puts a lot of strain on the structure causing the strings that were just tuned to change in tension as you go. So before a standard tuning can be carried out, all strings must be tuned back to their average tension levels, and then another pass through the entire piano to stabilize everything.

No one likes to hear that their piano can not be tuned, but in rare cases, this can happen. This could be due to loose tuning pins in the wooden pinblock, or a few various other things. Generally, you find many “Free” pianos that can not be tuned because they haven’t been maintained in many years and were given away for that very reason. People just want them out of the home, but without realizing it has passed on a hefty expense to someone that might want to actually enjoy the piano. If your piano can not be tuned, we can assist you in finding a better piano, or give you an estimate on what it would cost to repair your current one. Here at Valley Piano Tuning, we sell used pianos. If yours is worn out we can help you find the right one for you and your family! (see our used pianos page for details.)

Please remove all items and live kitty cats from the top of the piano. It is also easier to tune if the environment is quiet. Please do not run the vacuum cleaner.