How to Move a Piano

When there is a need to transport a piano, many begin to wonder: why hire special movers? Maybe it is possible to cope somehow on their own, and it will be enough just to rent a truck.

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Probably someone can do it. But in 99% of cases, you will have a sad experience. Because a piano is not a cabinet. It's a very complex musical instrument with several thousand parts. Moving it requires not only strength but also great care and a certain amount of experience. It should not be tilted, shaken, or placed at an angle.

In addition, the piano is very heavy. You can find out how much a piano weighs in the instrument data sheet or in the reference material on our website. How to move it? It is good if the house has a freight elevator. But what if there is no elevator, and the stairwells are too small and narrow?

Moving a piano around Toronto is quite a quest. On the way you will be surrounded by many obstacles: narrow staircases and high thresholds, the lack of freight elevators and convenient access routes, traffic jams, and bumpy roads ... Only experienced movers and riggers, who specialize in transporting pianos, can cope with such a task.

If you still decided to try to transport the piano by yourself, below we will tell you what rules and requirements for the transportation of the musical instrument should be observed to avoid damage and spoiling it in the process.

Peculiarities of piano transportation

Piano movers, who are engaged in the transportation of only this musical instrument, are somewhat different from the usual movers. Rather, they can be called riggers.

To work with heavy weights requires certain physical qualities. To cope with a burden that weighs more than 100 kilograms and not break your back you need not only good physical form but also endurance and an understanding of how to distribute the weight better on your shoulders and arms so that you do not hurt the instrument and your muscles do not break. Strength and endurance are one of the most important qualities for a professional loader. The ability of the human body to do the job with a certain weight for a long enough time.

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Devices for transporting pianos

In addition to strength and experience, you also need special aids that movers use to make their work easier, such as:

1. Special straps for carrying pianos. Fire hoses or woven cables are used to make them. They are made from heavy-duty materials. Without comfortable and high-quality straps, it is impossible to carry a piano professionally. Pianos weighing more than a hundred kilograms can be lifted by two people only by distributing the load on their shoulders in a special way. You can't carry an instrument very far by hand.
2. Trolley with rubberized, independently rotating wheels. When you take the piano out of the apartment cart - an indispensable device. It makes the loader's work much easier, especially in small apartments with narrow and winding corridors.

Piano moving recommendations

Why such difficulties, you ask? To answer that question, just take a look at any manufacturer's data sheet that comes with your piano. Here, for example, is an excerpt from a 1956 piano manufacturer's datasheet:

1. Personnel handling the transportation of keyboard musical instruments should know the rules of their transportation and have certain skills. Therefore you should not entrust the transportation to casual persons but use the services of an organization which has a staff of trained workers and is responsible for the safety of the instrument during transportation
2. Pianos should be shipped only in special packing crates made of dry boards. Pianos should be securely screwed to the back of the shipping crate before unpacking
3. No shocks or jolts are allowed, so transport should be by car or horse-drawn vehicle on the sprung bobbins. Loading and unloading must be done with care and caution. Fast travel on bad roads should be avoided
4. When transported by motor vehicle or other means, pianos should only be placed upright on rollers. Rolling over (upside down) is not allowed when overloading, transporting or unloading
5. When transporting unboxed upright pianos, the following special transport boxes should be used

It's all quite clear. Without some skill in handling such super-heavy loads, it will be difficult to ensure the safety of your piano during transport What do you prefer to spend your money on? For the repair of your favourite musical instrument, or for professional movers for its transportation? Our piano movers at Stawamus Chief only handle piano transportation. Therefore, they have a lot of experience with these musical instruments of different sizes. We can guarantee that your instrument will not be damaged in transit.