Omlet Eglu Cube and large run for sale

[Busybird]

We were given an old piano several years ago by my kids piano teacher. It had been donated to her church by a local family yonks before and the church was now being given a better one so wanted rid of it. I let it settle for a few months after delivery and then got it tuned. The tuner suggested that it was a bit old and tired and may not hold it's tune.

 

Anyway, it has since been moved to another room, pounded by my children for a couple of years and sounds truly awful I have rung the tuner but it is going to cost at least £60 to get it tuned again.

 

The children still play it regularly (although they no longer have lessons) and we couldn't afford another piano - perhaps a keyboard but I prefer the look of the piano as a piece of furniture

 

Do you think it is worth paying out the money to have the old piano tuned?

[Happy chickens!]

Would the tuner not take a quick look and let you know - I agree it's not worth throwing money away, but pianos are pretty resiliant and it can't be too bad if kids are still playing it? We have a keyboard and a piano and I know which I prefer the sound of!

[missuscluck]

£60 We have ours done for £35.00 every year.

 

Our piano is very old and tierd and they do get to the point where they wont tune.

Ours is a bit out but wont tune up anymore. My kids still are learning on it though as I cant afford a new one at the moment. I think we will have to get one eventually as my son is doing his grade 4 and its getting to the point where he is going to really struggle with it.

However its been great for them so far and it dosent matter as much when they are starting out.

They need re tuning every year though so if its not being used is there any point in spending??

[Olly]

I'm no expert, but I believe it depends on the frame. If it has a metal frame, then the answer is almost certainly 'yes'. If it's a wooden frame, it's like to have distorted over time (heating, moisture etc) and it may not be possible ever to tune it properly.

 

I'm sure there are some proper musicians on here who know more about things like this!

[docsquid]

I'd go with what Olly says - metal supported frames should be re-tunable, but wooden frames will distort over time and become difficult to tune. Having said that, our old piano was a wooden frame and kept tune for years and years, passing from me to a cousin when I no longer had room for it.

 

I have an electric piano now, and it is much smaller, but I really miss the sound and presence of a proper piano, so I'd be inclined to do what I could to save an old piano if I had the chance!

[henriette]

I have an electric piano now, and it is much smaller, but I really miss the sound and presence of a proper piano, so I'd be inclined to do what I could to save an old piano if I had the chance!

 

Me too! I miss my old piano and wish I'd kept it. If I had another chance I would definitely try to hang on to it. I am sure that there are piano tuners who will give advice as to whether or not it is possible to tune. They might charge for a call out visit though

Do hope you manage to keep it

[Egluntyne]

I bought an old piano from a neighbour when the children were first wanting to learn. It got them started and I didn't have to fret about them banging about on it too much.

 

The middle octave was a bit past it, so the piano needed tuning a couple of times a year, but it was a good way to start.

 

I paid £50 for it and sold it for £200 a few years later when we upgraded.....so yes, it was worth it!

[chickenanne]

I think one way to tell is if you have any "silent" notes - i.e. do all the notes play? If the frame is really badly warped/bent then some notes either won't play properly unless you really thump the note, or will sound muffled. In which case it will be beyond tuning IMO. The other thing that can go very badly awry is the felt: have a look /sniff and see if it smells damp or damaged.

Try playing each note and see if any sound muffled or sound for ages. Then try again with peddles, and see if any of the notes sound obviously wrong (rather than out of tune - listen for ones which don't play at all etc). If it basically just sounds out of tune then I'd be tempted to get it tuned in and hope for the best. If you can't tell then it's probably tired but OK.

 

I have an elderly piano which plays fine (aside from my lack of skill!), but the one my parents had eventually got taken to the tip after many years, it really was beyond repair, and had all the "symptoms" above.

 

Ideally the guy would come out and give you his opinion for no /nominal charge, but it depends on how busy/generous he is!

[Hen Watch]

£60 sounds a bit steep. My local chap charges £42.

 

I've got 2 old pianos (which were given to me as freebies).

 

The really old piano won't hold it's tune, it lasts about 4 weeks once it gets tuned then goes all peculiar again. I still get it tuned once a year.

[Busybird]

Thanks for all the input. I had a look inside the piano - it was a bit cobwebby I haven't a clue how to look at the frame but saw no metal so assume it is wooden All the notes play and none of the keys stick.

 

I don't know of any other piano tuners in this area to compare prices. The man I contacted runs a piano workshop so can rectify faults, replace parts and so on as well as tune the piano (although extra work would, of course, cost even more).

 

My next problem will be finding someone to teach DS2 and DD who want to resume lessons. Friends I have asked seem to pay a fortune for lessons. What is anyone else paying for an hours tuition?

[Aunty e]

Doesn't sound steep to me actually - we paid £65 for ours last time because we'd moved house and he had to tune it twice to get it back to pitch. If it's as out of tune as you say, then it will cost that much, but it should be worth it. The frame won't look especially metally, they tend to be a dark brown, grey or goldy colour but if you take the bottom board out you should be able to get a better look at it to see. I've seen a lot of old pianos and very few of them have wooden frames.

[ubereglu]

My Keyboard teacher also teaches piano in groups and it costs £9.50 per hour.

[Mrs Webmuppet]

£14- £15 per half hours piano lesson (on a one to one basis)is the going rate in Ipswich.