Tune a Piano

Are you a piano player or teacher who dislikes the unwanted expense of hiring a piano tuner and feels that you could do it yourself with a little training? All you need are the right tools, a piano and patience. Just get started with Step 1 below!

Steps

  1. Buy, borrow or rent the tools. You will need several tools in order to do basic tuning on a piano. Real professionals can sometimes require hundreds of tools to do a single job. Even the basic tools can cost as much as $50.
    • You will need extremely sensitive sound equipment. A basic guitar tuner will not work to tune a whole piano. You'll need tuning forks, a special piano tuning device, or a very sensitive microphone and piano tuning software in order to be sure you're really getting the note right. Even pros have a hard time tuning by ear alone, so don't expect it to be easy.
    • Tuning tools are hard to find, especially if you are accustomed to shopping at local retail locations. You can find most piano tuning tools online. You'll need a tuning hammer with a stiff lever and a short handle. You'll also need pins (think drill bits in reverse) to fit on your hammer. These should be star shaped and be the right size for your tuning pins. Other tools that will be helpful include a pair of mutes and a tuning device.
  2. Pay a piano tuner for a quick lesson. Give them double their normal rate for an hour or two of their time and have them run down the basics with you. This way they see some financial benefit and you figure out if you can learn how to properly tune your piano.
  3. Set aside a lot of time. Tuning a piano, for someone that is inexperienced and does not have hearing accustomed to piano tuning, can take a huge portion of time. A first tuning for a piano takes 3-4 hours for a professional. Expect it to take you twice that long, at least.
  4. Buy tools.
  5. Press the sustain pedal. Press the sustain pedal before putting in the mutes.[1]
  6. Mute the extra strings. With the pedal pressed, place the mutes on the adjoining strings to the string you want to tune. Always start by tuning the center string.
  7. Play and analyze the sound. Strike the key firmly to hear the sound. Use the sound equipment to determine what changes are necessary to adjust the note.
  8. Tune the keys at the center of the piano first. The further you move out from the center, the more the keys will be affected by inharmonicity. This is just a fancy way of saying that their resonant qualities make the notes sound wrong, even if their frequency is correct.
  9. Make sure you tune the right string. It's easy to lose track of which pin turn which string. Be sure that you're looking at the right one before you start tuning it. This will help prevent you from breaking strings because you do not realize that they are too tight.[2]
  10. Adjust the string by turning the pin with the hammer. Make sure the pins are firmly in the socket before turning. Tighten the string by turning the pegs with a tuning hammer just a little at a time but be careful not to snap the string by tightening too far. Left to loosen and flat, right to tighten and sharp. Just remember to make very small movements! [3]
  11. Tune by comparison as much as possible. You will get a more natural sound by tuning by ear as much as possible try to tune the octaves by ear after tuning a single note. This is another reason why it is important to have a professional do this.

Tips

  • All pianos exhibit what is called in-harmonicity, which varies with each particular piano.
  • In-harmonicity requires a piano tuning to be stretched or tempered. For this reason all piano notes are not tuned to their theoretical mathematical frequencies.
  • Piano tuning and servicing is a very complicated process that takes a lot of training and skill to do it right.
  • A piano is very difficult to tune since it has more than 250 strings that are held under extremely high tension.
  • You must have a special wrench (called a tuning hammer) to turn them up or down.
  • The tuning pins that they wrap around are set very tightly in a strong wooden block.
  • Don't tune your own, wait for a pro to help.
  • Muting wedges and muting felt are also needed to dampen surrounding strings.
  • You can reduce the cost of owning a piano by taking precautions that help keep the piano in tune. Never move it if you can help it. Then you'll need to make sure that it stays in a room where the temperature is constant and keep it away from doors, windows, and heater vents. The wood is very susceptible to temperature changes, so keeping it in an ideal environment can easily keep you at just 1 tuning every six months
  • There is a big difference in feel when you are tuning, between turning the pin and twisting it. It takes a lot of time to develop this "feel". If you merely twist the pin, it won't stay in tune. When you turn the pin you can feel a break in the friction through the tuning hammer. This is perhaps the one hardest skill to develop. It is best while you are pulling the string to a higher frequency to hit the key hard driving out any loose tension this will make your tuning last longer as it will simulate actual playing of the piano.
  • Realize that supporting professionals is important. Professional piano tuners are often blind or visually handicapped. Running a tuning business gives them a great way to be independent and contribute to society using the skill they usually possess far more than sighted people do: excellent hearing. You may want to continue to use professional services if only to support these vulnerable members of society.

Warnings

  • If a string is tuned too sharp, it will snap. Replacing strings is tricky and costly, so tune with caution. If a string snaps or a piece of equipment moves where it shouldn't, you can end up cutting yourself or giving yourself other injuries. Be aware of this before attempting to tune your piano.
  • A piano is a fine and delicate instrument that should be tuned about twice a year. There is more to tuning than just following these instructions. It would be advisable to seek the services of a professional piano tuner to make sure that the tone is of good quality and sound.
  • Understand that there may be other things wrong. It's important to keep in mind that your piano tuner probably does more than just tighten some strings. They have to keep track of everything from broken hammers to sticky keys. Just because you can tighten the string does not mean you'll be doing all of your own piano maintenance.

Things You'll Need

  • Tuning lever (a.k.a. tuning hammer)
  • 440 tuning fork
  • Felt temperament strip (preferably tapered)
  • 2 rubber mutes

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://piano.detwiler.us/
  2. ↑ http://www.dirksprojects.nl/index.php?Lan=english&Page=Tuner/ManualPianoTuning.php
  3. ↑ http://pianoeducation.org/pnotunng.html

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