What do I do with this piano?
April 18, 2013 4:01 PM   Subscribe

I have my late grandmother's piano in my apartment, on which my mother my two aunts never learned to play piano. I don't play piano either and I'd kinda like to use the space for something else, like possibly the absence of a piano. How do I achieve that? What are my options?

The piano is 1950s or 1960s Estey spinnet style upright. It's never, ever been tuned or received any maintenance all, at least not in the last 30 years, and it's moved at least twice. Is it so that, because of the neglect, it's probably not usable as an instrument? In either case, what kind of a person do I call to haul it away? Specific recommendations of charities or services or movers for Portland, OR would be appreciated. Thanks!
posted by chrchr to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (10 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
You could get a piano tuner to come evaluate what shape it's in.

Or you could sell it on Craigslist or put it up as "free if you haul it."

There's bound to be someone who wants it.
posted by DoubleLune at 4:29 PM on April 18, 2013 [1 favorite]


When we decided it was time to pass along our baby grand, we weren't sure what to do, and we really weren't excited about paying someone to carry it down our stairs. (UGH.) We asked our piano tuner, and he had someone in mind immediately (a musician's group at a local prison). The recipient made all the arrangements. So, my recommendation is to call around local piano tuners and see if they have ideas.
posted by samthemander at 4:35 PM on April 18, 2013 [1 favorite]


For me Freecycle has been a useful place both to get and to give pianos; the logistics of moving have been the recipients' responsibility.
posted by anadem at 4:40 PM on April 18, 2013


Spinet pianos, IMHO, are junk. The action is almost always lousy and the tone is weak at best. Give it away. Schools, community centers, etc. Take a tax deduction on it.
posted by plinth at 5:47 PM on April 18, 2013


Craigslist. People like free pianos even if they are crappy: 1. Better than no piano 2. Totally okay to take it apart and mess with it
posted by TheRedArmy at 6:17 PM on April 18, 2013 [2 favorites]


I had this problem! Here's my ask me about it.

I ended up having a coworker take it off my hands. The strategy that worked for me was complaining constantly about wanting to get rid of it until somebody said, "Hey, I want a piano."

YMMV
posted by jeoc at 7:03 PM on April 18, 2013


I had a friend that had a hot tub on his deck he no longer used or wanted. The guy at the hot tub store finally told him how to get rid of it. Sledgehammer. In pieces. No one would take it and actually hauling it away in one piece was going to cost a lot. He had a party, drank a lot of beers, got out the sledgehammer and let everyone take swings. Great entertainment apparently.

You could do the same with the piano.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 9:56 PM on April 18, 2013


You could do the same with the piano

I wouldn't do that. Even the most out of tune piano has heavy metal strings under tension in it and I wouldn't want to be near that when one broke loose. Also, the harp is usually solid metal (probably brass, maybe not) which sounds like a recipe for something being broken that is not meant to be broken. If not the hammer, than maybe a person.
posted by fiercekitten at 10:21 PM on April 18, 2013 [1 favorite]


It's probably still usable as an instrument--pianos are quite durable, and unless it's been exposed to really high humidity or water, it'll likely be fine after a couple of tunings. Schools, churches, and nursing homes often appreciate pianos. A piano teacher may also know of a family who needs one. My great-grandmother's piano went to a young prodigy who lived down the street, who was very happy to have it... some friends of the family moved it for them.
posted by Nibbly Fang at 6:09 PM on April 19, 2013


Piano technician here - definitely don't do the sledgehammer. Even though a spinet might look small and not too robust, it's still holding several thousands of pounds of tension in the cast iron plate. Taking a sledge to it while the strings are under tension is a bad, bad idea. Unless you like the idea of dodging flying strings that could easily take out an eye and/or cause serious lacerations.

Donating it is probably your best. Old spinets that haven't been maintained aren't worth much money (and are usually posted on craigslist for waaaay more than they're actually worth), but can be serviceable instruments with a little modest work. I'd contact your local Piano Technician's Guild chapter and see if they run a donation service - many do.
posted by adamp88 at 12:56 PM on April 20, 2013


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