Scrapping an old piano

[Lilymaid]

Sadly, I have to scrap a piano -the piano tuner has found that the sound board is cracked and it is beyond economic repair. The mahogany panels may be of interest to a friend who does wood work and the ivory (pre war piano) on the keys may be of interest to the piano tuner. The metal (it is a Welmar overstrung) should be of interest to a scrap merchant? Any advice on how to dispose of it? Piano is in Surrey. Thanks

[mdw]

Take off all the easy to remove parts, top and bottom door action etc. Break the sides of which will loosen the keyboard and leg supports. Break of the pedal board. Now detention the strings and loosen. Unbolt the frame. Filp it over and break of the bracings off the back and you will be left with the frame and wrest plank still attached. I seem to remember a frame is worth about £7 at the metal recyclers. Or ask you local pianoshop who may take it away and do that for a fee.

[Colin Nicholson]

Is is necessary to flip the frame over? I thought once the cast frame is unbolted (and all strings & wrest pins removed) just a matter of lifting it off, leaving the soundboard & wrest plank attached to the back posts..... then just chop them up for fire wood. Maybe 'frame' was misunderstood?

Also just take care if you remove rusty strings - lay the piano on its back, then best to spray them with WD40 first (wrest pins & hitch pins), then lay a couple of old blankets over the strings leaving the wrest pin end exposed. Sometimes old strings snap when the tension is released, and if anyone in the way - can cause serious damage as they fly through the air.... and best to wear eye protection.

[mdw]

Sorry I was working on the basis of it being a drilled frame. I dont go as far as removing the wrest pins if they go through individual holes in the frame. Therefore leaving the wrest plank still attached to the top of the frame.

[Colin Nicholson]

Yeh.. I get your meaning.
Mind you, I've tuned many pianos with the odd crack here & there, and depending where the crack is, pianos still play fine with a small crack in the soundboard "mid-regions".... but of course if the crack runs across the back of the bridge, thats a different story then when you hear buzzing & rattling noises... then it's scrap.

Lilymaid.... if you were considering replacing the piano for another one, some piano shops may offer a part-ex.... even if its scrap. The local shop near me offer up to £50 for the old piano, depending on what you pay for another piano.... at this time of year, business is quite slow, so they may be able to take it off your hands - but if not part-ex, then you would pay about the price of a removal as shops usually hire a skip to break them up, and can get about 3 pianos in a skip.

Anyway - just a thought!

[Lilymaid]

Thanks for all your advice Colin and MDW. It will be sad to have to break up the piano but we have to do this as we need to clear the house it is in! We already have a piano (Knight) in good working order in our own home so wouldn't be looking for part exchange.

We asked a reputable piano tuner (Welmar specialist) to have a look at it. He said that it might have a few years left in it if he injected it with something (?) but that he couldn't guarantee that would work. As we had another piano - and would have to move the piano nearly 100 miles he recommended that the most sensible course of action would be to scrap the Welmar.

[Barrie Heaton]

We asked a reputable piano tuner (Welmar specialist) to have a look at it. He said that it might have a few years left in it if he injected it with something (?) but that he couldn't guarantee that would work. As we had another piano - and would have to move the piano nearly 100 miles he recommended that the most sensible course of action would be to scrap the Welmar.

Sound like he wants to use pintite as its got lose tuning pins. Its sounding like the piano has been cooked the bast option is to scrap it

Barrie,