I Just Bought a New Piano. Now What?
By Eathan Janney, Founder — Floating Piano Factory
Buying a new piano is an exciting moment. Whether it is your child’s first instrument, an upgrade after years of playing a digital keyboard, or a serious purchase you have been planning for a long time — a new piano deserves to be set up correctly from the start.
Here is what you should do — and what to expect — in the first weeks and months after a new piano arrives in your home.
Expect the Piano to Need Tuning Quickly
The most important thing to understand about a new piano is this: new pianos go out of tune faster than established ones.
This is not a defect. It is a natural part of how strings behave.
New piano strings are made of high-tensile steel wire. When they are first strung and brought to pitch during manufacturing, they begin to stretch — slowly, gradually, but consistently. For the first year or two after a piano is built, the strings are still settling. Every time the piano is tuned, the strings hold pitch a little better. But in the early months, they will drift more quickly than an instrument whose strings have been at tension for several years.
What this means for you: plan to have your piano tuned three to four times in the first year. Your dealer may have included one or two tunings with the purchase — take advantage of those, and then schedule additional service. This is not an unexpected expense; it is part of correctly breaking in a new instrument.
Let the Piano Acclimate Before the First Tuning
When a piano is delivered to your home, it has just gone through a move — and possibly a significant change in environment.
The piano left a factory or dealer showroom (which may have been at a different humidity level, temperature, or altitude) and arrived in your home. Give the instrument one to two weeks to acclimate before the first tuning.
During this time, the wood inside the piano is adjusting to your home’s humidity and temperature. If you tune it immediately on delivery day, it may drift noticeably within a week or two as the instrument settles in. Waiting a couple of weeks produces a more stable first tuning.
Where to Place the Piano
This decision matters more than most people realize, and it is worth getting right before the piano arrives rather than moving it again later.
Choose an interior wall. Exterior walls are subject to greater temperature swings. An interior wall provides more stable conditions.
Avoid heating and cooling vents. Forced-air HVAC systems blow dry or humid air directly at whatever is nearby. Repeated cycles of this will stress the piano’s wooden structure and cause pitch instability.
Avoid windows with direct sunlight. Sunlight heats the cabinet, dries the wood, and causes temperature-driven humidity swings inside the instrument.
Avoid fireplaces. The heat is concentrated and drying.
Maintain stable room humidity. The ideal range for pianos is 45 to 55 percent relative humidity. In Chicago, this means using a humidifier in winter, when indoor heating drops room humidity dramatically, and possibly a dehumidifier or air conditioning in summer.
Consider a Piano Humidity Control System from the Start
This is easier to install on a new piano than on an older one.
In-piano humidity control systems — such as the Dampp-Chaser Piano Life Saver — install inside the instrument and actively maintain humidity in the optimal range regardless of room conditions. They are particularly valuable in Chicago’s climate, where seasonal humidity swings can be significant.
Installing a system on a new piano protects the instrument during the critical early years when the wood is still acclimating, and it extends the useful life of the instrument considerably. Ask your technician about this on their first visit.
Have the Action Evaluated Early
New pianos sometimes arrive with action that needs adjustment. This is common and expected — the journey from factory to dealer to your home can shift things, and the factory setup is sometimes conservative rather than optimized for actual playing.
On early service visits, ask your technician to evaluate the touch and feel of the keys. A new piano that feels uneven, sluggish in certain registers, or not quite right may simply need some adjustment.
This is part of breaking in the instrument properly. New pianos often benefit from regulation work within the first year or two as the action parts settle.
Keep Records
From the first tuning onward, keep a simple record of when the piano was serviced and by whom.
This is useful for several reasons:
- It helps you stay on schedule
- It provides a history that is valuable if you ever sell the instrument
- It helps your technician understand the instrument’s pattern of behavior over time
A well-documented piano is a better-cared-for piano.
What to Expect After the First Year
After a year or two of consistent tuning, most new pianos settle considerably. The strings stop stretching as aggressively. Pitch stability improves. The action parts find their equilibrium.
At that point, most new pianos transition to a normal twice-yearly tuning schedule.
Questions About Your New Piano?
If you are in Chicago and have just purchased a new piano — or are planning to — I am glad to answer questions, evaluate the instrument, and set up a care schedule that protects your investment.
Eathan Janney is the founder of Floating Piano Factory and has been tuning pianos professionally since around 2000. He serves clients throughout Chicago, New York, and beyond.