One of the great things about having been in business here in South Florida for so long is that Douglas Equipment’s professionals have helped customers increase mobility for a wide range of big moves. One of the most interesting moves we’ve helped customers perform is the process of moving a large piano from one place to another. This process is actually exciting for us to take on; we love a challenge and enjoy meeting customers’ needs in innovative ways when they decide to do something a bit unconventional.
Moving pianos is a tough job. There is no room for error, especially with larger models like the Steinway Grand or Baby Grand that are popular among serious piano players. One wrong move can affect the piano’s tune, damage its wood, or even throw the piano off its dollies and away from its casters, reducing its value significantly With this challenge firmly in mind, our professional staff has long sought to reduce the worries and nervous jitters that accompany a piano move. Whether our customers need the piano to be more easily moved on-stage or backstage, or if they’re transporting the piano from one home to another, we can get the job done.
It all starts with the right dollies. Pianos need to be firmly mounted on these dollies, safe from sudden movements and protected against a stop-and-go moving process. From there, the right casters for the job must be in place so that the piano is moved without suffering damage, and so that the surfaces on which the piano is transported do not suffer damage of their own. At Douglas Equipment, we firmly understand this, and should be easily considered a leader in supplying the right tools and casters for any piano move. Here’s what we recommend for customers who are new to this process:
Start with the Dolly: Picking the Right Equipment for an Easy Move
Pianos come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but their dimensions tend to be standard based on their overall design and the original manufacturer of the instrument. Our customers typically come to us with a desire to move one of the following pianos:
- Grand pianos
- Baby Grand pianos
- Upright pianos
All three of these pianos are very heavy, and both the Grand and Baby Grand models are quite large. Moving them is a hassle; the customer needs to find a dolly that can hold the piano securely in place, ensuring it will not slide off, experience structural damage, or lose its perfect tune. At Douglas Equipment, customers are far more likely to find exactly what they need without waiting for long shipping processes or paying unnecessarily high fees.
Our nearly six decades in the industry has taught us exactly which dollies to offer customers who have any of the three piano types in their possession. Upright pianos benefit from our longer dollies or those made with industrial materials, like steel and aluminum. Baby Grand and Grand piano models require larger dollies, often with an X-style or Y-style design. These sit beneath each of the piano’s legs, coming together in the middle to form a super-strong, metal structure that will allow the piano to be moved effortlessly into a backstage area or into a moving van.
When they’re used to make pianos more mobile for theater use, these dollies come with their own set of pneumatic brakes that can be engaged on the fly. This is absolutely essential, since the dolly needs to be made immobile when the piano is being actively used. For this reason, we’ve worked to obtain dollies specifically designed for stage pianos. We offer these to customers throughout South Florida, improving the mobility of their instruments and making it easier for stagehands to get the job done in just a few moments’ time.
Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Great Casters
Moving a piano is no small task, the size of which sometimes causes our customers to think only about the type of dolly they need to get the job done. Dollies, however, are only about half of the solution to better mobility for instruments of this size. In addition to a strong, reliable dolly, customers need to make sure they get the right casters for the job. There are some unique considerations that apply to pianos, but not to other instruments, making it difficult to choose the right caster. Luckily, our experience in this area means we have exactly what customers need.
Before buying casters, be sure to understand the perks of the right ones, the drawbacks of the wrong ones, and the best method for ensuring smooth, damage-free transportation.
Good Casters: A Primer for Piano Owners
The best casters for transporting a piano are those that can produce very little noise while moving a very heavy object. They should also be able to glide across any type of flooring without producing scratches, scuffmarks, and other damage; many piano dollies are used on hardwood flooring common to stages and orchestra pits, making smooth transportation essential. Piano owners should consider the following types of casters:
- Polyurethane Models
Casters coated in polyurethane are perfect for moving a piano. This wheel material is incredibly soft, and comes with a number of key benefits. First, the wheel will not make noise when the piano is moved around the stage. The audience will be none the wiser when a piano is in transit, especially if they can’t see what’s going on behind the scenes.
Casters made from this material also absorb some of the jolts and shocks that come from uneven flooring, protecting the piano’s legs, keys, and overall tune. This is essential in everyday practice, since a jolted piano can provide a rather unpleasant surprise for musical audiences and directors.
- Rubber-Coated Caster Wheels
If there’s one material even more suited to piano mobility than polyurethane, it’s rubber. Easily the softest material currently used with industrial casters, rubber comes with a number of benefits for piano owners. First and foremost, casters can be purchased with a varying thickness of rubber coating, meaning stage managers and piano owners can choose a caster wheel that is the quietest or most protective based on their unique needs and considerations.
Since rubber is the thickest and softest of the materials used to coat caster wheels, it is also the best material for reducing shocks and jolts to the system when the piano is rolled over an uneven surface. These casters can be paired with strong brakes, making the piano immobile during active use or when it’s placed in storage. For moving a piano between two different buildings, these casters are the most protective and they’ll risk the least amount of damage to piano legs, keys, and other parts.
Bad Casters: What to Avoid at All Times
For every great caster that improves piano mobility and protection, there’s a caster that simply isn’t designed for this kind of work. Generally, this caster is harder and less able to absorb shocks, creating a higher risk of damage for the piano and making it a great deal more stressful moving the piano between various locations. Here’s what to avoid:
- Stainless Steel and Cast Iron Casters
Under no circumstances should a caster made solely of stainless steel or cast iron be used to transport a piano. These casters should only be considered appropriate if they’re first coated in rubber or polyurethane. Otherwise, their relative lack of shock absorption will transfer any jolts or shocks directly to the piano’s legs. That can mean cracks in the wood, damage to the piano’s keys, and structural problems that significantly shorten the life of the instrument with each move.
- Nylon Casters
Nylon casters are simply not durable enough to handle the task of moving the piano from place to place. While they’re a bit softer than those made of cast iron or aluminum, they’re still quite hard, and will only lead to problems for piano owners. In lieu of these casters, choose rubber models that will be able to better withstand the serious amount of heft associated with even the smallest upright pianos currently in use.
Contact Us Right Away to Learn More
With a firm understanding of how the right casters and dollies can make a real difference in terms of piano mobility and longevity, it’s time to contact Douglas Equipment to purchase the right equipment. Our sales professionals can be reached at (305) 888-3700 within South Florida or (800) 451-0030 nationwide. Through our website’s contact page, we also accept emails about our available products and how each of those casters and dollies can help make pianos just a bit more mobile.
