Old Piano.

Are you still in contact with the owner? If you are, it would be prudent to send a letter recorded delivery telling him you intend to dispose of the piano in, say, 28 days from the date of the letter.

If not, just go ahead and do it.

Old peoples' home, Sally Ann, village or community association hall or similar?

Reply to
wanderer
Loading thread data ...

Not strictly DIY, but not strictly anything else either.

There is an old upright piano (age and condition not determinable by the unmusical me, although its certainly not in tune and hasn't been tuned in my care) in my sitting room. It is not mine. It was just left by its owner. I did contact the owner about it but never got a reply. That was five years ago.

Its in the way. Suggestions as to what I can/ might do about it ( polite and practical ones please).

Reply to
mich

Tuner + piano lessons?

Reply to
Ian Stirling

Complicated story.

I am not in contact with the owner. She is ( was) my brothers ex wife. At the time of their divorce ( the last address I had for her) I asked her if she would take her piano out of my care - she had left it with me some ten years earlier to "store it" because she didnt have room for it. That was in my last house. I moved five years ago and took the piano with me because I didnt like to throw it out since it wasnt mine! She sold the marital home to buy a place with another partner . She fell out with him and moved again. She found another bloke and two years being up she applied for a divorce from my brother ( my brother cited adultery for various reasons like she tried to take him to the cleaners and blame him for the marriage breakdown and wanted his worldly goods and it got rather bitter) and she moved ( with yet another partner) and would not tell my brother where she was going, hence I have no knowledge of her current wherabouts.

Ah. never thought about that. Didnt think anyone wanted piano's these days. Thanks.

Reply to
mich

"mich" wrote | > > It is not mine. It was just left by its owner. I | > > did contact the owner about it but never got a reply. | > > That was five years ago. | > Are you still in contact with the owner? If you are, it | > would be prudent to send a letter recorded delivery telling | > him you intend to dispose of the piano in, say, 28 days | > from the date of the letter. | I am not in contact with the owner. ... hence I have no knowledge | of her current wherabouts.

Nonetheless, a recorded delivery letter to this woman's last known address would be a prudent move. It should be returned by the PO as 'not known'. Keep it safe, and if the woman does turn up claiming her piano and threatening lawsuits you can use the returned letter as evidence that you did take reasonable steps to locate her before considering her property abandoned.

Owain

Reply to
Owain

And when the old slapper does turn up, you can also charge her for storage.

Reply to
Graeme

Sell it on ebay.

Reply to
Mike Harrison

Normal practice is to hit with hammer until all pieces are postable through a BSI sized letterbox.

Reply to
scorch

Ah, you're talking to the master here! I have had countless old pianos in my lifetime. I treasure old pianos, though many are simply crap, turned out in their thousands in the East End in the 1920s and not worth the iron they cast as the frame. But some are worth saving and restoring. One big problem with pianos of all ages is their weight. They really are a bugger to move around, especially up or down stairs.

Its condition depends on whether it has been kept in the right kind of atmosphere. Too dry or too damp will ruin even a Steinway. Also, if it is wildly out of tune, you may never get it into tune again, or if you do, the tuning will slip after a short while. Note that pianos used to tune A above middle C to 435 Hz, not 440, so you may never get modern concert pitch out of it. However, a piano can be restrung, a new soundboard is not impossible (not for a DIY-er, though) and the whole action can be overhauled.

Whatever you do, please don't just break it up unless there is no other way. Many kids might love having a piano, but it never occurred to their parents to get them one. Even if you only get a nominal fee (or nowt) for it, you might have the satisfaction in your dotage of seeing the Leeds Piano Competition winner on TV whose tentative first forays on the keyboard were done on your old piano!

I LOVE pianos!

MM

Reply to
Mike Mitchell

You see! I always knew an old piano had a story to tell!

MM

Reply to
Mike Mitchell

In article , mich writes

My Grandma, who died some 40+ years ago, left an upright piano, which I dismantled. I remember having a hell of a job getting rid of the iron frame, but I did recover hundreds of wood screws about No 8 x 1" with a semi-round (sort of mushroom) head. I still have a few of them somewhere! I think there were about 3 per note, plus quite a few others.

I once had ideas of using the keys as the basis for a nelectronic organ, but I still haven't got a round tuit (nor do I know where the keys went!).

Reply to
Frank Erskine

Sell it.

Rick

Reply to
Rick Dipper

Just put the thing on the local tip and be done with it.

Reply to
PJ

You can't be sure it hasn't some value. Could even be quite a bit - worth the effort of finding out, anyway.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

And destruction/tipping?

Reply to
Ian Stirling

Thanks for suggestion to everyone.

I am reluctant to destroy it myself largely because it isn't mine even though I couldn't care less if someone else broke it up. As for charges , that raises a smile. I have never been paid for storage for those ten years. I wonder how much that could come to? Maybe I could get my brother a little of the money she took from him?

The other problem is of course the actual practical difficulty of moving/ taking way, which will cost. When I moved house five years ago I had to pay extra for the piano and some removers wouldn't even look at the job. It is heavy and a b***** to shift.

Cost of removal I reckon would be about £100 based on the figures I got then. I do know the council will not take it and I cant take it down the amenity tip/ recycling tip because it needs a van to transport it ( I have a VW Polo, I cant see me getting it in the boot somehow) and the tip will not let vans onto the site without an extra charge ( any van is commercial according to them). Again £100 cost to get rid of it there plus the cost of a van hire.

My only viable option may be to break it up unless someone wants it for free and is willing to pay the cost of taking it away.

Reply to
mich

Have you contacted a piano dealer? It's possible it has some value, and they would arrange transport.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Hi, I just went through a similar thing and found someone who wanted it for £20 as we upgraded to a Yamaha.

Find out the Make and model (should be on front or near keys, or inside - lift the lid where you'll find the serial number.) The ring a Piano\Music store and give them the details, they should be able to date it and give you a rough value.

There's also the option of E-Bay if it's a good one...

Cheers, Paul

Reply to
Spiral Dive

Pianos have no value at all, unless of course you're looking to buy one :-) I had reason to consider selling a Bechstein grand for someone recently. I happen to know it's in perfect condition but dealers wanted to "take it off my hands" and the auctioneer said it might fetch £200. In the end it went on extended loan to the local schools' music and drama centre.

Reply to
stuart noble

We broke one up by lending the kids a sledgehammer. Hours of fun for them.

It was a great shame in a way but it was in an irreparable state even before the sledgehammer application, having had the hammers walked on by one of the boys. It wasn't good even before that although I did accompany a daughter's fiddle and double bass ... and one of the boys taught himself to play on it. The noise was awful. It was a mercy for everyone, especially the neighbours, when it went.

Mary

Reply to
Mary Fisher

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.