The pitch of the mid-range and treble section is now flat. When the soundboard shrinks and flattens, the tension of strings over the bridge becomes inadequate. The bridges of your piano are joined to the soundboard and support the strings. It actually vibrates to amplify the sound produced by the strings. The soundboard is the single largest piece of wood in your piano. Then, during a tuning, when your piano technician turns the pins to stretch the strings, the inflexible, rusted string snaps at this joint. With exposure to high humidity levels over long periods, strings become rusted and corroded.Īt the junction where rusted strings wrap around rusted pins, rust corrosion forms a hardened bond between the two. ![]() The strings of your piano are responsible for producing the musical sounds. Prevent Serious Rust Damage to Strings and Pins With high moisture levels in the piano action, the action is sluggish, and the keys seem non-responsive to your touch. The way the keys cause the hammers to strike the piano strings is part of thousands of interconnected wooden parts called the piano action. Prevent Sluggish, Unresponsive Keyboard ActionĪs you play your piano, you will notice how responsive the keys are to your touch. Just as doors and drawers become tight and difficult to move, the keys of your piano may stick down when struck in times of high humidity. Just as with other wood-based instruments, your piano needs a constant level of ideal humidity - between 40% - 50% - to maintain its pitch and tone, quality of action, and to prevent permanent damage. ![]() Violinists must pay close attention to maintaining constant, ideal humidity levels - or else they may find their violin rather dramatically springing apart during a performance! Guitar players must frequently adjust their bridge heights and fingerboard action. All wood instrument musicians are familiar with the effects of humidity levels. ![]() Like the living trees that were the source of your piano, wood responds to climate and environment - it breathes, stretches and flexes. You will see this damage in the form of a crack in the soundboard.Īpart from the strings, your piano is almost entirely made of wood. Over time, constant changes in humidity levels, with the corresponding shrinking and swelling of the soundboard, will damage the integrity of the soundboard.
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