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I will be moving to a new apartment, at the end of the summer, and I am planning on taking my piano with me. Now, I am aware that hiring professionals to move the piano is the best way.

But we are considering moving it ourselves. For one, we will not have to worry about moving it over any steps, even once to my apartment, the elevator is big enough for the piano. We will not have to move over any gravel, or grass.

Is there something, that maybe I am missing, it would be cheaper, and we know how to take care of the instrument, but a final decision has not been made.

Is your piano an upright piano or a grand? The moving techniques are totally different for each.

It is a petrof upright piano.

I'm sure most responses here will recommend hiring someone. Someone wanted to move a piano like 6 inches and people were recommending hiring pros. However, I have moved several pianos over the years with fine results. We even moved a small grand piano from Michigan to New Jersey with no harm done.

Obviously you have to be careful. Have several people, make sure you don't tip it over , pad it well and tie it down well if you are using a truck or trailer.

This is not rocket science and these are all common sense precautions. I say go for it.

I have read several horror stories about pros doing amazingly dumb things so that doesn't necessarily give me a great deal of confidence.

You can do it.

I've moved a few uprights with little or no help... the smaller studios are not much trouble.

That Petrof should be easy to handle... not real big and bulky, but still heavy.

It can be done safely, with the right equipment and some caution and common sense... get a good furniture/piano dolly to move the piano, if possible. It has casters, but they are not really designed to do a lot of rolling. Wrap it good with quilts or blankets to protect it. Strap it down good on the truck or trailer.

Have at least one other strong person to help with the move.

And, most of all, be careful not to rupture a disk or a get a hernia...

Good luck!

Rick

Warning! Warning!... Pianos are heavy and don't have a good center of balance. Proper equipment is needed to protect the piano and, much more importantly, the people doing the moving.

Years ago I had a 3-year-old Baldwin Acrosonic spinet which my husband and a friend (both 30ish) moved from one apartment to another in the same complex. One step down from the first apartment - one step up into the second. They had no dolly, just rolled it down the sidewalk on its casters.

Going through the second doorway they let it slip, and forever I had a chunk of wood missing from the front of the piano, right below the keyboard.

You just never can tell. If it were me and I valued my piano, I'd hire a professional.

Wow Anne, I'm glad that was an Acrosonic spinet and not your Bosendorfer 225. This is a classic example of how NOT to move a piano. No proper equipment, no moving blankets, no dolly, etc. If that's the way you would approach moving a piano I would definitely hire a professional, but there are many do it yourselfers out there that can work safe and use common sense. Use a proper dolly, wrap the piano in moving blankets, strap the dolly onto the piano so it won't come off at the wrong time, get at least two people, check that you won't snap the front legs off if it is not toe blocked, do a little research, watch some youtube videos, make sure you know what you are doing before hand and are not shooting from the hip. Have proper ramps, measure door widths to make sure the piano will fit, go slow, always keep in mind that the piano is awkward dead weight with a high center of gravity, be careful around tight corners, etc. If you work smart and safe you can do it yourself. If you have ANY doubts, listen to those doubts in your head and hire a pro. This isn't the time for Bubba and Jr to throw 'er in the back of the pick-em up truck. You can use a pick up, but a moving van is much better.

The time to hire a piano mover is BEFORE you find yourself saying, "Uh, oh...I think we should have hired a piano mover."

Keep in mind that the center of gravity on uprights is much closer to the back, and can flip over easily if people pick up the front. The fronts have much less of the weight.

A proper dolly will NOT be found at Home Depot. Go to a moving equipment company. Also I'm not sure about belting the piano to the dolly...

Pianos are a rare combination of heavy, bulky, and delicate. You can certainly move a piano by yourself with no problem... until you have a problem.

If you attempt this yourself use a flat appliance dolly with big wheels that turn, wrap the piano, and if it begins to fall - just get the heck out of the way.

Good luck.

PS- At least get a price on the move.

You think I'd let my husband even breathe on my Bösendorfer?

I think you must have an electric fence around it. LOL

Being in the business and tuning and servicing roughly 1,000 + pianos a year for many, many, many years, I have heard more than my fair share of "I wish I had hired a mover instead of moving it myself. It would have cost me a LOT LESS than the repair to the finish, broken leg, busted this and that from it falling over the back of the pick up truck onto the ground as we rounded the corner or as Anne said, one bump, is all it takes to create a $300 fix.... I'd hire a mover...

i strongly recommend to get professional movers.

http://moving.about.com/od/movingspecialtyitems/a/moving_piano.htm

I remember a few years ago from one of our customers. They had purchased a nice European upright and when moving locally, the misses had called to schedule us to move the piano. The day before the move, the husband called to cancel us saying his house movers (pros in other furniture, not pianos) would just take care of it in spite of his wife's wishes. The next afternoon, a moving truck pulled up to our front parking lot and out popped 5 movers and shortly behind a panicked husband along with the upright. There was a gash about 5" x 2" x 0.5" deep in the side. He paid 3x our move estimate for the repair, had to pay for a move anyway so we could deliver it, and had to deal with an unhappy wife for at least a week before it was back safe and sound.

We only tell the funny or unfortunate stories. We don't tell the scary or dangerous ones. If the move is as easy as you say, the charge shouldn't be much. While not that difficult, several common mistakes carry big risks. I've done it myself, by myself, more than once with a 48" upright. I had lots of experience, equipment, and access to our restoration shop. I hope you have more than just a little confidence.

Professional piano movers are not a luxury.

Maybe not, but not necessarily a necessity either. Many people do it successfully everyday with good results. You never hear about the successful ones. There have been several examples of disasters using pros also.

With proper care and a simple situation (no cranes or multiple narrow stairs etc.) it's not a difficult task.

Just be aware of your limitations and proceed accordingly.

For the price of one little, bitty, disk in you spine, you could buy an extremely fine piano. For the price of one friend's lawsuit over his crushed hand, you could buy a couple more.
If you have to ask about moving, the odds are that you are going to wish you had paid a pro.
Regards,