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Many churches reduce the temp. during the week to save on energy costs.... this one was the coldest yet!

54 degrees F. and 14% humidity in the back for the Steinway upright, 58 degrees and 15% humidity in the front for the Conover grand.

Good thing I had my long-johns on!

Ron Koval

Once I became violently ill after tuning in a cold church. After that, I don't put up with it. Maybe now and then I'll tolerate 60 degrees, with warm clothing, but only if it's too much hassle to get the heat on. Usually I appeal to whoever's in charge, saying the piano should be tuned as close as possible to the temperature it'll be used at, explaining why.

Jeff

Sometimes, sitting in the cold, I consider bringing along a little space heater to blow warm in my direction the next time...

I've done that, or had one provided for me, but if you do it wrong the space heater will knock the tuning right out as you're working. Frustrating.

Jeff

I have churches as low as 50 degree's. One time it was 48. Today was 60. Yes, back to work again finally!

I've been telling them to make it at least 60 in there. Even that is cold!

silk long underwear

try Sierra trading post

Frozen my keester in many a church. Done tunings in hat, coat and gloves. All in a days work.

Several years back, I went into a large church in Raleigh, NC to tune a sanctuary grand. After a few minutes in a very brisk environment, I noticed an extremely cold breeze blowing across the piano. I pulled my coat together and kept working. It got colder and colder.
Finally, I went to the secretary in another building and asked if she could turn on a little heat.
She replied, "The computer-controlled system is broken and stuck on A/C. I have no control over it!"
With my usual tuning fee + a nice shiver factor fee, they won't forget me---and I surely won't FORGET THEM.
Wayne Gregory, Angier,NC

One handy suggestion is to try to schedule a piano tuning immediately following the organ tuning (assuming it is a pipe organ ).

If the sanctuary is not within a few degrees of Sunday morning temperature when the organ tuners arrive, they will leave (and will likely bill for the trip). It doesn't take long for churches to learn that the heat MUST be on!

Since it takes organ chambers so long to come up to temperature, the heat needs to be on for about three hours prior to an organ tuning; by the time the organ tuners leave it should be at a very comfortable temperature throughout the sanctuary.

The only drawback is if the organ tuning takes all day, you'll be there rather late.

The last time the NAMM show was in Chicago, it was 10 below zero. It was so cold in there we were tuning with coats gloves and hats on. They had the dock doors open to unload trucks and the wind blew right in. That show is probably why a winter Namm show has never been to Chicago since.

I have always thought you had to tune a piano at the temperature it is played at. Just like using your tuning fork.

So as the church warms up, how flat does it go on the longer strings as compared to the shorter ones? How flat does a piano go with a 15* temperature change?

I won't tune the piano unless they do the routine they use on Sunday morning and then I add 2 degrees to the thermostat for the body heat factor. That's the only way it can be played with the organ.

I believe it had more to do with complaints from the exhibitors about union strong-arm tactics than the weather. It got very expensive having to have a union member unplug the lights and move the furniture around. But it was cold. Brrrrr...

All in a day's work. Church music folks give a lot of references, so I try to "Git er Done".

Amen to that, brother!

I left a note with the music contact that it may be better to tune after chuch when the building is warm if they are going to let the temperature drop that much during the week. It had never been that cold before... He knows and understands, we just deal with it the best we can.

Ron Koval

Cold churches are the only place I am comfortable all year! I wear a short sleeve shirt with no undershirt all year long because most people have their homes heated too much for me while I work. I wear shorts and sandals in warm weather.

I have one of those coats that is actually one coat inside another. If it is cold in the church when I get there, I leave the inner coat on while I open up the piano, insert the mutes, etc. but after a few minutes tuning, I have to remove it. My tuning habits might be described as "high powered". I keep moving, full steam ahead and it generates a lot of body heat.

Most churches cannot afford to heat that large sanctuary 7 days a week. The extra cost would easily contribute thousands to their annual heating bill. It's cheaper to tune the piano an extra 3 times or so by a long shot and good for us too.

This afternoon I tuned a new Chinese grand in a cold auditorium (54-58 F, yes, it rose slightly during the tuning) for a concert this evening. The impresario refused to turn on the heat on the grounds that it would be very expensive to do so. The concert is starting in 15 minutes -- I think the piano will be more in tune than it would have been if I hadn't been there, but I'm not sure. Uncomfortable situation in many ways.

I found that unheated churches had higher ambient humidity, so the piano didn't drop in pitch as much in the winter. I kept my workshop at about 55 degrees in winter unless I was working in it. That kept the ambient humidity at about 25%

Hey Dorrie. I think I would like to hear for myself what it sounds like. In your instance where you are tuning for a one time only thing, You give it your best shot to make an improvement. In a Church, you are tuning for the whole year. It is worth the extra expense and a little extra time.

If you have a chance to hear what it sounds like, the guesses you make would get better.