At Fifth Octave, we enjoy helping our customers in the Green Bay, Wisconsin region to restore the grandeur and functionality of their pianos. We have the tools, the know-how, and the resources to really get your piano back to a fully functional and great-looking part of your property!

A piano is in many ways a unique asset – it takes up space, it has a lot of complexity, and if it’s in good condition, it can provide a lot of value.

However, what happens when pianos depreciate and wear out over time? Many of them end up sadly unused or rotting away in a corner somewhere.

At Fifth Octave, we give your piano new life, and we work through some of the major challenges that are always there when you want to restore an aging instrument.

Build Eras

When we look at our clients’ antique pianos, some were built over 100 or 150 years ago, or more, and that means that new technologies and methods that we have today were not available at the time. You have some pretty primitive and antiquated systems in terms of keys and strings and other parts that can require some extensive replacement in terms of restoration.

This challenge can also be somewhat of an opportunity.

Because new materials and technology are available, it becomes easier to restore a piano to even better condition and functionality than it had perhaps 75 or 100 years ago when it was a centerpiece of the home and was played often.

In addition, a piano is a window back in time – as you restore it, you learn a lot about its history, and the history of the people who owned it.

Degrading Materials

One of the first things we do with restoring pianos involves looking at hammers, tuning pins, bushings, straps and other parts that were originally made with soft or degrading materials like felt, string, or other products. We take a systemic approach to evaluating every small part – and with a piano, that’s a lot of parts!

Think of a piano in the same way that you think of a car or a computer – multiple systems have to work well together, and problems with one part can cascade into bigger issues.

Frame/Cabinet and Wood Restoration

Another potential challenge with restoring pianos is that the original wood frames and builds also happened in another time.

Some owners come to find that the woods and materials used during another era are not available now. We have a very different supply chain in terms of wood than we had in the 1800s. So that factors into our restoration process.

Talk to Fifth Octave about the choices that you have to restore and repair an old piano. We serve customers in Green Bay, Wisconsin and beyond – if you can get your piano to us, we’re happy to work on it for you. If you have any questions, let us know. We’re ready to help you fix your old piano.