Pianos in a subtropical climate

Why do you need to Tune and Maintain your Piano?

Your piano is made up of more than 5,000 parts.
Life-span of the piano is determined by the quality of the materials used, its design and construction and the conditions to which the piano is subjected.
Wood is the main element in a piano, so taking care of it will keep it in prime condition.

The weather in Hong Kong is a subtropical climate. There is a humidity level around 80-90% even on sunny days which is very high. This can cause the wood in the piano to alternately shrink and then expand, causing tuning to become rather unstable. Humidity can also affect the operation of moving parts. Ideally your piano should be kept in an environment of 50-60% (most European pianos, 45%) relative humidity, and at a stable temperature. Here, it is very difficult to keep all the musical instruments in good condition without humidity control.

The pitch will drift if the piano is not tuned on a regular basis. The stability of your piano’s environment will tend to determine how often it needs to be tuned. The quality of the instrument, how much it is used and any physical movement of the piano will also determine how often the piano should be tuned.

So you should tune and maintain your Piano regularly!
Typically a piano in Hong Kong should be tuned three times a year.

What is Regular Maintenance?