Photo: Erik Mclean

Can you fix a broken piano key?

Many people are not aware that chipped ivory piano keys can be repaired. There is actually a product called AcryliKey that is made specifically for this purpose. Similar in nature to dental epoxy, AcryliKey is a special powder that is mixed with Acrylic Monomer Liquid and applied to the chipped piano key.

moorepiano.com - Ivory Piano Key Repair

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Repairing chipped ivory piano keys

Cleaning ivory piano keys

Whitening yellowed ivory piano keys

Replacing ivory piano keys

Repairing Chipped Ivory Piano Keys

Moore Piano is pleased to provide ivory piano key repair services to our clients in northeastern Indiana and northwest Ohio. These services include: Many people are not aware that chipped ivory piano keys can be repaired. There is actually a product called AcryliKey that is made specifically for this purpose. Similar in nature to dental epoxy, AcryliKey is a special powder that is mixed with Acrylic Monomer Liquid and applied to the chipped piano key. You can actually buy this product and do the repairs yourself, but the process can be quite laborious. Here’s how it works: First, use a mixture of mild hand soap and warm water to clean the ivory piano key, and then remove all soapy residue with a water-dampened cloth. Using a small file, file down the chipped area of the key, making sure to get rid of any remaining dirt in the process. Take a sharp knife and cut a small channel all the way across the key front. Take a plastic cup and mix the Acrylic Polymer Powder with the Acrylic Monomer Liquid (add a little bit of the Yellow Acrylic Polymer Powder if you need to in order to match the color of your piano keys). Using a toothpick, apply the mixture to the ivory key that is in need of repair. Use the toothpick to keep the mixture in place until it begins to harden. Sand down the key after the mixture has dried, and then buff it with a buffing wheel and appropriate buffing compound until it looks just like the rest of the keys. As you can see, there are quite a few materials required for this process, which is why we recommend having a professional like Moore Piano do the repairs for you. The following “before and after” pictures are an example of an ivory piano key that we repaired. Contact us today to request a quote on our services.

Ivory piano keys before repairs

The same keys after repairs were made

Whitening Yellowed Ivory Piano Keys

In addition to repairing broken keys, we can also clean and whiten ivory keys that have yellowed. Again, this is something that you can try doing on your own first, but be very careful as using improper cleaning solutions or techniques can damage the keys. One thing you can try is moving your piano to a sunny area, as the sunlight can help bleach the keys. However sunlight can damage your piano in other ways, so this isn’t necessarily recommended. We use a special bleaching process on the keys to whiten them, as pictured below. Our whitening process uses commercial grade hydrogen peroxide and a strong UV light.

Ivory piano keys undergoing a bleaching process

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Is it possible to replace piano keys?

If you are not happy with how your piano keys look, there is a solution. The old keytops can be removed and replaced with new, durable keytops that are sure to improve the appearance of your piano.

finetuningco.com - Piano Keytop Replacement - Fine Tuning

This post was originally published on 9/21/2015.

Do your piano keys look like the ones in the photos above? Hopefully not. If you are not happy with how your piano keys look, there is a solution. The old keytops can be removed and replaced with new, durable keytops that are sure to improve the appearance of your piano. The images in this article are from an old spinet with plastic keytops that had cracked and broken and were stained. It is also very common to replace old warped, discolored, or missing ivory keytops with a new set of plastic. I would not normally recommend replacing keytops on an old spinet as the monetary value of the piano does not usually justify the expense of the replacement. However, there are circumstances, such as this one, where the piano has sentimental value and it also perfectly matches the decor of the home that it is in. When old keytops are replaced, the wood stick to which they are adhered must be milled down to accommodate the new keytops which are thicker than the old ones.

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