Turning a piano onto its side for moving

Use a thick blanket on wooden on hard floors or heavy plastic sheet on carpets.

If the piano has an overhanging lid, you will need to protect this with a plywood or cardboard buffer between the lid and the blanket other wise when you drag it, you will damage the lid.

Turning the piano over is easier than you might think. Like lifting a motorbike which has fallen over, the hardest part is the first few degrees. If necessary have two of you start the lift at one end, and when the piano is balanced at 45 degrees, one man goes to the other end to get his hands under the side and lowers it gently to the ground, minding his fingers. The man remaining at the end first lifted, assists by pulling back on it as a counterweight...He should be the heaviest man. Lowering the piano onto a small wooden block wrapped in cloth can prevent crushing your fingers. Reverse these instructions when righting the piano again, swapping positions at the balanced sweet spot.

The piano can now be pulled and pushed through the doorway. Make sure that the back of the piano faces inside the turn. This advice is a bit counter intuitive but the key board will look after itself, and you can concentrate on getting the back of the piano tight against the corner you are turning into. I have yet to find an exception to this rule, unless you are moving the piano upstairs with opposing turns.

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