Piano Moving in Philadelphia

A piano is one of the few household items where a wrong guess about weight distribution or clearance turns into a real problem — for the instrument, the walls, or the crew carrying it. EJ Relocations moves pianos with dedicated equipment and a crew that’s done it enough times to know where a rowhouse stairwell will fight back.

What piano moving includes

Depending on the instrument, our crew uses piano boards, skid straps, and stair ramps to move uprights, baby grands, and full grand pianos without dragging or tilting them past a safe angle. Grand pianos get their legs and lyre removed and padded separately for transport. We coordinate the same protective measures used on any heavy specialty item — door-frame padding, floor runners, and a pre-walked path before anything is lifted.

Why Philadelphia pianos are their own challenge

A piano move in a Center City high-rise means an elevator reservation and possibly a hallway too narrow for a standard piano board angle. A piano move out of a Port Richmond or Fishtown rowhouse means a turn at the stairwell landing that a baby grand simply won’t take without disassembly and a plan. Main Line homes near Ardmore tend to have more clearance but often a piano that’s sat in the same room for decades and needs careful assessment before it’s touched.

Who handles the price

Piano moving is priced by instrument type — an upright costs less to move than a baby grand, and a full concert grand is its own category — plus stairs, distance to the truck, and any extra crew needed for a tight rowhouse turn. It’s often added as a line item to a broader residential or long-distance move rather than booked alone.

The crew chief behind it

Andre Loux has run specialty loads, including pianos and safes, for nine years and is typically the one dispatch assigns to a piano job, especially if it’s riding along on a long-distance route to Boston, Baltimore, or Charlotte. He assesses the piano and the path in advance — over the phone or in person — so the crew shows up with the right board size and enough hands, not guessing on arrival.

Booking a piano move

Flag a piano when you request your quote so Andre can plan equipment and crew size ahead of time — this isn’t a service where a same-day surprise works out well for anyone.

Protecting the instrument, not just the walls

An upright or grand piano is also simply an expensive, often sentimental object — sometimes passed down a generation or two — and that changes how the crew treats it on the truck. Pianos ride secured and padded on their own section of the load, not wedged between boxes, and Andre checks tuning stability wasn’t compromised by the ride whenever it’s a long-distance haul.

If the piano is part of a bigger household move, we schedule it as one job with the rest of your local move. Read about past piano moves on our reviews page.