This post was originally published on 8/27/2014.
If you've played the piano for very long, you have probably asked yourself this question before. Especially if you have small children in your home as they seem to enjoy stuffing things inside pianos. Pianos new and old are susceptible to the occasional "click" now and then. They are very annoying and can drive a person mad in minutes. So what could it be? I could give you a list of one hundred possibilities and the list would not be complete. A summary of the possibilities will be a much more efficient use of our time.
Clicking sounds can be produced by foreign objects inside the piano and underneath the keys. This is usually the easiest problem for a piano owner to diagnose and possibly fix on their own. It would amaze you to know the types of foreign objects that have been found inside pianos: coins, action figures, paperclips, cards, and snakes (it's true), to name a few. If you cannot immediately see foreign objects, it is not recommended that you begin tearing your piano apart to find them unless you are quite familiar with how to properly do so. It would be a shame to cause damage to your piano that could have been avoided with a service call from your trusted technician.
Pianos contain thousands of parts including felt, leather and cloth. If any of these three materials are missing in a place where they should be present, that could cause a clicking sound. These materials also harden over time which may lead to clicking when they are touched or moved by other action parts during playing. Repairing or replacing the old material will eliminate the clicking. This is something that is easily done by a technician. It is not recommended that you try to replace the material yourself as improper replacement could create other problems, including more clicking.
Parts of the piano touching other parts which they are not supposed to touch during playing can also cause clicking sounds. Misaligned action parts or keys can bump into other parts or keys during playing and cause clicking sounds. These types of problems can also be solved by a technician. If you attempt to do so by yourself, you may not properly align the parts and create other more complicated problems and end up calling a technician anyway.
The last item we will address here is something that may not even be part of your piano at all. That's right! Check to make sure the clicking sound is not coming from another object somewhere in the room. Some objects will vibrate when certain keys are played and may cause you to think you have a problem with your piano. It might just be that picture of your grandmother on the mantle. If you have anything sitting directly on your piano, remove it and see if that solves your problem.
There are a multitude of other items that cannot be included here as it would take volumes to contain the possibilities. What is to be learned from this is that the clicking sound you are hearing could be caused by many things. Take a look to see if the culprit is immediately visible and within reach. If it is, carefully remove it. If it is not, call your technician so they can resolve the problem properly.
If you live in Boise, Idaho or the surrounding area and are suffering from a clicking piano, click here.