“Eco-friendly” Piano Disposal – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
- pianosrecycled
- Aug 25
- 4 min read
“What do we do with the Piano?” Chances are you will be saying this (along with thousands of others) at some point in the future, if you haven’t already inherited one, or downsized, moved, run out of space, or no one has the skills to play anymore.
There is a dizzying array of Listings that come up when one Googles “What to do with my piano” including various Piano Removalist companies, Piano Disposal, Piano Removal, Recycle & Disposal, 7 Creative Ways to Upcycle Yours, Repurposed Piano Ideas, Junk Moves etc etc. Some have long lists of options to work your way through from offering your piano to schools/communities “For Free” to making an artwork from the keys, or simple calling them up to solve your problem with “easy” “ethical” “eco-friendly” piano disposal which is "fast and affordable".
The “Bad”
Well be warned! After 10 years of working in the piano recycling game, Pianos Recycled has witnessed some extraordinary piano outcomes from wonderful, to absolutely dreadful and everything in between. Greenwashing is rife because it amounts to more $$$ if a company can convince you that by giving your piano to them, it will have a good end. If someone offers "Eco-friendly" Piano Disposal, check very closely exactly what that means for your piano. If they claim to be sustainable, to rehome your piano, or ethically dispose of the waste, demand proof or tracking of what ends up happening to your piano.
Essentially you get what you pay for. The Victorian State Government has a pricing mechanism which encourages waste to landfill rather than recycling by making it ridiculously cheap to tip a piano, for example, in landfill (around $80-$100). For Junk/Waste Disposal/Piano Removalists that operate based on $$$, piano disposal to landfill wins every time from their economic standpoint.
We estimate that currently in 90% of cases, the piano will be smashed up and put in a dumpster or simply pushed off the back of a truck into landfill. If the Junk Removalist/Piano Removalist is upfront about it, and maybe you were slapped over the wrist every time you played a wrong note when you were a child, so this is Retribution for your piano, maybe you won’t mind- that’s entirely up to you.
However it is still an ignoble end for a magnificent instrument with generations of heritage and craftsmanship. It is also a “bad” ending for the over 12,000 reusable parts that constitute the piano to be thrown into landfill and buried forever. This is such a waste of valuable resources that it should no longer be an allowable practise (unless of course a piano is either rotten from exposure to weather, riddled with borer, or mouldy due to water damage).
The “Ugly”
The absolute worst piano disposal method it to burn it. We have actually had people say to us” if you wont pick it up (for free), I’ll just burn it”, and we have even seen it done justified as “Art”. If you care about your kids futures, then you’ll want to think twice before releasing another 200+kg of CO2 into the atmosphere and adding further to global warming. Watching a piano literally die in front of your eyes as it goes up in smoke is guaranteed to depress, and add to the general sombre mood in the world at the moment. Needless to say, this is also the cheapest piano disposal option.
The “Good”
Even at the end of it’s working life as an instrument, a piano can, and should, have a future. Whether that is through reuse, refurbishment, restoration, retuning, recycling or repurposing, all are good options. There is a cost to carry out this work. However, when the overriding goal is love for the piano, maintaining family connection and memories, respect for the craftsmanship, preserving heritage, creating sustainable futures and best environmental practice, costs are a secondary factor.
Here is an example of comprehensive Piano Recycling and a wonderful way to "dispose" of a piano. The piano timbers were used to make this stunning yet useful keepsake piece for the owners, the metal harp and piano strings were sent off for re-smelting, the pedals, action and keyboard were kept and warehoused for use in piano restorations, with any surplus timbers added to stock for Men's Shed and other woodworkers. So Zero Waste IS possible!
Pianos Recycled is the only true piano recycler in Australia. We don’t give your piano a “good end” – we create it a new future. If they can’t be repaired as working instruments (this is the optimal outcome), then the pianos are comprehensively recycled through transformation into furniture, instruments, jewellery and art, through “organ” donation using parts for restoration of other pianos, and through circularity using local established parts recycling businesses, such as scrap metal merchants, recycled timber picture framers etc.
We encourage people to try to rehome their own pianos. If you are able to place your own piano somewhere, that is a great outcome for you, your piano, the new owner and the environment, so quadruple tick.
Should you be unsuccessful in rehoming it yourself, we suggest that you get in contact with us (pianosrecycled@gmail.com or call 0411 714 275) and we can show you some excellent options of how we can recycle it for you. For those who can’t to afford to give their piano a wonderful new future, then even placing it outside in the garden (carefully as it weighs over 250kg!) and leaving it to age gracefully in nature (like they do at the Murray Bridge Piano Sanctuary in South Australia) is another bonafide "Eco-Friendly” Piano Disposal option for your beloved piano!
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