Cost Of Regular Maintnenance Visits

[Guest drd]

I've been asked, by a religious establishment in the area, to recommend how much they should set aside in their budget for regular maintenance visits for a 3m Edwardian pipe organ. It seems sensible to ask colleagues on this board.

 

Does anyone have such information they might care to share? If confidential, it could be sent by means of the PM system.

 

If possible, I should like to know how many visits are made, their normal duration, and the cost per visit. I do not need to know what firm is involved, though it would be useful to have some idea of the rough geographical area to which visits are made.

 

Many thanks!

[gazman]

It rather depends on the condition and the size of the organ!

 

I find four full day visits per annum for one of "my" instruments, albeit in good order, acceptable. The church pays about £180 + VAT per visit, although I think this probably slightly cheaper than some firms charge. The journey for the tuners is about an hour each way.

[Guest drd]

Thanks Holz. I deliberately didn't say anything about the condition of the instrument - but perhaps it will suffice to say that it is showing most of what one might expect since it is 51 years since its last rebuild. Though internally it is remarkably clean (clear air in these parts!)

[gazman]

You're welcome, drd. Hope it helps.

 

If the organ's not too large, some of the time set aside in the day's tuning can be used for correcting faults. Obviously, though, the more faults which have to be rectified, the less time available for tuning!

[Frank Fowler]

Today, there seem to be few very skilled tuners about so first find someone with a proven track record and ask for a quote.

 

Many tuners are self employed and they can charge unrealistically because they are not business men and do not take into consideration overheads such as pensions, allowance for sickness, holiday pay and sometimes proper insurance.

 

Find out how much your local plumber charges and work out the cost of him doing the tuning! Then be grateful for organ tuners.

 

Good luck,

 

FF

[Guest drd]

I'm very grateful for good tuners! The not good, and there are a few, I can live without. In the case in question, it is the church authorities who are trying to economise, and I need to advise them, and back up my advice, on how to make a compromise.

[Nick Bennett]

Also beware of tuners whose prices are too cheap to be true. This will be from the sort of firm that does four instruments a day. Guess how much work gets done on any one instrument.

 

It makes my blood boil to sit at the console of a two manual instrument of 20 stops, grossly out of tune and exhibiting seventy-odd action faults (that I could find) with a card on it dated three days previously stating "instrument tuned and maintained".