How to Fix a Stuck Key on a Piano Keyboard

Properly Clean Keyboard Keys

• 1

  Determine the material that makes up your keyboard keys. Old-fashioned and expensive keyboards are made with ivory (white) and ebony (black) keys which require special care. However, most piano keyboard keys today are made from plastic.Your piano keys are ivory if they are yellowing, have a grain to them and you can see a join between the top and bottom layers. Otherwise they are probably plastic.

• 2

  Wring out the damp cloth to make it as dry as possible.

• 3

  Apply a small amount of gentle liquid soap to the top of the damp cloth.

• 4

  Press the soapy damp cloth onto the dirty key. Press firmly and rub lightly until all dirt gone. Complete those steps for all dirty keys. This completes the job if you have plastic keys. If you have ivory keys then you should purchase a special tool called an ivory scraper and use that to gently remove additional grime.

Alternatives if Keys are Still Stuck

• 5

  Review deep cleaning instructions for your particular piano brand. PianoEducation.org notes that most manufacturers offer these instructions on their websites today.

• 6

  Press up and down on the stuck key while wiggling your finger slightly. This can sometimes unstick the key.

• 7

  Press down on the stuck key as well as a key adjacent to the stuck key. Insert a flathead screwdriver gently between the two keys to drive them apart. Twist the screwdriver slightly and release the keys.

• 8

  Contact a repair technician if the keys are still stuck.