Care and Feeding of your Harp

Whether you are renting or own your harp(s), you will want to take the best care possible of them.  A harp - large or small - is a big investment. You want it to last a long time.

PLACEMENT  Never place your harp in a window which has direct sunlight.  Sunlight will dry out your strings, as well as damage the wood by drying out the natural oils and bleaching the wood.  An interior wall may be best, but an exterior wall even with a window is okay if the direct sunlight never streams in.  Be mindful of where your heating and A/C ducts are and try to keep your harp out of the direct line of fire.  Be sure to keep your harp, especially smaller ones, are out of traffic areas in your home - away from dogs, kids and adults too!  If your harp is on a rug and the padding is thick, it may be a little tippy.  One solution, is to make a small wooden platform to place your harp on to make it more secure.

CLEANING  Frequent dusting is important to prevent build up.  A feather duster works beautifully for me, except in the area of lever or tuning discs and crevices.  Here is where a soft bristled paint brush comes in handy.  It can clean out and dust all those small grooves.  Never use furniture polish, cleaning products or oil on the wood of any kind.  Always check with your harp manufacturer for what is appropriate to put on your harp's finish.  The finish may interact negatively.   If your harp has gold leaf, be careful to not touch it with your hands.  Over time, it will tarnish the finish.

HANDS   Wash your hands before playing.  Don't eat a greasy chicken leg and then sit down to play your harp!  The same applies to hand lotion.  Everything will transfer to the strings.  From a practical standpoint, wait awhile to play after having your hands in water for any extended period of time.  The skin on your fingers soften and that can make paying painful.  More about the position of your hands later.  :)

JEWELRY  Also be mindful of the jewelry you are wearing.  A watchband on your wrist can hit the soundboard especially when you left hand moves up to play the upper registers.  You may not even realize that is happening, but over time can damage the finish.  Make sure there are no sequins, rhinestones, studs or buttons to scratch the finish.  Even your belt buckle can scratch if you are standing close while tuning.  Any jewelry can be a problem - dangling earrings, bracelets, pins, watches, necklaces, etc.

HUMIDITY  Humidity is as important as temperature in making sure your harp is happy.  A good rule of thumb is - if you are comfortable, your harp will be comfortable too.  The ideal humidity level is between 40% and 60%.  If you are concerned about the humidity in your home, you can purchase a relatively inexpensive hygrometer to measure moisture content.  If you live in Arizona where it is very dry or Florida, where it is very damp, you might do well to check the humidity levels.  There are humidifiers and dehumidifiers to fix the problem.  Also, if you are on the east coast and your house is overheated in wintertime, that can dry out the wood on your harp.

Tuning, strings, transporting, and regulations will be discussed at a later date.