Where does this come from, and can I check it?

A cast iron plate holds the load so the case does not fold. The figure is taken from Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a music fact?

Yes. It sits on the Music shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

A grand piano carries around 20 tonnes of string tension

A cast iron plate holds the load so the case does not fold Each of about 230 steel strings pulls with tens to hundreds of kilograms of force. The plate and the wooden rim share that load, which is why a piano weighs so much. Restringing requires releasing the tension slowly and evenly. It sits in Mondo's music collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Britannica

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

Go further

Music trivia

More facts like this

A piano hammer strikes and drops away instantlyThe escapement lets the felt head fall back so the string can ring freely A violin's four strings are tuned in fifthsG, D, A and E cover two octaves and a sixth between them A bow makes sound by sticking and slippingRosin gives the hair enough friction to catch the string and release it A string quartet is two violins, a viola and a celloFour lines let the parts be heard separately without a conductor A modern piano has 88 keysThat range developed in the nineteenth century as composers asked for more Halving a string raises it an octaveOther simple length ratios give fifth, fourth and third

Tags: piano, engineering, strings

A grand piano carries around 20 tonnes of string tension: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: A cast iron plate holds the load so the case does not fold. The figure is taken from Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a music fact?: Yes. It sits on the Music shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.