I know you’re supposed to turn off your computer in a thunderstorm, but is using an electric piano during a thunderstorm safe?
Thunderstorms have the potential to fry any electronics that are plugged in. You should be fine if you’re using a decent surge protector, but I don’t think they’re a perfect solution.
I’d be cautious of using anything that has semi-conductor devices in it. Unless it’s battery powered.
electrical devices can get wrecked with electrical surges caused by lightning.
i would not leave things plugged in that i cared about (or didn’t want to replace) with a near by storm. i’ve seen devices be damaged from nearby lightning.
some protective measures are better than others in lessening damage.
there is also a lot of factors left to chance. how close and how big was the lightning strike? how many places are there for the energy from that lightning strike to go to? what is the condition and quality of your house wiring and protection.
it is safer to use devices powered by batteries and not connected with wires to house power, phone or cable.
If the piano is at risk, then so is a dishwasher, air conditioner, refrigerator, every clock, dryer, the door bell, dimmer switches, portable phone base stations, bathroom and kitchen GFCIs, and of course every smoke detector. So also disconnect them.
How often are those other ‘always connected’ appliances destroyed? Well, potentially destructive surges occur maybe once every seven years. Anything attached to a power cord is already done better inside each appliance. Your concern is a rare transient that can overwhelm superior and existing protection.
Only solution to avert that other type surge is earthing at the service entrance. This well proven solution is found in every facility that cannot have damage. One solution to protect everything is an earthed ‘whole house’ protector.
Your appliances already have what might be accomplished by something on its power cord. Your concern is a completely different transient that can overwhelm that protection. Only earthing (and a ‘whole house’ protector) claim to protect from that other transient. Lightning is one example of that rare and so destructive transient. Only earthed protectors claim that protection even in its spec numbers.
If your piano needs protection, then so does everything else. A ‘whole house’ protector typically costs about $1 per protected appliance.
You are already giving an electrifying performance, but could be building toward a flash of thunderous applause!
runs
Any lightning strike would be an accidental.
also runs
Just a nit: I bet you meant “digital piano”. When we say “electric piano” we mean a (generally vintage) electromechanical piano-like instrument, like a Rhodes Stage 73 or a Wurlitzer 200A. After that came “electronic pianos” which all pretty much sounded like crap, and then today’s “digital pianos” which can be quite decent instruments at remarkably low prices.
For all the above, the player is reasonably well protected. You’d be at just as much risk standing near any metal appliance. The biggest danger to the player is through the sustain pedal, unless you’re unlucky enough to be touching a metal part of the instrument when lightning strikes. Your fingers on the keys are quite far from any conductive parts.
The Rhodes would be unlikely to be damaged by anything but a fairly direct strike, since the most delicate components are the coil pickups, which might be fused, and the amp it’s plugged into would be fried in the process. The Wurlitzer is plugged in and has built-in speakers as well as a small electronic amplifier that would be more easily damaged (as well as coil pickups, which are quite a bit more robust than the parts in the amp.)
A digital piano would be the most fragile, since integrated circuits and microprocessors aren’t particularly robust, similar to your typical home computer.
The reason to turn off a computer during a storm is simply that it’s a bit less robust and more expensive than all the other items in your home that stay on. But, it’s not particularly different from a TV these days, and most of us will watch during all but the worst storms.
A surge protector is the solution in all cases. Note that all surge protectors are not the same.
That said, I’m a keyboard player (bet you couldn’t guess) and I don’t bother stopping (or turning my computer off) during any but the very worst storms. Even in the latter case, by the time I figure it’s that bad a storm, it’s probably already passed, and I’m not really being particularly effective.
I had a Nakamichi cassette player that was damaged by being plugged in (but not turned on) during a storm, back in 1986. Other than that, I’ve had quite a bit of electronic gear plugged in and usually on for many decades without issues. I tend to keep stuff and use it a long time and still have a lot of gear I bought in the 80’s and late 70’s. YMMV, but my experience is that the odds are pretty good.
That said, my grandfather had a TV that wasn’t turned on blow up (boom!) due to a lightning strike. Nobody was hurt, thankfully. That was in the 70’s.
Final thought: there’s a big difference between good public policy and good personal policy. For public policy, a small failure rate can amount to a lot of people affected, while still being a reasonable risk to take from a personal perspective.
I have a friend who wouldn’t even use a cordless phone during a storm, and would gather her children in the basement. The children grew up to be quite normal, fortunately. Come to think of it, the son jumps out of helicopters to save people’s lives.
And there’s no better time to play the Toccata and Fugue, or maybe a nice piano arrangement of Night on Bald Mountain or the Hall of the Mountain King. 