Jansen Grand Piano Covers Vinyl and Mackintosh

The Mackintosh and Vinyl piano covers are meant to be lightweight dust covers that are easy to install and provide a level of protection for the piano. Both vinyl and mackintosh have a soft, thin lining to prevent scratching of the piano finish from frequent covering and removal. 

Selecting Your Piano Cover Size:

Jansen has hundreds of templates of the most popular piano styles in stock. Select your piano from the drop down menu based on its overall length. If you do not see your piano brand there, you can select the generic "All Makes" option, selecting a cover size that is closest to your piano. You can then email us letting us know the make, model and exact size of your piano, and we can check if we have a template in stock for that piano. If not, you can either order a generic size template, or provide a template.

How to Measure Your Piano:

When measuring your piano, you want the longest possible measurement, including the piano keys. So you measure from the very front of the keyboard, to the tail end of your piano.

Mackintosh or Vinyl Fabric:

Vinyl:

Vinyl piano covers are made with a soft underlining that resembles a flannel/fleece jacket or shirt. The colors are black and brown and they provide a supple leather-like appearance. Vinyl is very easy to wipe clean when they get wet, is lightweight which allows our customers to easily remove and place back on the piano, and is easily cleaned by using either a damp cloth or by vacuuming. If your piano is in a highly visible and trafficked area place, vinyl tends to be the best fabric for your piano cover.

Mackintosh

Mackintosh is a tight weaved material, known as a "waterproof drill cloth" bonded to the soft lining. It is constructed of a 5 oz. woven poly exterior that is bonded to a 7 oz. white non woven interior. Essentially, the covers are made with two separate materials that are joined together offering excellent protection for the piano. In my own words: mackintosh fabric is somewhat like the blue jeans you're wearing right now - but with a tighter and coarser weave. 

Consider the following:

• Anything spilled on vinyl can be easily cleaned. Vinyl will not absorb (within reason) and will not stain. Vinyl can be dusted easily, wiped with a damp cloth, or vacuumed. Vinyl is your friend.
• Anything spilled on mackintosh will be absorbed if not quickly blotted. As a thick tough fabric, there is a weave so dusting with a duster is difficult, a wet cloth will not work for cleaning. If a child were to take a crayon to mackintosh, good luck! Vacuuming is the only effective means of cleaning.

Why is there a choice in fabrics?

For the most part, aesthetics. Macintosh is a warmer look than vinyl, which is why it is the most popular cover type. If you are not sure which to get, consider kids, parties, objects put on the covered piano, amount of dust in the air (I used to live in Tucson, always dusty), and overall reasons why you are considering a piano cover. If you have sunlight hitting your piano, avoid vinyl and get mackintosh, as vinyl absorbs heat.

Bottom line on looks...if you viewed two identical pianos (ignoring the room and everything else), one with vinyl - the other with mackintosh, you would probably choose the mackintosh, based solely on looks. But, Paul Jansen commented to me that in his opinion, the vinyl covers are nicer looking, and are by far more effective in protecting the instrument.

Color Choice:

Both the mackintosh and vinyl are available in either black or brown. The brown vinyl is very dark, the brown mackintosh a shade lighter and more "brownish" than the vinyl. Ebony grands should have black covers, all other grands should use brown. But, there are other considerations. If your room has warm earth-tone colors, cloth couch and other fabric covered furniture, then a brown mackintosh might look better than black regardless of instrument color. If you have vinyl or leather furniture, then a vinyl piano cover may fit in nicely.

Locking Straps:

Locking straps ensure that the cover will stay in place and will act as a preventative barrier to people wanting to remove the cover to play with the piano. Many schools, churches and hotels add the locking straps to their order to be sure their piano is kept safe and secure.

Side Slits:

Side slits allow you to flip open the piano cover and play, without having to completely remove the cover. The slits go above the front legs on each side of the piano, allowing you to fold up the front part of the cover, exposing the keyboard.

Shipping:

We are happy to offer free shipping on our piano covers to the continental United States. Alaska and Hawaii, please email for a shipping quote.