 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Contrabasssax
Date: 2003-07-01 17:19
My clarinet instructor had me get a vito reedholder. YOu know the ones with little grooves under each reed. Then she gave me a ziplock bag a little pouch of rocksalt (moisture needs to flow through the pouch easily) and a damp spong. This has been a great solution to reed problems for me. Although the downside is if you don't practice you may find a moldy suprize which has happened to me. The other downside is you need to have a certain moisture level. TO dry your reeds will taste salty. To wet Your reeds will taste salty. But its worth the trouble.
Rory C.
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Author: Contrabasssax
Date: 2003-07-01 19:02
Yea rock salt. Its like little chunks of salt. Fish tank salt is usually rock salt.
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Author: Mark Pinner
Date: 2003-07-01 23:11
Isn't this a little bit over the top. I can understand the gooved reed holder to an extent but salt? Be careful that it doesn't rust every ferrous, ie. springs, pivot screws, drill rods and adjusting screws, part of your clarinet.
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Author: Contrabasssax
Date: 2003-07-02 04:05
well its just for the reeds. and if you do it right your reeds wont get salty. The idea of the salt is to prevent mold and stuff of that sort.
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2003-07-02 11:03
I do exactly the same with my reeds except the rock salt and sponge... My reeds have never moulded.
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Author: L. Omar Henderson
Date: 2003-07-02 12:38
(Disclaimer - I sell Thirsty Reed Pads, ReedLife, and desiccants) Using salt to dehydrate and preserve food products is thousands of years old but unless you want to risk rapid corrosion of your horn or parts (ligatures and mouthpieces) there are more modern approaches. Reeds can be sanitized to remove the root cause of mold by several solutions including those that contain hydrogen peroxide. If reeds are dried properly and stored at less than 50% Relative Humidity they will not grow mold regardless of sanitizing. Using a sealed case with a desiccant such as silica gel will keep them from growing mold and not contribute to other problems that salt will cause. There is often a basis in folk lore formulations (in this case the hygroscopic nature of salt) but it is not necessary to use the original but instead the more modern equilavent.
The Doctor
The Doctor
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Author: Contrabasssax
Date: 2003-07-02 16:26
OK but what about contrabassclarinet reeds. When ever my contra reeds dry out the warp so baddly i cannot use them and they are too expenisve for that to happen. What should i do here.
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Author: L. Omar Henderson
Date: 2003-07-02 19:40
(Disclaimer - I sell Thirsty Reed Pads) Reeds, even contrabass reeds, should be dried on a "perfectly" flat surface with pressure from above keeping the reed tip flat. Many advocate using plate glass. It depends on the relative humidity in your environment as to how long it will take for them to dry and if the warping is indeed due to uneven drying. I advocate a flat surface which is porous and will wick moisture from below as well as the moisture evaporation from the top surface. I have no direct experience with contrabass clarinet reeds but buddies that play tenor sax always dry their reeds, and if dried properly they should not always warp. Some percentage of all reeds will warp but this is a minor portion. Any other C-Bass players out there have this experience?
The Doctor
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Author: Contrabasssax
Date: 2003-07-03 03:27
I'll give it a try. But not only do they warp they also almost always split on both sides and right in the middle. So im kind of scared of drying them out.
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