 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Mitch573
Date: 2005-05-10 02:14
I took my vintage clarinet to the shop today to have it repadded(i just got it and really want to play it)and was told that I have pad worms and that my case was probably infested and that I needed a new case. When I talked to the tech who usually does all my repairs he said that a new case is unecessary and that my old one is fine. I have played clarinet for 20 years and have never heard of such a thing. Do they really exist? or is someone trying to sell me something I don't need.
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Author: ron b
Date: 2005-05-10 02:50
Moth larvae, carpet beetle larvae, will eat through the pad skin right on into the felt, leaving tiny holes or big chunks in the pads. After a repad because of such damage, some techs will put a few grains of camphor in your case to keep the critters from returning. Moth balls will work too but are more toxic and some folks are allergic to the crystals. Even with such precautions, they can be persistent pests. Recommending a new case is not out of line.
- r![[cool]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/cool.gif) n b -
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Author: Markael
Date: 2005-05-10 02:55
When I had my clarinet overhauled a few years ago I had this problem and had to replace the case.
I took the clarinet to the shop and bought a new case from another source. Apparently there was poor communication within the shop; when I went to pick up the clarinet the person minding the store brought it out in the old case. I questioned this and he squirmed a little bit, but in the end no harm was done. I quickly transferred it to the new case.
A customer in the shop that day suggested this procedure for cases that have bugs or are not in use: put some moth balls in an old sock and put the sock in the case. Or, you can air it in the sunshine.
I still have the old case and have never tried what he said. Maybe I should. It's a nice case.
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Author: pewd
Date: 2005-05-10 03:58
i put mothballs in the case, and put the case inside a plastic trash bag for a week or two.
then i let it sit open in a sunny spot on my back porch for several weeks.
seems to work - i only do that with school owned cases when i'm repairing their horns over the summer.
if it was a personal case, i'd throw it and buy a new case.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2005-05-10 14:58
I have only ever seen larvae-eaten pads on instruments that were shut up and stored for a long time.
I don't think, in my locality anyway, that they inhabit places where there is regular air movement and plenty natural light.
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2005-05-10 15:01
I wouldn't be so sure.
I once had to remove creepy-crawlies running around under the glass of a painting. Not much air movement, granted, but plenty of light.
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If there are so many people on this board unwilling or unable to have a civil and balanced discussion about important issues, then I shan't bother to post here any more.
To the great relief of many of you, no doubt.
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Author: dummer musiker
Date: 2005-05-10 16:27
This is so gross! How do you know if you have these nasty worm things??? How do you keep from getting them?!?
Eww...
"There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats."
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-05-10 16:36
New case, new case, new case.......
I've seen them eat pads in a students clarinet which was left alone at his house (very clean home, upscale, etc) for only 2 years without being played (he switched to bassoon).
Yup, they are out there! Small holes in the pads.
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Author: FrankM
Date: 2005-05-10 16:53
Dermestid beetles ( or their larvae ) can quite literally live on anything that was ever alive. They are the bane of preserved mammal, insect and bird collections in museums where they can eat feathers from a bird that's been dead and stuffed for years. I've seen them destroy an insect collection in weeks. Usually you'll see their molted skins. For what it's worth, I would not only get a new case, I'd make darn sure my house was not infested...these guys can do lots of damage
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Author: johng ★2017
Date: 2005-05-10 22:14
I know a bassoonist who was blowing a watery tone hole out. When she breathed in to blow some more, a spider was sucked into her mouth from inside the bassoon. No doubt the spider was there to eat the Dermestid Beetles.
The rest of the woodwind quintet helpfully told her to remember to blow, not suck.
Thankfully, both the spider and bassoonist escaped unharmed.
Johng
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2005-05-10 22:15
If they can accept light, then perhaps it is movement & non-stagnant air that they do not like.
Has anybody ever seen them in the pads of an instrument that was played every day or so?
BTW, I would keep the case open while playing for a few weeks, if you decide to to get a new case.
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Author: contragirl
Date: 2005-05-10 23:23
OMG, they are SO real!! And disgusting!
The term used is "pad weavils." They are so gross.
I had them in an alto clarinet I bought from a guy on ebay. My tech put the case in the freezer and it killed the ones that lived in the case.
--CG
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Author: Mitch573
Date: 2005-05-11 02:32
It was suggested I put the case in the freezer or use one of my spare cases until this winter and put it out when it is 25-30 below zero for an hour or 2. But needless to say they sound just evil.. It must be an Ebay thing.. cause I got this one on ebay too. I have owned several clarinets and flutes and never heard of them before. I live in the Northeast where it can drop during the winter to 40 below zero farenheight with a wind chill included.. soo I think that maybe location has a lot to do with it as well.. I got my clarinet from someone in Iowa.. where are all of you from that have dealt with these nasty little suckers?
Post Edited (2005-05-11 02:37)
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Author: ron b
Date: 2005-05-11 03:56
Very common in California, norther and southern :(
- ron b -
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-05-11 13:11
Don't blame eBay. Many clarinets on eBay are the result of estate sales/auctions and the auction winners only recycle the horns without so much as considering the beasties.
Bob Draznik
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Author: music_is_life
Date: 2005-05-11 13:14
ew! cow intestine lining?! I thought my leathr lig was bad...but pads? that's gross!
-Lindsie
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2005-05-12 02:29
music_is_life, do you realise how many products, such as ice cream and jelly, have cows hoof in them? Animal products are very much part of life. Sorry - off topic.
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Author: Sandra F.
Date: 2005-05-12 03:25
Yes, the "pad worms" exist. The best prevention is to use your instrument, a/k/a practice. Instruments stored in the attic, especially in humid weather zones, get infested. It seems that they are sometimes the same moths that eat holes in stored wool sweaters. Some pads, especially on older instruments, have wool felt. Freezing does NOT guarantee that you will be moth-free. Moth balls work, but why not just get a new case? If you have a nice old case that you want to save, get a new, cheap case to house your newly repadded instrument, and take your time to cleanse the old one. It also says alot about using old cases with restored instruments. Be sure that old cases are moth-egg free first.
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