 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: Michael Leavitt
Date: 2000-10-16 17:25
I've just purchased a nice, old Selmer E-flat soprano clarinet that had been sitting around for years in a midewed case. I'm working on cleaning the case with baking soda, but, more importantly, the clarinet has a mildew smell and I need some help getting rid of it. I've thought about using bore oil, but I've hesitated because it might drive the smell into the wood instead of away from it. Catalogues, such as Ferree's or Giardinelli don't seem to have any particular product for this problem. And washing the instrument off with a damp cloth and then swabbing and drying with paper towels or some other absorbant cloth sounds risky, too. Does anyone have any first-hand experience with this? I need help!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Bob Arney
Date: 2000-10-16 18:21
Never tried it on a case, but a generous sprinkling of ground coffee (not coffee grounds--but the unperked stuff) will take it out of an old fridge, so why not a case? Try it, You might even like it. Could even be "Hazelnuss" or Vanilla if you prefer. Not on or over the instrument of course!!!
Bob
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Dee
Date: 2000-10-16 21:36
The mildew smell might merely be in the pads and corks. Changing them could go a long way towards getting rid of it.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Don Berger
Date: 2000-10-16 21:55
Good advice above, I'd just add that the best cure for mildew etc is exposure to sunlight and oxygen, so open the case, remove everything and put outside, open to bright sunlight , and maybe the same for the clar joints, so you may not even have to put on new corks to diminish smell to tolerable level. Luck, Don
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Simon
Date: 2000-10-16 22:12
I had the same problem when I purchesed an old Lafleur clarinet. I relined the case and got rid of the smell that way, however didn't do anything to the clarinet its self, just normal swabing and with time and playing the smell went away, however, you may want to try the following:
The exposure to sunlight is definately worth a try, I would also suggest that after you have cleaned the case put the clarinet in it and then you may want to try leaving some pot puri in one of the corners of the case and close it. This may do the trick. Good luck!!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Fred McKenzie
Date: 2000-10-17 14:28
Michael-
Mildew is a living organism that requires dampness to be active. Drying it out makes it inactive, but it may be just dormant and not dead.
Of the various treatments, the only one I've found to be effective is to use a chlorine bleach. One product you can buy is made up of pool chlorine diluted ten to one. I think your best bet would be to make up a solution of either chlorine bleach or liquid pool chlorine, diluted ten to one with water. If you worry about color fading as a result of the bleaching action, a dilution of one hundred to one may still be effective.
You can use a spray bottle to treat the lining of your case. Before putting the instrument back in, be sure it has dried thoroughly, and exposure to sunlight would be a good way to dry it.
You can use a dampened cloth or paper towel to apply the diluted chlorine solution to the outside of your case, and to the body of the instrument. I suspect the above comments about corks and pads is probably correct, but wiping them with the solution may solve the problem. Avoid getting the solution on springs or screws that might rust.
Fred
<A HREF="http://www.dreamnetstudios.com/music/mmb/index.htm">MMB</A>
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Lelia
Date: 2000-10-17 19:05
Before deciding to put the clarinet itself outside, please make sure it isn't dyed wood. I've seen a number of flea market clarinets, exhibited for sale outdoors, where the dye has faded to strange, pale, purple-ish colors. I don't know how long it takes for the dye to fade this way. You can imagine how crummy it looks to have the key-side of the clarinet faded while the back (down in the case and not hit by the sun) stays black.
Before putting a wooden clarinet outside, I'd definitely try what Dee suggests -- changing the corks and pads. IMHO those are the worst source of stink. Clean the case at the same time, though, or else the new pads and corks will soak up the case grunge.
Also, preferably with the keys off, I go over the whole instrument, inside and out, with a bit of bore oil. The oil won't hurt the wood (even if it won't help it; that's a different topic!) and will remove an astonishing amount of grunge. A cotton stick swab works better than a silk pull-through for this job, IMHO. I've used an oiled but clean white cotton piccolo swab (which is thin enough to manipulate around in the bore) in an old clarinet and pulled the swab out looking as if it had been used to scrub a filthy old cooking pot. Then I leave the clarinet (unassembled) in a cardboard box lid in the guest bedroom, where air can circulate all around the wood but the cat can't get at it, for several days. This good airing-out really helps. Then if I put the clarinet back into a case that's well-cleaned and treated with Febreze, usually the rest of the smell disappears or dies down enough so it's not too obnoxious.
BTW, I assume everyone knows never to put a rubber clarinet or mouthpiece out in the sun. The rubber can warp disastrously.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Nate Zeien
Date: 2000-10-17 22:16
Michael, I think that your best bet would be to try to air out the case. Unless the pads and corks are the part of the cause, I would try cleaning the case and leave the clarinet alone. You could leave the clarinet out of the case - somewhere safe, and try airing out the case. If you wanted, you could try using some Febreeze, or a similar product on the case only. I would think that this should do the trick. For more info on getting the smell out of a case, try the link that Mark Charette provided. This will link you to a previous post on the BB about this subject. All in all, the old cases sometimes just need some airing out. This usually does the trick. -- Nate Zeien
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
