 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: lala
Date: 2001-10-21 12:48
This is my first post here. Greetings and good playing to everyone.
I have been learning to play the clarinet for 2 years. Along the way I stored up some really good reeds. The problem is, most of them get mouldy after a while - even new ones! Is there any way to completely get rid of the smell and mould?
Thanks for the help.
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Author: Andrew Webster
Date: 2001-10-21 13:04
What are you keeping them in ? if they are not allowed to dry naturally or if they are being kept damp then mould can take hold
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Author: beejay
Date: 2001-10-21 13:58
Dip them in hydrogen peroxide and then rinse thorougly. That should remove the mould without damaging the reed.
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Author: FT
Date: 2001-10-21 14:25
...or you can try reedlife, works great!!
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Author: Stephen Froehlich
Date: 2001-10-21 16:52
Reedlife is Hydrogen Peroxide + additives. I got a bottle recently - the reeds feel a bit different to the touch, but I'm not sure if its making a huge difference.
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Author: Peter
Date: 2001-10-21 18:12
I have a bottle of Reedlife I recently got from the Doctor, but which I haven't tried out yet, so I can't say with certainty if the reeds feel different or if it affects them in any other way. However, I have been soaking my reeds in hydrogen peroxide for years and it works well.
If you are going to use hydrogen peroxide and especially if the reeds are mouldy, leave them in the h-p for at least a couple of hours before you rinse them in clear, running water. Just dipping them and rinsing doesn't do much.
I do this about once a month, anyway, with any reeds I have in use.
You really need to consider how you are storing your reeds, that's where the problem almost always lies. I have reeds, both good and bad, that have been laying around (some carelessly) for years and never, once, have any gotten mouldy.
If you are having these problems and want to try something different, try this:
To store reeds for current use, carefully squeegee them off with your fingers or a very soft cotton/linnen cloth (I like the fingers.) Then let them dry on a flat surface and/or an airy storage case, then put them away in a good storage case with a built-in dessicant.
I often let my best reeds dry in one of the completely open reed cases, like the one made by Rico, and then transfer them to a better, protective case like the one made by Vandoren. Of course, there are also custom cases even better than that.
If you are storing them for a long period of time and you can't control high humidity where you are at, then you should do all of the above, plus ensure you have a good dessicant cartridge in the storage case all the time, and replace it often.
Unfortunately, if you want to keep good reeds well, you have to practically turn the effort into a part time job.
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Author: L. Omar Henderson
Date: 2001-10-21 21:58
I will leave the evaluation of ReedLife to those have used it. Drug store hydrogen peroxide 3% for about half an hour will kill the bacteria and vegetative mold (mold - mildew spores are very difficult to kill). Rinse the reeds with cool tap water and then let dry (I dry my reeds on a glass plate to prevent warpage). My research indicates that repeated treatment with hydrogen peroxide alone will make the reed very dry and more difficult to moisten, and alone, it does break down some of the crosslinking in the reed structure.
The trick to storing reeds is to keep the relative humidity less than 50% (mold and mildew spores and most bacteria will not grow). An easy way to do this is to get an airtight "TupperWare" container, put the dryed reeds in there with some of those silica gel packets which will generally keep the RH less than 50%. For short term storage - another smaller one with the same packets. The RH is difficult to control at less than 50% and the reeds may get down to 20-30% moisture content - but no mold or bacteria and simple, cheap, and easy. The cigar humidor with RH Meter is the best, and most expensive.
The Doctor
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Author: lala
Date: 2001-10-22 10:48
Thanks everyone. After reading your responses, I realise how carelessly and thoughtless I have been. I just tap-wash used reeds, leave them to dry for a few minutes, slip them in Vandoren plastic containers and put them away in paper box. I will try both the hydrogen peroxide (isn't it the same solution used to disinfect contact lens?) and humidity control.
Fortunately I didn't throw any of the mouldy reeds away!
Many thanks.
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Author: L. Omar Henderson
Date: 2001-10-22 11:48
Dear Lala and all. Just use drug store peroxide (3%) at about $0.50/250mL but you bring up a good point. Some contact lens cleaning solutions are mainly peroxide (some also contain surfacants, stabilizers, enzymes,etc..) but the additative package, formulation research, product testing, conditions of manufacture (FDA approved and ISO certified facilities), quality control and stability testing, safety seal packaging, etc. all add to the price (although this is a huge profit engine for some companies) and make the slightly modified peroxide into a very costly product. The product does work better on contact lens than straight peroxide and does not destroy the soft gel lens like straight peroxide does over time. The improvements due to formulation research, improved performance and quality control are significant value added components for most people even at $5.00-$9.00 per 250mL of 1.89% peroxide - the additative package does not help reeds however.
The Doctor
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