hanta

[gordon stelter]

Do not use a chlorine based bleach ANYWHERE inside a
piano, lest you wish the inducement of rust---even
years after application. Chlorine bonds with most
anything, and will create chlorinated compounds in the
wood which will outgass and promote corrosion very
actively on strings, keypins, etc..
     On the other hand, an oxalic acid wipe could be
just the thing for keys and keybed...... And I find no
reason not to lacquer keys and keybeds to hold in
odor, create a cleanable surface and promote
stability. I did this on the keys in an upright for a
church recently, and it was a real pleasure(?) just to
wipe the goo from unwashed hands off the keysticks
(semi-gloss white epoxy) rather than scrape it off
with a razor, etc.! The sides are less glossy than the
tops, barely visible and not at all offensive looking.
So what if its not traditional? Neither was
overstringing when first implemented.
     I put an old set of cauls in the bushing slots,
masked off the tops with that blue "easy-release"
tape, laid the keys on a rack and sprayed away. All
sides. Could be done with clear, semi gloss or flat,
too. Bet these keys never warp!
     And I always lacquer keybeds & rails after a
thorough scrubbing. Really holds in odors. Put soda
straws over keypins.
     But if an interior is actually black with ammonia
degeneration, I will burn the piano ( after removing
key leads) as the odor will have permeated everything,
and few people with the $$$ to afford  the piano fully
restored would want it in their parlor ( I sure
wouldn't! )
    There are plenty of other diseases one gets from
mice besides hanta virus, and a quick search under
"rodents-diseases" will bring up several web sites on
the subject.
      Please "do unto others". Don't sell people
pianos which are a hazard to their health.
      Thump


--- Don <pianotuna@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I think that spraying the surfaces with bleach would
> be the ultimate in prevention. 
> 
> My concern is that many viri do have the ablity to
> "dry" to a spore state--where they are inactive
> until
> moisturized--like the nice wet dark interior of your
> lungs.
> 
> At 10:47 AM 1/27/2003 -0500, you wrote:
> >Hi Don!
> >
> >Thanks for the site referral.
> >
> >A couple of thoughts .....
> >
> >The viruses are surrounded by a fatty envelope that
> is easily destroyed by
> >fat solvents, such as alcohol and disinfectants. 
> This in turn kills the
> >virus.
> >
> >The viruses live for only a few days outside of a
> host organism.  The risk
> >of being infected is greatest in closed spaces
> where
> rodents are actively
> >living.
> >
> >So ..... does this mean if we can isolate a piano
> from rodent access for at
> >least a week a so before cleaning it out, the
> chances
> of getting sick are
> >greatly reduced?
> >
> >Also, the actual occurrence of the hanta virus in
> humans is still less than
> >500 cases nationwide.  Still doesn't sound like
> anything I would want to
> >mess with.
> >
> >Z! Reinhardt  RPT
> 
> 
> =====
> Regards,
> Don Rose, B.Mus., A.M.U.S., A.MUS., R.M.T., R.P.T.
> 
> Tuner for the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts
> 
> http://us.geocities.com/drpt1948/
> 
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