Hantavirus- Demousification

[richard.ucci@att.net]

Hi People,

This is a very timely subject for me. I have made arraingments to clean a similarly "moused" piano next week. I will be refelting the keybed and tuning.

I was just planning on vacuuming out and wipeing down with household disinfectant, wearing a mask and rubber gloves. Am I taking a serious risk? This piano is a Shoninger console from the 60's and besides being about 200 cents flat,in fairly good shape.

I know they don't want to spend a fortune on this piano.

Rick Ucci/Ucci Piano 


> Use of chlorine bleach, in any amount, inside a piano,
> will result in massive rust deposits and the piano
> will need to be trashed. Even if you restrung it,
> lingering chlorine fumes would rust the new strings.
> Use something else to disinfect, and I am eager to
> hear suggestions on just what this might be? I am
> about to try cleaning and bleaching some
> mouse-infested keys ( where they usually poop ) and
> the keybed, with oxalic acid. Will report on how this
> works to eliminate odor and remove stains.
>     But I will also probably paint the keysticks and
> keybed with spray epoxy, to seal any remaining odors
> in.
>     Action parts that are black from ammonia fumes
> from the urine can be largely cleaned by dunking them
> in a water- based automotive degreaser ( like "Purple
> Stuff" ) then rinsed, dried on a screen, refelted and
> lubricated.
>      But, if the mouse infestation is bad enough,
> absolutely NOTHING will fully remove the stench, as it
> will have permeated the case wood and action parts
> completely. It is a  pheremone sexual attractant,
> excreted along with the urine and feces, and will
> continue to attract other mice to the piano as long as
> it exists.
>      Thump
> 
> --- Joel Jones <jajones2@facstaff.wisc.edu> wrote:
> > allan
> > Saw your email in the archives about  hantavirus as
> > I was searching for
> > info.  I just returned from a service call at a
> > college to fix a 'sticking'
> > damper.  Instead I found a big mouse nest made of
> > stringing braid, and felt
> > bits from the action.
> > 
> > Have you been involved with cleaning  a piano after 
> > a mouse has used it for
> > his nesting?    What guidelines do you follow?
> > 
> > I know from past discussions not to turn on the
> > vacuum.  Remove the nest and
> > residue without raising any dust.    The article off
> > the web advises
> > spraying with disinfectant.  After 30 minutes spray
> > with 10% solution of
> > chloring bleach.  After 30 minutes wash with bleach
> > or disinfectant.
> > 
> > This little fellow has obviously been all over the
> > piano, so I suspect a
> > total GI cleaning is going to be necessary.
> > 
> > Thanks for input. 
> > 
> > Joel
> > -- 
> > Joel A. Jones  RPT
> > Piano Technicians Guild
> > Assistant Institute Director
> > June 29 - July 3, Nashville, TN
> > http://www.ptg.org/conv.htm
> > jajones2@facstaff.wisc.edu
> > 608/833-1488
> > 
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> 
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