string covers, AND MOTHS

[William Bailer]

On Thu, 15 Aug 1996, David ilvedson wrote:

> > Date:          Wed, 14 Aug 1996 23:56:53 +0000
> > From:          Greg & Mary Ellen Newell <gnewell@en.com>
> > Subject:       string covers
> > To:            pianotech <pianotech@byu.edu>
> > Reply-to:      pianotech@byu.edu
>
> > Hello List,
> > 	Lately my wife and I are tying to put together an offer to a local
> > music school to install string covers on their grands. I have seen
> > some of the products available and while some are very good, they are
> > quite expensive. Others I have seen I would not use at all as they
> > seem to have caused rust. My question to this distinguished panel of
> > judges, <G>, is what would you consider the best material to use?
> > 	It seems to me that a string cover has at least 3 functions.
> > 		1. to protect the belly of the piano from foreign objects
> > 		2. to keep it clean
> > 		3. to NOT trap moisture within
> > It is this last function that I'm most concerned with as any cloth
> > will accomplish the first two items. I feel that synthetic fabrics
> > are inheirantly unsuitable as they will all, to the best of my
> > knowledge, repel or trap moisture to varying degrees once any
> > moisture/humdity gets under it. Cotton seems to be unsuitable as well
> > because it would actually wick the moisture out of the air ... I
> > think. My own personal opinion is that I should look for 100% wool
> > felt as it breathes better than any other fabric. Will it be strong
> > enough? The customer may want to shake the dust out at some point and
> > it would be embarassing to have it fall apart from something like
> > that.
> > 	This may lead to much more than 1 music school so your comments,
> > observances, food for thought will be much appreciated and anxiously
> > awaited. Did I leave out anything? Thanks
> > 				Greg
> > Greg & Mary Ellen Newell
> > gnewell@en.com
> > dt945@cleveland.freenet.edu
> > gnewell@juno.com
> >
> >
> I'm sure most of us have come across the string covers from long
> ago that had ring holes in them and were stretched across the
> plate via bent nails attached to the inner case.  These were all
> made of wool.  I remember opening to tune a 1920's Steinway and
> finding a plate, soundboard etc. looking brand new.  They work!
> Judy Edwards makes some nice covers...
> David ilvedson, RPT
> Pacifica, CA

David,
I have had a similar experience.  In a school, the wool cover was
stretched tight so that it could be left in place while the piano was
played.

But it was riddled with moth holes, and, the dampers and hammers, in
close proximity, were moth-eaten.  I was told that the cover had
been made by a joint project of the "shop" and "home-ec." departments
many decades ago.  I suspect that they used wool that was sold for use
in clothing, not wool from a piano supplier.  It was grey in color.

This is only conjecture:  is it possible that wool sold for purposes
other than pianos, such as clothing, may not contain the poisons and
toxic dyes that are used in "moth-proofed" or "moth-resistant" wool?

Could a cover made of conventional wool, with that large surgface area,
function as a "bill-board for moths,"  which says "Here it is guys, come
and get it!" ?

I know cotton and nylon both absorb water and cause rust.  Might there
be a material (such as polyester) which does not absorb water, and also
is "inedible" ???  :-)

Bill Bailer

\\\  William Bailer ("Bill")
\\\  Rochester, NY, USA;  Phone (voice): 716-473-9556
\\\  wbailer@concentric.net (same mailbox as wbailer@cris.com)
\\\  Some interests: acoustics, JS Bach, anthropology, & education.