Dear Thomas: Thank you so much for the information about cleaning. I just ordered a wand. The camp I am at has pianos tha are downright filthy. There is a Kawai grand ( without any serial number) that has been left out in the elements all summer and still sounds gread. I could't believe my ears!! I tuned the steinway inside (model A from 1919) and an upright Steinway-pianola that was once upon a time a player piano, I think dated 1907. By the way, do pianos in the northeast in camps that are open only two months a year need dmap chasers, although the summer weather is humid? The Steinway I tuned already has a heating bar installed under the soundboard. Does it need a complete system? Wayne Williams Perfectpitch Technology Schroon Lake, NY ----- Original Message ----- From: Thomas Cole To: Pianotech List Sent: Saturday, July 21, 2007 12:25 AM Subject: Re: Complete Grand cleaning Noah, Although soundboard steels are very traditional, I've long since changed to a flat dusting wand which takes washable/replaceable cleaning sleeves. Very fast. Use it dry. Example: http://www.cleanitsupply.com/p-1120-proflat-duster-75.aspx It helps if you can remove the lid to insert the wand from the bass end. Kawai lids are heavy so you may need some help with that. The wand will pick up a lot of the dust which you can periodically clean off with a vacuum. Cleaning up toward the treble end, you can insert the wand at the breaks to get extra reach. But the high treble takes a smaller tool such as Bill Spurlock's. Clean under the plate, too. It helps to curl the plastic wand a little to bear down more on the board. Once you loosen and remove all the dust on the soundboard that you can, plus vacuum out tuning pin area (with the help of a paint brush) and the action cavity, you can (discreetly) blow out the remaining dust with the vacuum hose hooked up as a blower. Yes, polish the brass, but only the name on the fallboard, the lid lock hardware, and the pedals. The hinges were polished and finished with lacquer at the factory and should be left alone. Cory Super High Gloss and a flannel cloth cleans the case. Time for a full cleaning: 3.50 hours, according to Joe Garrett. Standard ballpark fee: multiply by your hourly rate, but it takes me longer if there's a game going on ;-) Tom Cole Noah Haverkamp wrote: Hello all. I have a prospect to clean a Kawai Grand. Besides vacuuming everywhere, removing the action, dusting, polishing the case, cleaning the soundboard with the soundboard steel, what else can i do? can't you clean the sounboard and plate w/ a vinegar/water solution? Is there a good reference how-to for this whole cleaning procedure or is it a quick explanation? (i don't expect anyone to take too much of their time if unnecessary. ) Also, what is the estimated time? and what is a standard ballpark fee? I should probably polish the brass parts right? -Noah ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.476 / Virus Database: 269.10.22/922 - Release Date: 7/27/2007 6:08 AM -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/20070727/5df237e8/attachment.html
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