Key repair

[Barb Hall]

Hello

I have a client whose house was vandalized recently.  The person did some
damage to the piano, especially the keys.  There is a substance of unknown
origin all over both the white and black key tops (they're plastic) .  I've
tried wiping it off, but it leaves the surface of the key so slippery that I
feel they'd be unsuitable playing surfaces.  It appears to be sort of a
thick waxy oily liquid.  Could be some sort of furniture polish or liquid
floor wax, but I'm not really sure. Some of it seeped down the sides of the
keys and of course has penetrated the wooden portion of the key.  It also
pooled in the keybed and has damaged some of the front rail bushings.  A
little bit has gotten on some of the bass strings, a few dampers are
stained, and there is a fair bit of it on the tuning pins.

Any idea on what I should use to clean the keytops so they aren't so
slippery, and how to remove the stuff from the keybed?  Should I clean the
tuning pins?  I was thinking lemon juice or vinegar for the keytops, and
trying to chisel then sand the wooden part of the keys and the keybed,
perhaps some fine steel wool for cleaning the bass strings.

Any suggestions on what to do or what to tell my client would be much
appreciated.

Thanks
Barb

barb-hall@home.com