Thumpe,
You sound like Adrian Monk. ;-)
I'm all for avoiding sickness. While I'm not a doctor, I seriously doubt
it's possible to get strep throat from the exhaust of a vacuum. Maybe
someone near you passed it on.
Your health is your business, to be sure. I've not done a one of those
preventative things, and have never gotten sick from piano work. And I've
had my share of working on nasty pianos.
--
John Formsma, RPT
Blue Mountain, MS
On Fri, Jun 15, 2012 at 6:50 AM, Euphonious Thumpe <lclgcnp at yahoo.com>wrote:
> Yes, you're right. But at least the discharge is dissipated a bit ( and
> the bag-grown microbes have a chance to die) before the clients return.
> Unless it's a Rainbow(TM) the ONLY vacuum legal to run even while folks are
> eating, I believe; because it is rated as an "air purifier". In fact, I
> have an old one I use for REALLY nasty stuff I don't ever want to inhale
> again, because with it I can just dump out the dust-trapping sludge, and
> "wet dust can't fly". (No nasty bags to deal with.) As an alternative (back
> On Topic!) I suppose someone could put some water in the bottom of a
> regular wet and dry vac, but would not be anywhere nearly as effective at
> sequestering germs than the technology in a Rainbow(TM). Anyhoo.....I've
> gotten plenty sick from standard vacuum discharge (strep throat, etc.) so
> avoid the things whenever possible. I also carry a toothbrush, toothpaste,
> dental floss and mouthwash in my van, so if I breathe, at a customer's
> house ( or anywhere else) anything gross (in or out of a piano) I can
> remove many of the germs from my mouth (where they start multiplying)
> quickly: evading many illnesses. (Hint: if you have a bad taste in your
> mouth, DON'T SWALLOW --- until you get rid of it!) I get sick much less
> frequently since adopting this regime. I also wear "coveralls" (usually
> just an extra set of clothes on top) that I can remove, bag, and toss in
> the van before driving home. And also even carry a couple of jugs of water
> to dump over my head and rinse out my hair with, if needed. ( But I keep
> knit hats on hand to cover my hair, too, while dealing with anything
> filthy.) As we all know, pianos are astonishing collectors of filth, and
> often were not, in the last 100 years, kept in "pristine" environments. My
> health (and the health of everyone I subsequently contact) is far more
> important to me than "looking suave". I long ago abandoned all notions that
> "proving my manhood" in any way depended upon my diving into hazardous
> circumstances, unprotected.
>
> Euphonious Thumpe
> *From:* Paul Williams <pwilliams4 at unl.edu>
> *To:* "pianotech at ptg.org" <pianotech at ptg.org>
> *Sent:* Thursday, June 14, 2012 6:05 PM
> *Subject:* Re: [pianotech] Fwd: Metro Vac 'n Blo (now a bit OT)
> **
> Thumpe! You know darn well that the cleaning folk run a real vacuum
> cleaner full power as soon as the restaurant is closed; bring out the
> bleach and all! (hopefully)… So it, the dust, gets to settle everywhere
> before the door opens! Kind of makes you say, "ewee"! Don't know how
> Denny's or other 24 hour restaurant handles it. I've seen some of those
> silly powerless "push-brooms" if you will, but no way does it pick up the
> real dirt down in the carpet. How do they handle it?
>
> Just a comment, nothing more..Now a bit OT.
> Paul
>
>
>
> From: Euphonious Thumpe <lclgcnp at yahoo.com>** Reply-To: "
> pianotech at ptg.org" <pianotech at ptg.org>** Date: Thursday, June 14, 2012
> 4:54 PM** To: "pianotech at ptg.org" <pianotech at ptg.org>** Subject: Re:
> [pianotech] Fwd: Metro Vac 'n Blo**
>
> Please, everyone, just remember that a traditional vacuum cleaner bag
> is an ideal place for germs to germinate. ( Warm, humid ---from
> condensation--- filthy and dark. ) For this reason, it is illegal to run a
> vacuum cleaner in a restaurant, in every state, while people are eating.
> (Place a flashlight against the exhaust-end airflow of a vacuum ceaner in a
> darkened room, turn it on, and watch the crud fly out! Like the Jolly Green
> Giant (TM) just sneezed!) I wouldn't want to blow that into anyone's nice
> piano, especially if the last thing cleaned with it was a filthy old
> "clunker"; so I keep a couple on hand -- an old $5 "beater" for vacuuming
> up filth, and a new small one ( tiny ShopVac(TM) $30) for blowing
> relatively innocuous dust, and vacuuming up clean sawdust. ** When I move
> a piano, I like to take the action out BEFORE loading. This both gets the
> weight down,** and allows a nice blowing out, outside ( with an air
> compressor) prior to placing in the customer's new locale. ** ( And gives
> one the chance to explain the benefits of hammer shaping, punching
> replacement, lubrication and etc., quite graphically. )** Large cardboard
> bicycle boxes (available free at many bike shops) fit both upright and
> grand actions, beautifully. The uprights can just be lowered in gentlly
> while holding the brackets, while grands can be slid (carefully) in while
> the box is tilted toward you at an angle, with the key side going in first.
> Then I carry and store either, vertically. ** Big mattress bags can be
> used to cover grands for storage or shipping. The King Sized ones I get
> from self-storage outfits for about $4 each. I've covered a 5'9" grand with
> them, but suspect they might also cover up to 6'. (More completely
> encapsulating than drop cloths, etc..) ** ** Thumpe
> **
> *From: *Isaac Sadigursky <irs.pianos at earthlink.net>;
> *To: *Pianotech List <pianotech at ptg.org>;
> *Subject: *[pianotech] Fwd: Metro Vac 'n Blo
> *Sent: *Thu, Jun 14, 2012 3:50:43 AM
> **
> **
> Begin forwarded message:
> **
>
> *From: *Isaac Sadigursky <irs.pianos at earthlink.net>
> *Date: *June 13, 2012 8:48:39 PM PDT
> *To: *Isaac Sadigursky <irs.pianos at earthlink.net>
> *Subject: **Fwd: [pianotech] Metro Vac 'n Blo*
> **
> **
> **
> Begin forwarded message:
> **
>
> *From: *Isaac Sadigursky <isaacspianoservice at gmail.com>
> *Date: *June 13, 2012 8:31:15 PM PDT
> *To: *pianotech at ptg.org
> *Subject: **Re: [pianotech] Metro Vac 'n Blo*
> **
> Hi, Paul!** Very nice set-up!** What works for me:** Old trusted
> Electrolux with 2 hoses: vacuum first and then Vacuum and blowing together
> speeds things-up.At the tail of a grand I lake to place a WET Rag,it works
> as a Dust Arrester..Try it,it works,dust doesn't get on a white carpet or
> drapes....** All this is stored in a carry-on wheeled luggage case.** 2
> luggage cases on top of a back seat of a car make it easier to slide in and
> out a Grand action..** Small blanket to protect working area, few extra
> disposable bags in one of the pockets,few rags are stored inside my Vacuum
> Bag...** This set-up gets me a lot of extra points,compliments from
> client and $$.** Hope,it helps to become a little more efficient..** See
> you in Seattle.** Isaac Sadigursky, RPT** Los Angeles Chapter** ** On
> Jun 13, 2012, at 6:49 PM, paul bruesch wrote:** **
>
> I've been trying to convince a fellow piano tech, who will be replacing
> his burnt-out Mighty-Mite vacuum, of the virtues of the Metro Vac 'n Blo
> that several of us own. It all got me to thinking about some of the minor
> irritations I've had with mine. My primary gripe has been that it's round
> and it rolls over, sometimes making it annoying to find the on/off switch.
> I've also always been a bit nervous about it rolling into a grand leg and
> marring it. I decided to see what I could throw together in my apartment
> with supplies I had on hand.
>
>
> I first sawed (in a miter box with a dull back saw) a piece of 1x8 pine
> to 13-1/2", and a couple pieces of 5/8" dowel to 10-1/2". Glued and stapled
> (air gun stapler) the dowels to a width just enough to lift the outermost
> diameter off the 1x8. Why? So I can change bags easily, or just remove the
> intake end if I need more force on the output ("Blo") end.
>
>
> Pilot drilled for some simple cup hooks, dribbled the holes with CA, and
> hooked my tarp bungee cords (10 or 12 for a couple $$ at your locally-owned
> Ace Hardware).
>
> Then I put some no-slip, self-adhesive protecto feet on the bottom and I'm
> done.
>
>
> Paul Bruesch
>
> Stillwater, MN
>
> <IMG_20120613_201106_MetroVacStand_1600Q6.jpg>
>
> **
>
> **
>
>
> ****
>
--
John Formsma, RPT
Blue Mountain, MS
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