<HTML>In a message dated 2/16/02 8:22:48 AM Central Standard Time, pryan2@the-beach.net (Phil Ryan) writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">A client whose piano I service, spilled a cup of coffee into the action of the piano.  The action  was cleaned up pretty well, but some of the notes involved later started to turn into a "thudding" sound.  After ruling out the hammers as the culprits, I found the problem to be in the agraffes. Some of the coffee must have stopped up the holes in the agraffes.  Not having any cleaning materials with me (It's on a cruise ship), I left it for next time.  Question: Is there a good chemical solvent that will easily disolve this congestion without doing additional damage?  Is this a common problem with spills?   It's new to me. </BLOCKQUOTE> Yes, when spills occur, it is a common problem.  The suggestions about loosening the string and scrubbing are good but I'd suggest using 70% Isopropyl Alcohol rather than tap water.  The other 30% is distilled water.  The alcohol will cut the goo quicker and dry quicker, leaving no residue of its own.  Tap water has its own contaminants.  Whenever I use water, I would only use distilled water so as not to introduce any foreign matter to the mix.  Diluting Murphy Oil Soap, shrinking solutions and Hot Hide Glue come to mind. I always have some 70% Isopropyl Alcohol on hand which still usually costs less than $1 a pint.  Even if you have to get some from a convenience store in an emergency, it will probably not cost more than $1.50.  It can clean some of the toughest contamination, glue residue or tough dirt from your hands and fingers, it can serve as a premixed shrinking solution and a premixed softener for overly hardened hammers.  In the latter case, I often use it first to soften up the felt so I can file it, then if still too bright, the felt will take needles easier.  The alcohol will again leave no residue. If a drink of some kind is spilled on a bass string causing it to go dead or to rattle, loosen and detach the string from the hitch pin, locate the area of the spill, scrub with a toothbrush or other small brush with undiluted acetone, twisting the string a bit to loosen any hardened contamination, dry with a hair dryer and install with a twist or two.  This will often restore the string to its normal sound. Acetone can be used full strength or can be mixed with Alcohol and/or Distilled water to treat even tougher contamination or cleaning problems.  It can help free up action centers which have been treated with something else which is making matters worse and can also defeat the hardest of hammer hardening solutions or hardening which has occurred because of an accidental spill such as from CA glue (yipes!). In bars, restaurants or cruise ships, accidental spills in pianos are to be anticipated.  Having a string cover can go a long way toward prevention.  Particularly in a restaurant where the air may be thick with grease from the kitchen, a string cover will help cut down the contamination that will inevitably settle on the wound strings and the termination points causing the piano to go dead and thuddy. Bill Bremmer RPT Madison, Wisconsin <A HREF="http://www.billbremmer.com/">Click here: -=w w w . b i l l b r e m m e r . c o m =-</A> </HTML>