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I am making a checklist for band students to make sure their tubas are kept in good condition. Any suggestions or things I should add? Thanks.

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You and Your Tuba
Your tuba is your responsibility.
Not the section leader’s. Not the band director’s.

It is your job to take care of your tuba.

Taking care of a tuba can be done in 5 easy steps that you should do every time you take out and put away your tuba.

VALVES. All of the valves move up and down very fast. If one is a little slow, unscrew the valve cap and pull out the valve. Apply some valve oil throughout the length of the valve and spread it all over with your hand. Put the valve back in, making sure to line the valve guide (the little bump near the top) with its respective slot. if this does not fix the problem, tell your band director or bring your tuba to an instrument repair shop.
SLIDES. All the slides should move smoothly. WHEN PULLING OUT A SLIDE, PUSH DOWN ITS RESPECTIVE VALVE. IF YOU DO NOT KNOW WHICH VALVE IT GOES WITH (Not choppy) If they are not smooth or require effort pull out, pull out the slide, wipe it off thoroughly, and apply medium-thickness slide grease. (only use a little and spread it out over the “slidey” part of the slide. If the slide WILL NOT pull out, tell your band director or bring your tuba to an instrument repair shop.
DENTS. Look over your tuba. If you notice any large dents that weren't there before, tell your band director or bring your tuba to an instrument repair shop.

"Do not put trash into the tuba. Do not put food into the tuba. Do not put animals into the tuba..."

I would add something about how to leave the horn if you are placing it on its bell while you get a pencil or find a piece of music or something like that. I have had students (and seen many others) that have left their tuba/euphonium on its bell and not propped up against anything and then either they or a classmate bump into it and the crash it goes. One of the simplest things to get into the habit of that will help to prevent some major damage.

Important for kids to know -- if something breaks, don't try to fix it yourself to hide it. You WILL make it worse before you make it better.

Mouthpiece.
If your mouthpiece gets stuck DO NOT let a parent try to remove it with pliers.

- Brush your teeth before playing anything.
- Don't eat anything whilst playing.
- Don't drink beer, coke or other sweet liquids, only pure water.

Never put anything loose into the case with the instrument. Mouthpieces not secured in the case do a lot of damage.
Never lift your tuba out of its case by the valve cluster or its pipes. It can strain the cluster causing valve hang ups or break stays.

brocktorock wrote:"Do not put trash into the tuba. Do not put food into the tuba. Do not put animals into the tuba..."

Than God I only put booze in mine!!

I NEVER advise students to take the pistons completely out of the casings to oil them. ... Just to expose the top inch and a half or so to accept the oil. I've seen too many pistons damaged from being dropped... even on carpeted floors!

Also... pistons should be oiled EVERY time the horn is played. That's the easiest way to know how long it's been since the last oiling.

On top of that... see that a student moves ALL of the tuning slides at every session... for the same reason as noted above.

Lars Trawen wrote:..... Don't drink beer, coke or other sweet liquids, only pure water.

No BEER?!?

You want us all to go through withdrawal?

Heavy_Metal wrote:

Lars Trawen wrote:..... Don't drink beer, coke or other sweet liquids, only pure water.

No BEER?!?

You want us all to go through withdrawal?

...whilst playing, of course!
The sugar will slow down the valves.

Band students as in (junior)high or college?

If it's high school and it's not their very own tuba that they purchased themselves then the tuba should never be placed on the bell. You can't knock knock over something thats lying down.

And if they're college students then it's easy; all instruments are on LOAN. They mess it up; they pay for it. Now in practice you don't have to be this strict,but it's a solid basis for expecting responsibility for an expensive instrument.
(you could also be the first school to order Tiger Tubas!)