Giving my tuba a bath
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Tubachin
- bugler
- Posts: 43
- Joined: Wed Dec 03, 2008 3:12 pm
Giving my tuba a bath
Greetings Tubaworld, I have given my MW2182W a bath several times with warm water and dish soap. I am trying to remove all of the green slime and deposits. The green slime comes out easily with a brush and some water pressure, but I'm not making any progress with the deposits. Does anyone have a recommendation on a more "aggressive" solution other than water/soap? I appreciate your guidance...
Matt Chin
Yarmouth, Maine
MW2182W
Cerveny F Helicon
Yarmouth, Maine
MW2182W
Cerveny F Helicon
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arpthark
- 5 valves
- Posts: 1128
- Joined: Thu Feb 28, 2008 4:14 pm
Re: Giving my tuba a bath
That deposit is limescale, which is basically calcium carbonate. Soap doesn't do much to get that off -- you need to use something mildly acidic. I have had success on some old, really limed-up tubas by plugging the slides with rubber stoppers and filling the valve section with cleaning vinegar, which is a bit stronger than regular vinegar, and letting it sit for a few minutes.
Honestly, your best bet is just to take it to a shop and have it chem cleaned, which is basically the process described above but in a more controlled environment by folks who actually know what they're doing!
Honestly, your best bet is just to take it to a shop and have it chem cleaned, which is basically the process described above but in a more controlled environment by folks who actually know what they're doing!