Can I Use Pledge To Clean My Piano?

Everyone loves a clean piano.

A well-kept piano can brighten up a room and add a nice visual appeal. Information technology tin as well bring endless entertainment for everyone who enjoys music (and maybe even motivate a beginner to learn faster!)

But, one day, you will realize something. The keys are dirty. They've become a little yellow or glutinous. What should you practise?

It's time to clean those keys and make them smooth once again. But how? In this commodity, I'll show you how to clean your keys properly without damaging them.

Cleaning Piano Keys

cleaning a piano

Dust, skin oil, and dirt can build upward on the keys over time. If you want to have a pleasant musical instrument to play, it'due south essential to regularly clean the keys.

Ivory vs Plastic Keys

Since some pianos have ivory keys and others have plastic ones, there are different cleaning techniques. If you lot don't already know which textile your keys are made from, you lot should effigy that out first. Y'all need to be enlightened of both key types.

Ivory keys are rarer than plastic ones. Ivory keys were discontinued in the 1970s and finally outlawed in 1989. Ane of the easiest ways to distinguish ivory keys is the slight xanthous hue. Commonly, they aren't perfectly white and take on this xanthous color over fourth dimension. These keys are also two conjoined parts, unlike plastic keys. As you play them, you feel a slight grainy texture on your fingertips. Plastic keys feel smoother and are whiter.

General Cleaning Tips

It's always all-time to clean one octave at a fourth dimension. Clean all of the notes and dry out them off before standing. By doing this, you avoid getting into a habit of cleaning and drying one note at a time. On the other hand, in that location isn't anything wrong with cleaning private notes. Some people might fifty-fifty recommend it.

Don't use a paper towel to wipe the keys down. Utilise a lint-free cloth that won't leave any balance.

Avert using cleaners with lots of chemicals. Those chemicals can permanently harm the keys, regardless of material.

Employ more 1 cloth. Many people find it benign to utilize a separate cloth for the white and black keys. You'll need several of them, especially if your keys are really dirty.

How To Clean Plastic Keys

These are the steps to clean plastic keys:

1
Fill a pocket-sized bowl with warm water (dish soap optional)
2
Acquire a soft white textile
3
Lightly dip fabric into water
4
Clean keys with a brushing motion (not too hard)
5
Use a different cloth for the blackness keys
six
Wipe them off after finishing an octave
7
Encompass the keys when you're washed

Avoid using a side-to-side brushing motion, as it can transfer dirt in between keys. Every bit you button downward, there's an opening at the back of the keys. Don't brush the cloth in a way that volition push dirt backside them. Take your time to make clean each key off as well as possible.

How To Clean Ivory Keys

Now that you know how to clean plastic keys, it'south time to move on to ivory. Since ivory keys are a bit more fragile, yous should be extra careful. On height of fragility, information technology'due south likely that your piano is relatively old. Getting an old, ivory-keyed pianoforte can be an expensive ordeal. If it's an antique, it'due south all-time to phone call a professional person piano technician. Here are the steps to clean ivory keys:

1
Don't utilize soap or chemicals
2
Wear cotton gloves
three
Employ a squeegee or pigment brush to remove primal dust
4
Rub the keys with a white vinyl eraser
5
Wipe off all the eraser bits
half-dozen
Use a fine steel wool pad to remove the yellow hue
7
Let sunlight hitting the keys

Brand sure to utilize a very fine steel wool pad. If information technology isn't fine enough, y'all could scratch the keys. There's a reason for exposing the keys to sunlight. Sunlight naturally whitens and bleaches ivory. If you have a keyboard, information technology's easy to move it nigh a window. Withal, if you accept a thousand or upright piano, information technology's not as easy. If yous're careful, you can remove the activity (all the keys) at the same time. It might surprise you at how piece of cake it is to remove all the keys.

Cleaning Digital Piano Keys

Cleaning keyboard keys is very simple. All that's needed to clean the keys is dish soap and water. You can also use furniture cleaning equipment. To offset out:

Dip a damp white cloth in your soap-water cleaning mix.
Wipe and dry each of the white keys individually for the all-time results.
After you clean the white keys, move on to the black ones.
Lightly dampen some other cloth into the solution.
Gently rub the acme of the keys one-past-one.
It'southward also first-class to make clean the sides of them. Dry each key off and repeat the process.

Alternative Cleaning Methods

Hand-Soap Method

This method is for plastic keys. To practice it, fill a spray canteen with ii tablespoons of hand soap and h2o. Shake the bottle to create an even mix. Get a small textile or an old cotton wool t-shirt to wipe the keys. Instead of spraying the solution direct on the keys, spray information technology on the cloth. Spraying it on the keys can be harmful and become moisture between the keys.

Lemon Juice

Using lemon juice on ivory keys is some other whitening technique. If you give this a try, brand certain you don't leave the juice on the keys too long. Citric acids can erode the material. Spray a cloth with lemon juice and gently scrub each primal one by ane. Information technology'southward all-time if you dry out off the keys before moving on to the next one.

Toothpaste

Some other home remedy for stained ivory keys is toothpaste. Yet, y'all can't only use any toothpaste. Information technology has to be a clear white brand with no other colors. For this technique, you'll also need to dampen a cloth with whole milk. Later putting the toothpaste on the keys, wipe information technology off with the milk, and dry the keys immediately afterward.

Diluted Vinegar

Diluted vinegar tends to be a fast-working solution for ivory keys. Grit the keys and and then clean them with vinegar. Create a mix of 4 parts water and 1 part vinegar for the best results. Employ just a small corporeality of vinegar to avert corroding the ivory. To scrub the keys, use a cheesecloth, flannel, or a t-shirt. Avoid using steel wool on ivory, equally it will scratch upwards the keys.

Yogurt and Mayo

Another bizarre manner to make clean your keys is with yogurt or Mayo. The bacteria in both of them are acidic and tin can assist whiten the keys. If you're scared of corroding the keys, this method is safer than the balance. Use one of the substances on the keys and allow it sit down for a few minutes.

Ivory Scraper

Be extra careful if y'all decide to apply an ivory scraper. If the stains are heavy, you might need to scrape them off. Every bit you're scraping, you'll encounter many of the stains come off instantly. Since it's unsafe to misuse a scraper, yous might desire to have a piano technician teach y'all how to practice it get-go.

Though it costs extra coin, it could preclude potential impairment to your keys. On the other hand, if yous're careful and use a lite stroke, the keys should exist fine. For heavily stained keys, you tin can utilise the ivory scraper and then a juice solution.

How Oftentimes Should You Clean the Keys?

If y'all accept the time, you can carefully clean the keys every week. This frequency will ensure that your piano is in the best shape possible. Even if you don't practice it weekly, it can be beneficial to create a cleaning schedule. With this, y'all won't have to worry about having stained keys again.

How to Make clean Your Piano Keys

Conclusion

Pianos can last for decades, so information technology's important to make clean the keys regularly. Before starting out, information technology'southward essential to figure out what type of keys your pianoforte has. Plastic keys take relatively straightforward cleaning methods, while ivory keys tin exist cleaned using many techniques. If y'all can't figure out what blazon of keys you lot have, you lot tin find your piano model's online clarification. Yet, if y'all have a newer piano, your keys are almost 100% likely to be plastic.

At that place's always the pick to rent a pianoforte technician to clean the keys for the first time. Doing this can be useful if you have little gratis time or y'all're worried about dissentious keys. Regardless of which road you cull, yous'll exist much happier with clean keys.