Case Cleaning

For help with setups and other technical issues.
User avatar
tune_link
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:24 am
Location: Chattanooga, TN
Contact:

Case Cleaning

Post by tune_link » Wed Sep 18, 2019 6:33 am

I don't know if this is the correct section of the board to put this in but here goes. Last ditch effort.

Got a Fender G&G case in a trade a year ago on the local CL. The case looks fine and everything on it is perfectly functional. It even looks clean by my inspection. The thing smells like mold so strongly that I considered throwing it away though. I figured the trade was low stakes and worst case scenario I could either throw the case away or give it to a friend or something. I have tried EVERYTHING the internet has thrown up in a search for cleaning guitar cases in order to try and get the mold smell out - Febreeze, coffee grounds, Lysol, airing it out, etc.

As I said it's a nice case and I hate to not be able to use it. I feel like the smell is so bad I would feel awful even gifting it to a friend. Has anyone here ever experienced anything like this? Can I get a case reupholstered or is that just dumb/too costly to make it even worth my time? Is there some other miracle cure for removing mold smells that I might could try? I'm afraid to put a guitar in it on the off chance that the smell would transfer over or that there are leftover mold spores somewhere in this thing that might end up in the guitar somehow. HALP!

User avatar
Larry Mal
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 19673
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2010 4:25 pm
Location: Saint Louis, MO

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by Larry Mal » Wed Sep 18, 2019 7:12 am

Clean it- make a bucket of water and soap, and get a soft bristle hand brush, and get down on your hands and knees and scrub it out. If it seems too fragile for this then use a washcloth.

Put it out in the sun to dry for a little bit and then put it in the shade for a day or two.

There no substitutes in life. If you want something clean, scrub it clean.
Back in those days, everyone knew that if you were talking about Destiny's Child, you were talking about Beyonce, LaTavia, LeToya, and Larry.

User avatar
tune_link
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:24 am
Location: Chattanooga, TN
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by tune_link » Wed Sep 18, 2019 7:56 am

Oh I definitely already did all that Larry. This is some seriously persistent mold smell. It's gnarly.

The one thing I haven't done is use bleach. I feel like that could work but I also worry that it will permanently ruin/discolor the inside of the case.

User avatar
MechaBulletBill
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2813
Joined: Sat Nov 09, 2013 8:16 am
Location: UK

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by MechaBulletBill » Wed Sep 18, 2019 9:23 am

Something like neutradol powder?

User avatar
tune_link
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:24 am
Location: Chattanooga, TN
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by tune_link » Wed Sep 18, 2019 10:09 am

Thanks Mecha, I may give that a shot. Also looking into using oxygen bleach, I'm not really familiar with that but from what I'm reading it doesn't discolor things the way chlorine bleach would.

User avatar
Jazzmastervsjaguar
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 780
Joined: Mon May 28, 2012 7:37 am
Location: Silver Spring, MD (Burbs of DC)
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by Jazzmastervsjaguar » Wed Sep 18, 2019 10:15 am

I've put some baking soda in a case before. Literally sprinkle baking soda all over the inside of the case let it sit for a week. Vacuum it up and the smell will lessen. It took about a month of this for me but I eventually was able to get a strong tobacco oder out of my case. Not sure if it will work on mold but worth a try I guess.

User avatar
tune_link
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:24 am
Location: Chattanooga, TN
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by tune_link » Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:19 am

I will definitely give that a shot. I did try some baking soda and vinegar and used that to scrub inside the case. But it sounds from what you're saying like I would need to do it every few days and leave it on there. I think I'll try that before moving into harsher chemicals.

Mostly I'm just surprised at how strong this odor is and how long it's hung around. I feel like I'm in that Seinfeld episode where Jerry has the smelly car.

User avatar
Larry Mal
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 19673
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2010 4:25 pm
Location: Saint Louis, MO

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by Larry Mal » Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:30 am

Not bleach, maybe something like apple cider vinegar?

You left it out in the sunlight for a period of hours?
Back in those days, everyone knew that if you were talking about Destiny's Child, you were talking about Beyonce, LaTavia, LeToya, and Larry.

User avatar
andy_tchp
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 8010
Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 1:36 am
Location: Brisbane

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by andy_tchp » Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:23 pm

Bleach does not kill mould, it just bleaches it.

Vinegar is far more effective, but you'll really need to soak the case with it (buy some 2 litre bottles cheaply at the supermarket) to ensure it gets right into (and importantly through) the lining by the sounds of things. I've used this recently with success on some mould spores that'd appeared on the foot-beds on a pair of boots.

Then leave out in direct sunlight as Mr Mal suggests above.
"I don't know why we asked him to join the band 'cause the rest of us don't like country music all that much; we just like Graham Lee."
David McComb, 1987.

User avatar
tune_link
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:24 am
Location: Chattanooga, TN
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by tune_link » Thu Sep 19, 2019 6:09 am

andy_tchp wrote:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:23 pm
Bleach does not kill mould, it just bleaches it.

Vinegar is far more effective, but you'll really need to soak the case with it (buy some 2 litre bottles cheaply at the supermarket) to ensure it gets right into (and importantly through) the lining by the sounds of things. I've used this recently with success on some mould spores that'd appeared on the foot-beds on a pair of boots.

Then leave out in direct sunlight as Mr Mal suggests above.
This sounds like a plan I can get behind. I'm thinking maybe I didn't use enough vinegar when I tried that before. Gonna go with this and the baking soda just x 1000 and then lather rinse repeat etc. over the course of the next month and see what happens. I've been trying to imagine what the basement this thing was stored in looked like and I keep thinking of Luci Fulci's House by the Cemetery :D

User avatar
Steadyriot.
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1262
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2011 2:16 pm
Location: The Netherlands

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by Steadyriot. » Thu Sep 19, 2019 11:18 pm

+1 on the vinegar.
I just cleaned a VERY filthy case smelling of sour mold and puke (without the actual vomit thankfully) and a spray bottle with vinegar turned it from a awful useless case to a almost new case.

Here's what I did:
First I sprayed the inside of the case with a diluted vinegar mix (about 50 / 50 household vinegar with warm water) which I let dry in the sun (sunlight is also a smell killer). After it dried I sprayed the inside again, this time with Denatured Alcohol to neutralise the acid (in case lingering vapors would damage hardware down the line) which I let dry to the sun again.
All that's now left in the case is a very faint sweetly sour smell which'll probably go away after a few days of airing it out.

Other things you could try:
Baking powder; coat the insides; leave it for a while and vacuum it out. Won't kill the mold but should kills smells.
Coffee. Throw in some ground coffee and it should absorb smells. Vacuum it out.
Vanilla essence. The real stuff; not vanillin. Leave some inside in a cup / on a saucer and leave it for a few days undisturbed. Kill's odor and leaves your case smelling like cookies and expensive candles.
tune_link wrote:
Thu Sep 19, 2019 6:09 am
andy_tchp wrote:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:23 pm
Bleach does not kill mould, it just bleaches it.

Vinegar is far more effective, but you'll really need to soak the case with it (buy some 2 litre bottles cheaply at the supermarket) to ensure it gets right into (and importantly through) the lining by the sounds of things. I've used this recently with success on some mould spores that'd appeared on the foot-beds on a pair of boots.

Then leave out in direct sunlight as Mr Mal suggests above.
This sounds like a plan I can get behind. I'm thinking maybe I didn't use enough vinegar when I tried that before. Gonna go with this and the baking soda just x 1000 and then lather rinse repeat etc. over the course of the next month and see what happens. I've been trying to imagine what the basement this thing was stored in looked like and I keep thinking of Luci Fulci's House by the Cemetery :D
Try straight (diluted) vinegar first; baking soda neutralizes vinegar (which makes the bubbly reaction) and thus the PH goes up. You want to kill mold; not just wash its hair.
"If someone duetted with a Bald Eagle, they could rule the Country charts from here to eternity." ~shadowplay

User avatar
andy_tchp
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 8010
Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 1:36 am
Location: Brisbane

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by andy_tchp » Tue Oct 08, 2019 9:55 pm

Did you get anywhere with salvaging this case tune_link?
"I don't know why we asked him to join the band 'cause the rest of us don't like country music all that much; we just like Graham Lee."
David McComb, 1987.

User avatar
iainmayfield
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 107
Joined: Thu Jan 30, 2014 1:18 am

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by iainmayfield » Wed Oct 09, 2019 4:50 am

I think you might be going about this the wrong way . I've had a few cases and a nice tweed covered amp over the last few years. Some have reeked of cigarettes and god know what - but they are all neutral smelling now. I just spray with a basic air freshener and leave them in the open air/sun for a week or two. All smells just seem to have gone. I had a car once that reeked of mouldy milk - there's a car spray you can buy from halfords that takes the smell out and that works fine too. Spray and then leave to air - but it does take a few weeks!

User avatar
tune_link
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 7:24 am
Location: Chattanooga, TN
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by tune_link » Wed Oct 09, 2019 6:13 am

I'm still in the process of doing the cleaning. It seems to smell slightly less now than it did but maybe that's just from being outside where the smell isn't as noticeable in the open air. We'll see if it clears up entirely by the time I'm done.

Something that didn't occur to me to do, which I may yet try if this fails - using laundry detergent to wash the inside of the case.

User avatar
cestlamort
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5176
Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2008 12:01 am
Location: Seattle
Contact:

Re: Case Cleaning

Post by cestlamort » Wed Oct 09, 2019 6:32 am

Judging by random old band shirts that somehow end up smelling like mildew after line drying, (white) vinegar is the way to go. (I found that soaking shirts in vinegar/water for a day or two, not just a couple of hours, actually does the trick).
Costco has two big jugs of vinegar for $3. Use the extra to finally clean out that coffee pot....

Post Reply