I have the opportunity to bring a few whistles to a “Try-It” tent during a small, local festival. The idea is that everyone is welcome to come by, see the instruments being displayed/demoed and have the chance to try the things they see. The demonstrators will teach some small thing, say one chord on a guitar, banjo, or whatever.
Ok, so in this day of various flu bugs what is a good, fast, method of cleaning the whistles between participants? A jug of rubbing alcohol or a dilute chlorine solution would work but would not taste good.
You might try a glass of hydrogen peroxide solution and a glass of water. Rinse in the peroxide, wait a minute, then rinse off the peroxide with the water. No alcohol or chlorine fumes, no taste.
Personally, I’d stick with the commercial preparations. Just Google ‘mouthpiece disinfectant’ and you’ll find a dozen brands. Don’t re-invent the wheel and take the responsibility on yourself. This has been done forever. Follow the instructions to the letter.
If I legally BUY hydrogen peroxide from someone who legally SELLS it, am I not, in fact, buying something that is COMMERCIALLY available?
If I follow the instructions as to how to PREPARE a solution for a particular use and follow instructions on safety precautions, is this not the same as buying a ready made preparation?
Hmmm, most disinfectants as peroxide or permanganate are strong oxidants, so they could maybe damage metallic parts of the whistle. On the other hand, other, organic ones could damage polymer parts…
Though, you could always obtain medical autoclave or ultra-violet lamp.
Sterisol is available at most music stores and through internet outlets like Musicians Friend and Woodwind and Brasswind. I know a lot of music educators who have used this product for years. I’ve never heard of it causing any damage to a wood or metal finish.
Hm, here in Serbia that universal disinfectant is called Asepsol™, but i wasn’t sure if it’s world wide brand. It is almost the same as this Sterisol, so i guess it would do fine with non-porous surfaces like polymer or metal. Not that sure about wood, as it can soak up saliva.
I’m not certain of the legality, but the pure form of hydrogen peroxide would likely be very difficult to obtain in small quantities for most people. The commercially available product is a solution of H2O2 in water, usually about 3 - 6 wt. percent. Even if you could secure a supply, working with the pure form would be difficult and potentially dangerous. Even if everything went successfully, it would be rather a waste of time at best. After all, why bother?
Hydrogen Peroxide
Topical Solution USP
First aid antiseptic
Oral debriding agent (oral rinse)
Active ingredient
Hydrogen peroxide 3%
That’s what it says on the bottle. No mention of “dangerous” “might explode and kill you,” etc. etc. Every drugstore and grocery sells it, and it’s very cheap.
It doesn’t cause brass to darken (maybe it would if you left a piece of brass in overnight, but it doesn’t if you just rinse with it), has no effect on plastic, varnish, etc., etc.
I can’t tell you exactly what germs it will and won’t kill (would be interested in this information myself), but I know it does kill germs and doesn’t give off fumes like alcohol or chlorine bleach, which I don’t tolerate well.
The commercial preparation isn’t dangerous at all. You wash your mouth with it and pour it liberally into open wounds. It won’t hurt your whistle. In its pure form it’s a bit tricky, but that’s irrelevant. BTW, it’s best known for its effectiveness against anaerobic bacteria like Clostridium tetani, the one that causes lockjaw.
Why are we discussing this in such detail? There are a hundred good disinfectants, and there’s no reason to play chemist in the kitchen. Heck, Listerine would work too. Get the mint flavor.
It’s not at all difficult to obtain (I think 30% is the limit); there are many suppliers who will sell to individuals. It’s no more dangerous to work with than acetone or shellac. It’s not at all difficult to work with; no fume hood required, proper ventilation is a good idea, although again, that’s more important even for acetone or alcohols. If you need bright light, it will decompose quickly.
But as you and others have said, the 3% solution is cheap and effective, so there’s really no reason to get the concentrated stuff except for specific applications.
The 30% is commonly used in the laboratory, and you’re right, it’s not hard to work with at all. The purer forms are the rocket fuel variety. But again, so what? Just buy a bottle at the grocery store. There’s no need for all this.
I was gonna say “scotch”, but vodka will do in a pinch. Just apply liberally to both the whistle and blower. Your whistles will stay clean, and you’ll sell bunches, as everyone trying them will be convinced that they’ve never played better or heard a better sounding whistle!
