Removing Flute Tarnish ( Headjoint only)
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- Опубліковано 14 вер 2013
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Silver sulfide + aluminum = silver + aluminum sulfide
3Ag2S + 2Al = 6Ag + Al2S3.
Check out this video for an explanation of the chemistry behind this:
• Silver Tarnish Removal...
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/ hawaiianflutist
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as a flutist, this video brings an extreme amount of satisfaction.
When I was little, My flute was tarnished so I dumped the whole flute in water.... 😂 had to get it repaired... glad your vid clarifies just to do this with the head joint👍🏻. Keep up the good work Micah
I wanted to try this, but I don't want to mess with the cork
Same!!!!
It's not a big deal. I'm certainly not trying to make anyone "do it". Especially those who aren't into repair. It's a video to show the world something they may not have seen or known before. I did it for you guys. No need to do it yourself.
Elias Villa I really want to do this! Because my flute is.... VERY RUSTY! But my teacher told me to never play with the cork
Take the cork out.
How do you put the cork back in correctly?!
For the people who can't really get to the store to get an aluminum container,
no need to panic!
You can instead you the shiny side of aluminum foil underneath the parts of your flute.
I just found my completely tarnished flute from 6th grade and wanted to make the headpiece pretty.
The solution worked like a charm. Let it sit for a while and rub off the excess if needed.
Thanks so much
Thank you! O:)
This saved my flute I was so worried that I wouldn't be able to fix it! But this worked amazingly!
Just cleaned my head joint using this "chemical cocktail" and it works.
Thanks Micah for sharing. It's a great video and you are a very natural illustrator/ commentator/ narrator. Looking forward to more.
I was irresponsible this year and my flute tarnished a bit on the inside and it has actually affected the sound. Thank you from the bottom of my heart 🙏🏾
You are welcome!
Very helpful! I'm just learning how to repair flutes & the first flute I'm working on is tarnished. I figured I would try to remove the tarnish while it's taken apart.
ehhhh I'll pass. I'm too scared to mess with the cork ;-;
Whispers*Just take it out...*
And just replace it you can't really mess up there
Lah Libra same but if worse comes to worse and I don't do it right I'll just bring it in to a music store and say that it just happened 😂
Lah Libra I got my cork stuck :(
Jenna Lynn same
It worked. It made my headjoint look beautiful. It made my day. Thank you so much, Micah!
so far, I've done this technique for both my flute and piccolo head joints. I haven't taken off my keys yet for this method, which I wish i knew about this method before using a silver foam method, which I felt didn't do Jack!
just got my flute cleaned and YESSS THANK YOU SOOO MUCH for the tutorial, my flute got sooo shiny like new
Did you just do the head joint?
There's a lot of flute technicians scaring people to not try to clean their flutes by themselves. It is well known that hydrogene sulfide that exist in the air likes the flutes to stay over them forever. But it's true too, that silver down of it, it is still intact. The secret is to dry the flute after playing and clean it with a soft cotton or microfiber cloth very carefuly and avoiding touching its pads. Let it in its vertical stand for 10 or 15 minutes and put it to sleep in its case again. That's the only way it won't get that ugly dark/black/green and brown color. I used to let it in its stand and I didn't keep it in its case. The flute got a brown ugly color in almost a week and a half, incredible !!! I don't do that anymore. The good thing of doing that, it was that I held it everytime I wanted to play it, without taking it out of its case, etc etc but ut became an ugly flute. The sound of it remained being excellent. Thank you so much for your channel.
Very true. Like you said, keeping the flute in its case is the best preventative measure for tarnished silver. I also agree that zipping the hard case in the soft outer case is the solution. Although they don’t pay me to say this, I’m a big fan of the BAM cases that are hermetically sealed. Not air getting in is an even better tarnish deterrent and easier than frequent cleanings.
@@MicahLayne oh I don't know that cases. I will try to find one here in Buenos Aires. Thank u.
I can't believe I'm old, retired, and didn't know this method. Come to think of it, I never attempted this kind of cleaning. When I was young, the Gorham silver company made a fortune selling their pink silver polish and this simple method was a secret. What a snap to clean real silverware or silver/gold plate this way, and so non-toxic! Of course, in the old days, everyone was warned about the hazards of getting polish on the pads, which was not worth risking for the sake of a shiny flute.
Anyway, I had a happy accident in the course of cleaning my gold-plated Yamaha headjoint. I hadn't touched my flute in about 17 years, and am playing for a few days now and enjoying it, and the gold plating had developed a brown tarnish in a frost pattern that was almost pretty. But I decided to clean it anyway, thinking it was a good idea and that I needed to look at the cork. In contrast, a silver headjoint which had sat the same period unplayed looked fine, like new.
I'd been watching cork assembly/maintenance videos from JL Smith, and so after the tarnish just disappeared in seconds, and I rinsed it off, I had noticed the cork was very wet half way up, which means you need a new cork because it's leaking, so it's shrinking. That makes sense. It's over 30 years old. I noticed the cork nut was loose. I was delighted! So after drying the cork off with a hair dryer, and after wiping it first, I tightened cork nut, hoping it might fatten the cork up. If you tighten it too much it can crack the cork. So I get it together fine, and it plays better than before. It plays so well that 17 years ago, I never would have bought a custom headjoint had it played this well then.
I have some secondary instruments, like a 50 year old student flute and the cork was stuck in but I got it out with light tapping with a hammer on a wood dowel. Don't do this if your flute is of any value to you. Although it worked perfectly fine for me. It's a plated instrument, needs new pads. Had a real mange of tarnish and grime. The silver plated headjoint got clean like magic. I think makers should just weld the stopper in the proper position.
When I was young, I worked in a factory for a year to get my first good flute, a Haynes, and I went to Europe to study with an idol of mine. The flute was black in 6 months. I never wiped it at the end of a day of practice. I thought I had some freaky acidic hands or something. My next flute, having sold that one to help finance a non-music career, I wiped, and it got very little tarnish, and only in places I couldn't reach.
Thanksssss that was awesome and was exactly what I was needing.
Thank u man !! I really do appreciate u 4 showing us this !! 👍
My chem teacher would be so proud of you tbh
Thanks btw
Awesome, using my sisters old flute. Was concerned about how I was going to clean it. Thank you so much.
And I’ve been using an abrasive flute polishing cloth for a while now and was also wondering if I would be able to get my flute re-plated for a decent price.
Wooow nice video it helps a lot in mentaining your flute clean & shiny👍👍👍
Great video and very impressive to see.
Hi Micah, nice video. We have a "student flute" that I would like to clean, but I think it is nickel plated. Any suggestions for how to clean a nickel plated flute or would this same method work for that as well?
Good news for those of you who don't want to mess with their corks. My head joint is silver. I made a small pan out of aluminum foil, put some baking soda in it. Poured some boiling distilled water over it. After waiting a bit for the soda to melt, I used a clean cloth to clean the head joint using the cloth which I dipped in the solution. It takes a bit of patience because you have to wipe the tarnished spots over and over again but at the end all tarnish was gone. Specially after I wiped the head joint with a dry, soft and clean cloth. I'll try cleaning the rest of the flute with the same method without wetting the pads. I'm not sure if it'll work because the rest of the flute is not silver.
how did it go for non silver parts?
@@platedpen Not so well.
@@mgoksoyelaborate
Hi, Annienzebra. It doesn't matter exactly. The baking soda solution acts as a catalyst. Heating up the water makes the reaction result quicker. I just boiled the water and then shut the heat off.
THANK YOU so much for sharing this.
Very useful thanks I am about to try this.
Thanks for posting. This is very helpful information.
Thank you
My flute has really bad tarnish on my head joint, but it has a gold crown and lip plate. Everyone told me that the gold Would come off if it ever got wet so idk if I should do this
Hi Micah, I have a flute exactly the flute you are using for your demo. My problem is I do not know where to get the right pads for that Yamaha open hole flute model 285S11. i am pretty sure that you refurbished that flute. Kindly please help me what are the exact pads you used for that flute. Thank you very very much!!!
As a chemist, I agree that this is a competent method for removing tarnish from silver. However, as your video shows, baking soda also dissolves aluminum--don't you see the CO2 forming on the tray? It would be better to use either a stainless steel baking tray or a plastic one.
+Vincent Voltaggio one would not reuse the aluminium tray after the experiment so why does this matter? I use plastic tray in the second video BTW.
+Micah Layne I tested both ways---doesn't make any difference. As Figaro would say, "l' Inutile Precauzione" (a useless precaution). Hot bicarbonate solution does the work. So, 8oz water+2 tblsp bicarbonate in a cooking pan; warm it. Take an animal hair artist's brush (plastic will melt) and brush the hot solution on tarnished areas--like around tone holes and on rods. Rinse with tap water. I cleaned the body of my flute like this--no immersion and didn't have to disassemble. Great for spot cleaning!
The fresh aluminum pan competes for the sulfide tarnish; if successful, the aluminum should blacken. This is what happens when you wrap badly tarnished sterling in aluminum foil and create a salt bridge (warm salty water and baking soda).
@@kristinehatkinson7323 I know this is an old video, but this is correct - you want the tarnish to be attracted to a more reactive surface if possible, rather than just dissolving into a solution and requiring alcohol or similar to remove the microscopic bits of suspended sulfide that will coat the surface/act as excellent seeds for future tarnish. Obviously it's recycled afterwards. :)
Really important question! Can you use this method on colored flutes?????
Question.. Micah... did you do the same thing for the body with the keys?
Can i use this method if my flute is silver-plated but not solid silver?
My daughters mouth piece has been restored >> All tarnish removed
Thanks for the cool science :-)
So I watched this video and I was going to try it but before I do, just to make sure, my flute is purple, it has silver keys and mouthpiece though. Would it still take the tarnish off of the mouthpiece or keys? Thank you so much this video helped so many people!
Cai Evie I'm sure you read my caution about not working on the flute unless you are at an advanced level of repair. Your flute sounds like the ones assembled in China that are painted various colors. This method is NOT for your flute. I don't know what they coat those flutes with. This method simply shows how tarnish is taken off of silver using a flute. Please DO NOT clean your flute using this method. Take into a shop or upgrade to another.
I don’t know if you’re still active but I have a couple questions about flute repair. If I wanted to get my flute polished and just get it a full cleaning, would someone mind letting me know about how much that would cost?
My flute is nickle-plated. Would I use the same method?
okay so I am wanting to try this but I'm scared that I'll ruin my flute by taking the cork out... do you just stick it back in after or what?
How would u do that with the body of the flute, not damaging the pads and mini corks? If possible can you make a video please
I did Latoria.
This worked perfectly. Thank you!
I'm glad it worked for you!
Do you think if I soaked a cloth in the solution and wrapped it around the headjoint it would work? I don't want to mess with the cork, but I do appreciate how well this works. Fortunately for me, only my headjoint is tarnished, so I don't have to worry about the rest of the body
Nope. It's not the baking soda solution that cleans it. The solution is a medium that allows the sulfur to be removed from the silver.
How do you put the cork back in?
what does that thing call when u take out the crown and inside of it I dont know what it call
This is awesome. I'm going to try it today. My son was given a flute by my niece who hasn't played it in over 8 years and its been bugging me that it has so much discoloration. unfortunately funds have been very limited (family of 5 kids) so I haven't taken it to be proffessionaly cleaned. my youngest son plays the piccolo which is beginning to get the same discoloration, will this work as well?
Nessy Mullins great! Just be sure to watch my second video and read all of the comments below for suggestions and warnings. This is not something you should do if you don't know how to take keys off.
Does it affects the sound of the flute?
I did this once with an old locket because it was extremely tarnished, once it was in the solution it started to bubble, twist, and jump. Then one of the actual picture holding pieces popped off.
LuLu56 sad to hear. Luckily we are only dealing with solid silver pieces of tube here. No problem at all as you can see in my two videos!
Micah Layne thanks and absolutely! I might have to try this with my flute sometime.
Bro will this remove tarnish in the flute lip plate? It looks like sort of hazy tarnish. I think I first got it when I drank soda then played my flute I was only high-school back then didn't know better.
Yes
Mine is tarnished on the bottom side of the lip plate. How should I get this off?
Is there an easy way like this to clean a coppernickel flute?
what if my flute isn't made of silver. would it still work?
can you use it to clean chrome, sliver and nickel plated instuments?
C.S.Rodney I've only tried this on silver plated and solid silver.
i also read we can put headjoint in metal with salt and hot water (boiled), so it is a quicker way if you haven't baking soda at the moment! :)
Alessandra, Please Don't mix in salt. Many salts are not just NaCl. If you analyze the formula, you realize that you may make the matter worse! I've seen experiments with salt that put streaks of black throughout the silver. You don't need the salt for the transfer of sulfur so don't use it. Be warned
Thank you so much, but one thing you did not show us how you removed the cork
Will this still work if the mouth piece is gold plated ?
Howdo you puy the cork back in?
Good video thanks, i'll try that. Will this remove smell from the headjoint too? I've acquired quite an old flute and it smells really bad.
If the smell is from the tarnish, then yes. If it is from moldy pads, then No. just another reminder, this video shows tarnish being taken off of the headjoint only! Do not dunk the whole flute in or you will destroy your pads. Check out my second video to see me do it with keys off.
Thanks, i put it in for a professional overhaul in the end!
Hey guys! If i use chewing gum or Plasticine to cover holes and pads and put in water with it? Does it work?
what material are you pouring ?
Thank you SO FREAKING MUCH!!!! You are a Godsend. 🧡❤💜🧡❤💜🧡❤🤗👌
This is a very nice process.. Do you think it will work with a silver tarnished flute with a few little spots and rustiness in between keys?😦
Sure it will. Just be sure to take the keys off before you try it and dry thoroughly when you are done. Pads damage easily if wet.
Awsome.
does it remove the yellow??
There is electrolytic action involved.
(There has to be electrical "connection" between the flute and the aluminium, and the baking soda acts as an electrolyte. Aluminium is chosen because it is well above silver on the galvanic series.)
Is the silver sulphide actually removed or is it just converted back to silver?
If the tarnish is really thick/deep then the result is a dull white look that feels rough. It is not black but still needs a fair bit of polishing or buffing to remove it and restore a flat, shiny surface. I presume that it is rough, dull tarnish that has been converted back to rough dull silver.
Some silversmiths don't like this method, claiming it leaves the surface of the silver microscopically pitted, which makes it more prone to future tarnish
All correct info. The counter to this would be that other forms of cleaning also have pros and cons. For example, using an abrasive silver cloth takes off layers of silver from the surface of the flute to expose non tarnished silver underneath. Chemical silver polished are highly toxic and have cancer causing ingredients. This experiment I did years ago was a cool, “hey looks at this non toxic easy method to remove tarnish from silver” Even years later, I think it’s pretty cool. Am I advocating others to leave their flute religion to do this? Not at all. Just showing something cool.
so i did this for the middle piece and the end except the head joint and now my flute wont make its right sound.
What temperature should the water be?
Can you please show me how to put the cork back?
why remove the cork if you are submerging it in the same solution?
Okay, I see how this could work for the headjoint, but DO NOT do it with the body!! The pads will smell weird and be messed up.
See comments below and view my other video. I take the keys off of the body and show you
and they can fall off
I really need to do that!!!!!!
I've had my flute for 4 years and when I bought it it had brown stuff around the keys and a black streak on the bottom of the body. will this work for it??
It might. Check out my second video showing how I did the same process on the body of the flute with the keys taken off. No pads or keys, just the silver tube.
Hi Andrea, I made this video to demonstrate the scientific principles at work when removing tarnish. I would advise you not to attempt this if you are not very familiar with the anatomy of the flute. If you are familiar with flute repair, then you can take the keys off so that only the body is left, then do what you see in this video. For people who have tarnish on the keys, the pads need to be taken out of the keys. I hope this clears things up a bit.
Can I use baking powder instead of soda?
OMG THANK YOU
I have the same flute!
my mouthpiece plate is gold and the inside of the head joint is coated with gold (outside silver). is this method safe for the gold? I looked in comments and didn't see anything.
Jessica DeWitt I don't know. Probably should just use a polishing cloth on the silver part since gold doesn't tarnish.
Can you you do this to the bottom portions of The flute or no because of the cork and pads on the flute keys?
Yes. If you'd like more info, read the comments below and check out my second video where I take off the keys to the body leaving only the solid silver tube.
I have a silver plated flute but in some parts the silver has chipped off, will this process damage the metal underneath my silver coat?
Hollow Grind Good question. If your flute is chipped, I wouldn't do this. The Yamaha I used in this and the second video has keys with silver worn off exposing the nickel underneath. It didn't "damage" my flute. Having said that, if your flute is in bad shape, it may be time for you to take it in to a repair tech.
Yeah but then how do you clean the body of if has the pads
My old flute's (gemeinhardt beginner, unsure of model) cork falls out sometimes. My band director says its because of the heat. I'm in the marching band and all day for seven hours, my flute is falling apart. Dunno what to do about this problem. Fortunately, my flute sounds the same. Also, my flute is not rusted on the body, but the plate is very rusted. I use flute polish on it, but it doesn't disappear of which I am severly disappointed. Baking soda seems to be unnecessary for just the rusted plate. Just wanted to share this to see if maybe aome others have a similar/same issue.
Skyblue Sunny All cork ages over time. It is standard for flute technicians to replace the head joint cork for you when you bring it in for its annual maintenance. When was the last time you had your flute checked? Maybe it’s time to take it in.
Micah Layne Last time I visited for repairments was a couple months ago. I went because my F & C keys wasn't working. He didn't changed the cork or anything though. (Btw, I had this flute for about five years now)
realmenTE UTIL EL VIDEO. TE FELICITO.
yes....Great science lesson. Now about cleaning that cork? Probably just have to get it replaced. Thanks for a good video.
Hi Micah, does my flute have to be silver? I believe mine is silver coated.
Hi jsy0160, The flute I used in these videos is silver plated as well. We are trying to get the sulfur off of the silver. Take a look at the link in my video explaining the chemistry behind this. ua-cam.com/video/SzYWNfpnafw/v-deo.html
Interesting, does this method works on sax metal mouthpiece ?
fkwcfkwc very well. It doesn’t have any complicated parts. Just silver. It works on jewelry
I bought my flute on ebay and it doesnt have a cork. It has the silver piece inside and it doesnt want to come out. Suggestion? O:)
Unscrew the cork from your head joint
I know this is an old video, but do you know if this method would work on a silver plated headjoint that has a rose gold plated lip plate and crown?
I’d be happy to help you with any repair and cleaning questions. Since I made this video years ago, I’ve become a well respected flute technician. If you google my name, Micah Layne, I’ll be able to help you via my site. There are too many variables and details I need to know to help here. Contact me via my site and I’ll be glad to help.
ua-cam.com/video/RZ5P8J57ugA/v-deo.html
what if there is tiny spots of rust on the flute? do I take it to the shop or should I just buy another flute?
I envy that you have enough disposable income to just buy another flute! Send me a couple
Wont the coil shrivel up if it is submerged in water?
Hi Gabe, what coil? Once the cork mechanism is removed, there is nothing but the metal of the flute head joint.
Also could you just take a piece of cotton cloth and dip in the hot baking soda and water solution, then rub the flute in gentle circular motion? It might take longer but may be not?
Corinne Trang Hello. Good questions. As I mentioned below in the comment section, the baking soda is not the "cleaner". So wiping some on the flute is not what I show in the video and it is not what causes the tarnish to be removed. I remove the cork because I just want metal to come into contact with the aluminum and hot baking soda solution to cause the chemical reaction that removes the tarnish. Also, it is common practice for repair techs to change the cork for you when you bring your flute in for its annual maintenance. Cork ages over time, which causes it to shrink and not give the head joint the necessary seal for good tone. We replace the cork when you bring it in.
I don't know if you said in the video I must've forgot, but would this work for nickel silver?
Isaac Navarro yes. The flute in the video is silver plated nickel
The aluminum container & Soda & hot water？
What about nickle flutes?
Will this process affect gold negatively?
I have 9k Aurumite Powell that has badly tarnished silver rings, posts and ribs, but don't want to damage the gold tubing.
Thanks! :)
I know this comment was posted a year ago but I think I have your answer. I've seen a lot of people concerned about this in the comment section and I think it's safe to say that it will damage a gold flute. I'd suggest maybe taking your flute to a music store or someplace where they could take off the tarnish for you.
+Sprinkles1107 RBLX I tried it with some old gold necklaces and it actually works great for gold too. But to be on the safe side i let my flute repair technician shine it up when I get an annual COA
WOW
Any tips for removing mold on my flute? Being used so extensively, it has grown mold around hr basbase of the keys.
A Rubbing alcohol and a cloth should do it. Be sure not to get any on the pads.
Micah Layne Thanks!
I like this idea but I feel like it would only work with the headjoint... the pads on the keys can’t really get wet... but it’s a great idea!
Captain Swan you haven’t seen my second video?
I have a chrome flute. would this experiment work on chrome as well?
I'm not sure about that. What does your flute repair technician do?
Is there a method I could do with the body
sure is. check out my other video.
Does the pan have to be aluminum?
Could it work with porcelain?
+The Tuxed Brine the aliminium is important to the chemical process. however, you can just put it in a container and add aliminium foil to the bottom making sure it makes contact with the metal.
can you use it for the body????
Lixy V: ua-cam.com/video/imya_T4RXWw/v-deo.html