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| Dealing with Mold http://w-ww.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10102&t=1290 |
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| Author: | Mattia Valente [ Thu Mar 10, 2005 10:44 pm ] |
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So I'm busy re-stacking my wood to make space for the newly arrived Ed Dicks order (couple of Engelmann tops, 2 cuban mahogany sets, 2 Pau Ferro and a Coco set..), and I notice a few little black spots/streaks on the plain-jane madagascar rosewood set I have. Most just look kinda 'dirty' and black, fairly small, and don't seem to want to sand off very easily. This set's pretty much the only one I don't have good detailed photos of on arrival, unfortunately, so I can't tell if it was already there, but it all just 'darkened' (it was thickness sanded for me before shipping, so the colour's been changing gradually). I suspect it's just resin/burning from the sanding in this case, because it seems to follow a few grain lines. However, I've got a few black spots, more mold-like, of staining on some of the African mahogany neck blanks I've got, and I think it might well be tiny amounts of mold. And I really don't much like that idea, and don't want it spreading anywhere if it is. See, I've had mold issues in this room before, but they're sorted out now, thanks to some aggressive anti-mold treatments on the paintjobs (and successivle flaking thereof) and increased air circulation/me paying attention to the relative humidity situation, which mostly stays between about 43 and 60 percent. I've read something about a 5% solution of household bleach sprayed onto the wood, left for 5 minutes, and then..neutralized with something? Vinegar? How much? How effective is this amount of bleach likely to be, and more importantly, how seriously would it affect the wood colour? Not too deep to sand off? All my tops are perfectly, ditto all of the other wood I've got (I rotate it around every once in a while, give it a good looking over), and I want to keep it that way. Any other tips to help keep the mold out? Plastic tarp, or is that just asking for trouble by reducing air circulation? Anything else other than environmental control? Air filtration? I can try to get a few photos in later, if that'd be helpful. |
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| Author: | Don Williams [ Thu Mar 10, 2005 11:11 pm ] |
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Mattia, The #1 friend of mold is moisture. Get rid of that and you are half way there. Yes a mild bleach solution will kill most molds and mildew. Introducing a plastic tarp is a great way to trap moisture. Not such a good idea. You might want to consider making a "drying room", which is a closet you make where you leave a lightbulb or two running to keep the air temp up and the humidity down. Some silica gel packs in there would not be amiss if you have too much humidity. |
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| Author: | Bobc [ Fri Mar 11, 2005 12:22 am ] |
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Air movement is the key along with moisture control. A small fan will work wonders. |
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| Author: | Dickey [ Fri Mar 11, 2005 12:54 am ] |
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Keep your wood near the ceiling. I built shelving in my shop which attaches to the wall and hangs from the rafters. While this may not be practical for some, it works for me. Ceilings and attics are very dry. I know a local woodworker who ages / drys his wood spread in his attic. From all the electric work done over the years and attics are like deserts, dry and dusty. |
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| Author: | Brock Poling [ Fri Mar 11, 2005 3:33 am ] |
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Not that this is particularly on topic... but I use holly for white accents, binding, etc. You want to make sure you are buying kiln dried lumber if you get any of that. It molds like crazy. I am consistantly under 50% RH... |
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| Author: | Mattia Valente [ Fri Mar 11, 2005 4:13 am ] |
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Right, thanks! I'm in the attic, pretty much, and 2/3ds of my wood sits is up around the roof area. I don't have the space to build an actual drying room/cabinet for storing the wood; too much of it! Might be time for me to get some proper electric climate control and air purification, I suppose, if the fan doesn't 'fix' it.. Anyway, I didn't get a good pic of the tiny black possibly mold-like spots on the mahogany, but I've got two of the madacascar rosewood. It looks more like burning or oil/resin exudation to me, but second opinions are welcomed: http://www.xs4all.nl/~mvalente/guitarpics3/eddicks/madrose_c loseup.jpg http://www.xs4all.nl/~mvalente/guitarpics3/eddicks/madrose_c loseup2.jpg This is a closeup of one the cuban mahogany sides I just got, and this just looks like dirt or burning to me: http://www.xs4all.nl/~mvalente/guitarpics3/eddicks/cuban_clo seup.jpg Thoughts? |
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| Author: | JJ Donohue [ Sun Mar 13, 2005 9:35 am ] |
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Mattia...Can you scrape any of the black stuff off? If so, look at the residue under a microscope. I'm assuming as a medical student you have access to one. Mold spores should be recognizable. |
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| Author: | Mattia Valente [ Sun Mar 13, 2005 10:35 am ] |
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Good point. I'll have to see if I can annoy one of the lab folk enough to let me at one of the microscopes. Shouldn't be too hard... The more I look at it, though, the more it just looks like..dirt. |
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| Author: | EricKeller [ Sun Mar 13, 2005 5:24 pm ] |
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I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that's not mold |
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