OK to rinse my whistle?

Tril Bluejacket · Post by **Tril Bluejacket** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 9:38 am

I'm a beginner and have a very inexpensive Clarke Sweetone high D. Lately I've noticed that the tone holes feel sticky on my fingers when I play, and I'm sure it's caused from saliva buildup inside the whistle. (ewwww).

I've been blowing through it often with the fipple hole covered to clear the moisture out, but moisture collects inside it anyway. I've tried wiping the surface of the whistle with a damp cloth, but that hasn't helped much with the stickiness.

Would it be okay to hold the whistle under a faucet and run warm water through it if I dried it afterwards with a hairdryer set on air dry? I want to eliminate the stickiness problem, but I sure don't want to chance ruining the whistle, at least not until I can get another one.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Black Mage · Post by **Black Mage** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 9:43 am

It would be fine to give it a wash. I usually rinse my whistles out every few plays, just to keep them clean at playing at their best. The Sweetone is also plastic and metal, so it's pretty resiliant to washing (so long as you don't leave it in the water for hours on end). The only whistles that I'd be concerned to wash would be wooden whistles.

You could also use a mild detergent to wash you whistle. Just don't use scalding hot water; someting just about or slightly above body temp is good.

Tril Bluejacket · Post by **Tril Bluejacket** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 9:46 am

Black Mage, thanks very much! Now off I go to wash my whistle.

Cynth · Post by **Cynth** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 10:34 am

Hi Tril Bluejacket---I'm really just reiterating what Black Mage said. And also saying welcome to the forums.

Some people find that rinsing with soapy water after playing actually helps prevent saliva from building up in the mouthpiece. I know you haven't mentioned this as a problem.

The maker of my whistle (metal) says to drip soapy water (dish detergent) into the mouthpiece after you get done playing, blow out the excess, and then just let it air dry. The soap is apparently an anti-surfactant and allows the saliva to flow down the mouthpiece rather that collect there. I think this helps keep gunk from building up in the mouthpiece too. That gunk can really start to affect how the whistle sounds. So, however you do it, washing a metal whistle is a good idea I think. I don't know that you really need to dry it with a hair dryer, but I'm sure that is fine. Main thing, I think, is not to close it up in a container that moisture can't escape from while it is still wet.

My mom came from a little town (pop. 900) in eastern Nebraska called Newman Grove. I think it is sort of close to Norfolk.

crookedtune · Post by **crookedtune** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 11:09 am

Good suggestions, and I've also had good results with a diluted solution of dish detergent -- especially in my Hoover whitecap, which tends to clog more than my other whistles.

Another suggestion is to swab the whistles to remove moisture. I cut a T-shirt into about 100 two-inch strips, which I keep in a tin. I always keep a clean strip on a plastic rod (recorder-cleaning rod, actually). After whistling, I blow out the moisture, and run the swab through it quickly. This prevents gunk buildup. This is ESPECIALLY important to do if you start playing wooden whistles. You can also use the swabs to oil the wooden whistle.

Welcome to the forum!

Tril Bluejacket · Post by **Tril Bluejacket** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 5:23 pm

Cynth and crookedtune, thank you both for your suggestions. I appreciate them and will use them too. Also, thank you for the welcome.

Immediately after reading Black Mage's suggestions, I washed my whistle. Then, because the hair dryer was busy on my daughter's hair, I gave the whistle a few shakes and let it air dry propped on a towel for a while. When I played it, I knew right away that the stickiness was gone. I was amazed at how much better the whistle sounded, and how easy it was to lift my fingers from the tone holes.

I will print your responses and use your tips also. I greatly appreciate your help.

(On Edit) Cynth, I forgot to add that although I've never heard of the little town you mentioned, I'm not a native Nebraskan. I recently moved here from Wyoming. I live in a small college town in the Nebraska panhandle. It's pretty here with lots of pine trees about, and I like it.

CRC · Post by **CRC** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 5:58 pm

I have a sweetone d that I rinsed and let air dry several times except mine is badly rusted. But,oh well,probably my fault by doing something wrong.

Cynth · Post by **Cynth** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 8:10 pm

CRC wrote:I have a sweetone d that I rinsed and let air dry several times except mine is badly rusted. But,oh well,probably my fault by doing something wrong.

Oh dear, I should add that my whistle is made of brass. I am not knowledgeable about the other types of metals used for making whistles and rusting problems. I just have this one metal whistle. So sounds like drying it with a hair dryer might be good if CRC has had rust problems. Don't want to give someone a bum steer!

Tweeto · Post by **Tweeto** » Sun Jun 18, 2006 12:13 am

The Sweetone is tin, which probably oxidizes (rusts) MUCH easier than brass does.

It’s safe to rinse your whistle out, just don’t rince on it, else you might have much worse problems than rust

Tril Bluejacket · Post by **Tril Bluejacket** » Sun Jun 18, 2006 2:59 pm

Thanks for your input, CRC and Tweeto.

I'd have thought saliva would be just as hard on a whistle as water would...maybe even harder. Hmmm...very interesting!