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Mold On Guitar

zoommutt

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Nov 15, 2003
Messages
1,448
I tried using search,but did not come up with any help.How do you get mold off of a goldtop and it's rosewood neck?I'm very sad.HELP!!!


Thanks :wah :dang :fall
 

zoommutt

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Nov 15, 2003
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1,448
Can I use Clorox Disinfecting wipes on body and maybe fret board?

Thanks
 

wild.joz

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Mar 19, 2008
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1,934
Get yourself a bottle of zippo lighter fluid, fill up your lighter, flick a cigarette, then put some lighter fluid on a clean rag, rub mold off using a clean side of the rag each time, treat fretboard with Fret Doctor (for example), light another cigarette, enjoy. :)
 

jwalker

Les Paul Forum Sponsor
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Dec 10, 2004
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2,592
Exposure to UV light for about 48 hours non stop will probably do the job. You will need a tanning bed or a box with several UV bulbs in it. I have 52'/57' conversion that stank of mildew. I tried Listerine, baking soda and an ozone chamber. The only thing that totally knocked out the mildew was UV light. I have a UV drying box for violin varnish that I made so it was easy for me to do. Strip all the parts off the guitar also. I also used steam on some of the plastic parts.

Stains on the finish will probably never go away but you can kill the small.

Forget about the case. If it has mold in it you will never get it out and if you put the guitar in the case it will infect it all over again.
 

Al Russo

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Joined
Apr 22, 2002
Messages
585
mold is easily removed w/ a blend of bleach and water...i realize that water and unfinished wood isn't an ideal combo..but u apply it lightly and wait a minute and watch the mold disappear then apply some oil to the rosewood, which should push any water out and the oil will seal out any remaining moisture....hey...how many people sweat all over their fretboards..lol
 

zoommutt

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Nov 15, 2003
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I tried the lighter fluid and that is getting alittle of it off.Al,can I try bleach and water on the gold top?Haven't started on fret board yet.Sad about the case...have had guitar for 23 years.I fuked up not using dehumidifer:dang
 

Al Russo

Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2002
Messages
585
I tried the lighter fluid and that is getting alittle of it off.Al,can I try bleach and water on the gold top?Haven't started on fret board yet.Sad about the case...have had guitar for 23 years.I fuked up not using dehumidifer:dang

not sure about using it on the gold top...u can drop a line to gibson and ask them. If the finish was urethane it probably wouldn't hurt. Lacquer is an entirely differnt animal. U might want to try to spray the bleach very lightly on a piece of cloth and wipe it on an inconspicuous area such as the pup route..this way if it damages the finish, no harm done in a pup route.. R u sure it's mold on the gold finish though?..
 

Hammertone

Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2002
Messages
407
Skip the bleach, the tanning bed and the rest.
Spray/wipe it down with good old white vinegar - the kind you ingest in salads.
It's acetic acid, and it kills @80% of molds out there.

It smells like .... vinegar, but the smell disappears quickly.
I'd follow that up a few hours later with a cloth dampened with water, then I'd leave the guitar in direct sunlight for awhile, another thing that mold does not like.
 
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zoommutt

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Nov 15, 2003
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1,448
Wow!The white vinager took all the mold off the gold top and the back.Now to try on fret board .Thanks again.
 

bunkla

New member
Joined
Apr 26, 2015
Messages
2
Exposure to UV light for about 48 hours non stop will probably do the job. You will need a tanning bed or a box with several UV bulbs in it. I have 52'/57' conversion that stank of mildew. I tried Listerine, baking soda and an ozone chamber. The only thing that totally knocked out the mildew was UV light. I have a UV drying box for violin varnish that I made so it was easy for me to do. Strip all the parts off the guitar also. I also used steam on some of the plastic parts.

Stains on the finish will probably never go away but you can kill the small.

Forget about the case. If it has mold in it you will never get it out and if you put the guitar in the case it will infect it all over again.

howdy j.. i once kept an sg in a gretsch case down in the funky dirt floor basement and man that case got infected for real i was dismayed.
so what i did was put patchouly oil in the accessory compartment to mask the smell and it worked beautifully, coincidentally over the years the patchouly fragrance lingered but the mold smell was gone for sure. patchouly is inherintly antiseptic and antimicrobial so that is how it worked.
:) some people abhor the patchouly fragrance but i love it,smells like flowers and dirt.

now having hit the lottery by garbage picking a guild t100 filled with mouse poop and an evil mold smell i started by wiping it down with white vinegar and a cottonball with patchouly oil inside the f hole, a work in progress . also thinking of spraying a shot of ozium air sanitizer inside and covering the f holes.
 
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bunkla

New member
Joined
Apr 26, 2015
Messages
2
I tried the lighter fluid and that is getting alittle of it off.Al,can I try bleach and water on the gold top?Haven't started on fret board yet.Sad about the case...have had guitar for 23 years.I fuked up not using dehumidifer:dang

zoom i put patchouly oil in the accessory compartment of a moldy case and it killed the mold smell over time . not a lost cause/case
 

zoommutt

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Joined
Nov 15, 2003
Messages
1,448
I used the vinegar on the guitar and it got all the mold off, and it's still off 3 years later. For the case I used Fra breeze and put it outside in the sun and air and I think it worked. This Spring I think I'll put all my cases out again with Fra breeze.I like the smell of it ,but the patchouly I will definitely think about if they still smell. Thanks bunkla !
 

rajiam

New member
Joined
Sep 26, 2020
Messages
4
I used the vinegar on the guitar and it got all the mold off, and it's still off 3 years later. For the case I used Fra breeze and put it outside in the sun and air and I think it worked. This Spring I think I'll put all my cases out again with Fra breeze.I like the smell of it ,but the patchouly I will definitely think about if they still smell. Thanks bunkla !


Hi,
zoommutt I have the same problem here. But only on the rosewood fingerboard. Did you apply white vinegar on the fingerboard too? how did it work? Anybody else has the same experience? What about lighter fluid? Can you guys please answer.:dang:dang:dang

Thanks
 
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