Wooden Pedalboard is sticky

[musikfan]

John, you always have such great advice! You are the guru of the organ world. :->

[FDelGreco]

A couple of caveats. If you think that the finish is shellac, don't use anything with water on it as a white haze may form that is hard to remove. Also, don't use Pledge on shellac. It may damage the finish.

Frank

[jbird604]

I've cleaned up a good many nasty old pedalboards that have come into the shop from mildew-y old choir lofts or from an old house or out of somebody's garage. So far I've not had to resort to using anything corrosive or flammable or even very smelly.

After vacuuming and sweeping gently to remove debris that might be abrasive or gritty (and do damage when being wiped off), once I'm sure all the loose dirt and such is gone, I try cleaning with a slightly wet microfiber cloth. The microfibers will trap and remove dirt and stuff without scratching the surface. Rinsing the cloth when it gets dirty, I do this until it looks pretty clean. This may or may not work...

Now, water is not something you want left on a finished wood surface, as it will make spots and possibly even soak through a finish that's already sketchy. So the cloth must be SLIGHTLY wet, and you don't want to leave any water behind, so wipe again with a dry microfiber cloth.

Since water won't dissolve and cut oily gunk, you may need to try something a tad more aggressive. I'd recommend Murphy's Oil Soap, since it's an all-natural material that is specifically intended for cleaning wood. It has a vegetable oil base, so it can cut oily or sticky stains and residue, but without any petroleum stink, and without the hazardous vapors you get off many cleaners. Mix up a small amount as directed on the bottle (or get the pre-mixed).

Anyway, once it looks clean, I'll polish with some kind of preservative furniture product. As much as some people hate it, I find "Pledge" to be a suitable finishing product. It smells good, it leaves no residue, it shines up the wood and cleans up anything the water and Murphy's may have left behind. Just spray a generous amount on a fresh clean microfiber cloth and wipe it on vigorously, polishing until the wood feels dry and smooth.

As with many of my other homegrown remedies, YMMV, and somebody out there is going to totally disagree. Some folks are probably not satisfied until the pedals are waxed with paste wax and rubbed with a soft cloth to a luster. I agree that makes a lovely finish, I just don't like to spend that much time down on the floor or on my knees!

[Silken Path]

Pardon my pedantry again, but it's SC Johnson's Paste Wax, I think. SC Johnson is a local (to me), privately owned company. Johnson & Johnson is a publicly owned company somewhere out east.

Correct. Thank you.

[KC9UDX]

Pardon my pedantry again, but it's SC Johnson's Paste Wax, I think. SC Johnson is a local (to me), privately owned company. Johnson & Johnson is a publicly owned company somewhere out east.

[Silken Path]

Hehe - I actually did recently use naptha (Ronsonol lighter fluid) to clean up my 1967 Allen and it worked great - however, it evaporates toot sweet and is difficult to use for that reason.

Welcome to the forum, Paul. We've had some threads discussing naptha recently - apparently you can't easily purchase it as a consumer in California. Since I used the naptha, I've gotten a gallon of mineral spirits - it is labeled "100% mineral spirits" - to try next.

You'll find that that cleaning with either product actually creates a shine by itself, but it's a "wet look" shine. The naptha you don't even need to wipe off - it goes POOF all by itself. Anyway, you will have taken off any added protection that was already there, so you'll want to finish up with something protective. I'm using Johnson and Johnson Paste Wax - the ancient stuff - which is not as durable as some of the newer stuff, but it's appropriate for my Allen's generation.

I have the pedals yet to do. There's some mildew-like black spots on the part that stayed under the bench.

Again, the naptha will not hurt a lacquer finish as long as you don't go NUTS with the rubbing. (And if anybody asks my advice - which has actually happened a time or time in my life - I'd suggest getting some microfiber detailing clothes to remove the wax residue. You want to jump on it as soon as the sheen changes and becomes dull white. THEN it's easy to buff off.)

[KC9UDX]

But which mineral spirits? Naptha? :)

[toodles]

If the playing surfaces are finished (i.e. lacquer or varnish), then you could try mineral spirits. They should not damage the finish on the pedals and ought to remove any sticky residue. Use in a ventilated space.

[myorgan]

Paul,

Welcome to the Forum! I hope you continue to participate here.

Over the years on the Forum there have been several suggestions, but others have sworn by using Naptha as a means of cleaning up sticky surfaces on wood.

Michael

Hi, Any suggestions for cleaning the surface of wooden pedals? I don't want to create residue on the pedals which will cause more sticking. Anyone tried a wood cleaning product that worked? The soles of my shoes are not the problem, by the way. :->
Thank you, Paul