Best way of cleaning strings....

[modernday]

I'm sure this topic has been discussed 10 trillion times, but I would like to know once and for all the best way of cleaning my strings. When I hear them getting dull I'll give them a nice 20 minute boil and wipe them down with alcohol. I used to wipe down my strings with alcohol while they were still on my bass, but when I realized that I was doing to the wood I immediatley stopped. And I heard that boiling your strings messes up the string tension.

I'm not really sure how I should go about cleaning my strings now, so how do all of you guys do it? I'm very curious.

[tappel]

You've basically covered all the basses. Personally, I just wipe down my strings frequently with a dry clean cloth. I've actually been using Carter's Cloth Diapers for years.
On my strings, that is.

Tom

[Trevorus]

on the strings, huh? is that before or after you've soiled them...

[kirbywrx]

Boil in boiling water for 5 minutes, then let them hang out to dry for about 2 hours, then wipe them down with a clean lint free cloth.

I also soak them in metho (metholayted [SP?] spirits) for about 12-15 hours, then let them hang dry for a few hours, then wipe again.

Ive been doing the latter method latley, so i cant tell you which way is the best

[modernday]

Nobody else uses alcohol?

[20db pad]

I'm an alcohol user - for strings only, though

This is a great method from the annals of TB history by MChildree

I've been using this method for years and it works like a charm if you need to clean strings instead of replacing them. All this stuff can be had cheaply from your local Lowe's or Home Depot.

Get a piece of PVC pipe about 3/4" in diameter, just about the same length as a new string, wrappings and all....cap one end of it, leave the other end open (they make caps...you'll find them in the same area as other PVC fittings). Cut the pipe so that the length so that when you put the straightened strings into the pipe, the top of the pipe just reaches where the wrappings on the strings start. Get some Denatured Alcohol, which is found in quart-size cans in the paint section. With the strings uncoiled and standing in the pipe, fill the pipe to just below the top. The idea is that only the areas touched by your hands are submerged in the alcohol. Stand this up in a corner somewhere out of the way.

A couple hour's soak will make your strings good as new....much cleaner and better sounding than boiling. Your wraps won't get wet and deteriorate. When you're done, pour the alcohol from the pipe back into the can for later use. Works like a charm. Works especially well if you're a touring musician...you can just carry the can and pipe with you. This saved me major-league $$ on the road. I could keep a set of strings sounding good for literally years.

Some cautions: This stuff won't really irritate your skin or anything, but it's poisonous so DON'T DRINK IT! (Do I really have to even say that?). It's also flammable, so keep it away from open flame. In short, treat it like any other household chemical...with common sense.

[modernday]

Alright! now we're talking! I assume I'd have to remove my strings from my bass to do this?

[20db pad]

Originally posted by modernday
Alright! now we're talking! I assume I'd have to remove my strings from my bass to do this?

They gotta come off. I also use the denatured alcohol with a little rag to wipe off the strings after playing gigs during the hot and humid months.

IME, Denatured alcohol is better for string cleaning than rubbing alcohol. The rubbing alcohol has water in it, and denatured doesn't. Makes for a quicker drying time.

[Planet Boulder]

I am an avid user of the method cited by 20db above (in fact, I have a set soaking right now as I type this) and I can swear by this method. I am finding that I am having to replace my strings less and less, which is REALLY good if you have a lot of basses!

I have 9 basses (not a lot by TB standards) and i routinely play 8 of them (I can only hope that my P-Bass will one day forgive me). This method of cleaning saves me a boatload of bread!

Your strings will last a long time if you clean them pretty regularly and ESPECIALLY if they are stainless steel.

Can't thank MChildree enough for originally posting that method.

Oh, and I ALWAYS(!) wipe down my strings after touching them, even if I only touch them for a minute. Sure, I get strange looks from g**tarists who only need plunk down 6 bones for a new set, but SCREW 'EM!!!!

[embellisher]

mchildree's method is the way to go. Boiling ruins the strings. So does rubbing alcohol, although not as quickly as boiling. Denatured alcohol does not damage the strings, and cleans them very well.

I have a set of Dean Markley SR2000's on my Cirrus 6, and every two months I soak them overnight. They still have enough highs to shatter glass, and drive my guitarist crazy.

[PhatBasstard]

This is a paste of a post I made in a similar thread some time ago. It's a little long but not as complicated as it first looks and it really works amazingly:

I use D'Addario XL70 sets. I like the sound of new (clean) roundwound strings. I change my strings every couple of days to a week but I only go through about 4 or 5 sets a year. Here's how it works:

I buy 4 or 5 sets at a time. When a set is dirty (dead) I replace them with a clean set and roll the dead set back up like they are when they are new.

When I get the last clean set on the bass, I take the dead sets and set them around the spindle (the part that turns back and forth) of a washing machine and run it through the Hot cycle. Make sure they rest at least half way down and the water level is set to full. No soap is needed but I find adding some Simple Green gets them extra zingy.

When they are done I take them out and lay them in the Sun so they get completely dry as to prevent corrosion (You can use a hair dryer or even an oven at 200 for about 30 minutes if there is no Sun available).

The adgitating water gets inside the windings and flushes the gunk out and then the spin cycle pulls all that dirty water out (just like clothing).

The only things that may make this process difficult is:
1. Your bass bridge is not slotted (quick release).
2. You use taper or exposed core strings (the windings on the B & E may come loose). However, this is what I used to do when I used exposed cores: When they are new put a dab of solder right where the winding ends and the core begins so as to fuse them together (Note: DO NOT do this with the strings ON the bass).

I've been using this string washing technique for about 17 years and it has never let me down (or damaged a string or washing machine). Strings actually start to sound cleaner then when they are new. I eventually replace the strings (after a year or more/I typicaly play 4 hours a night, 5-7 nights/week) when the frets start to wear down the strings (now THERES a switch) and/or the harmonics don't ring true anymore.

Every Bassist I have showed this to, over the years, has practically offered to name one of their children after me after trying it.

[modernday]

Interesting..... thanks a lot for the info guys.

[the ombudsman]

Wow, you guys are patient... When the strings are removed from my bass, they go directly to thrash... But I only have one bass, and I change my strings every 2-3 months.

[PhatBasstard]

Originally posted by the ombudsman
I only have one bass, and I change my strings every 2-3 months.

Well, either you are extremely lucky that your hands don't emit the sweat and oils that most people's do....or you like that real old school tone.

Mark King said in an interview that he wants to change strings after using them for only 20 minutes.

[the ombudsman]

Originally posted by PhatBasstard
Well, either you are extremely lucky that your hands don't emit the sweat and oils that most people's do....or you like that real old school tone.

Actually, I'd change them every week or two, but I'm too lazy...

[WillPlay4Food]

Wow, I guess I don't play as much as you guys do. I put on a new set of strings last Summer and they haven't been taken off yet.

I only play like an hour per day on average, and I'm not gigging so I guess I'm not putting the strings through major use.

How would I know if the strings are "dead"? They're definitely not as "zingy" as they were when I first put them on, but they still resonate and stay in tune so I figure they're still OK.

[the ombudsman]

Originally posted by WillPlay4Food
How would I know if the strings are "dead"?

Your strings are dead when they begin to sound like flatwounds.

[KiukiuBassist]

Originally posted by the ombudsman


Your strings are dead when they begin to sound like flatwounds.

How does a flatwound sounds like?!?! Don't have em in my country. Only roundwound nickel here...

[F*#$NA4]

I notice that after cleaning the strings well, via boiling and whatnot, that itis clutch to rotate the strings 180 degrees from how they were originally put on the first time. You guys have probably noticed, while your used strings are off your bass that you can see wear marks on the strings where the string hit the fret, almost causing the string to become flatwound-esque, leading to a lack of brightness. So I say flip the strings around so that there is fresh contact with the strings and the fretboard and the worn out part of the strings are facing out.

[the ombudsman]

Originally posted by KiukiuBassist
How does a flatwound sounds like?!?! Don't have em in my country. Only roundwound nickel here...

Flatwounds sound like, err... Dead roundwounds. *hides*
They have less harmonics, but some people like them for their "thump", plus they are less noisy than rounds.