Bathing your strings

[Five or Six]

Boiling or soaking is old school and doesn't last long. I don't know how long you've been playing but, it pays to think ahead and keep an extra set around. Patience weed hopper!

 

[Gilmourisgod]

I used to boil them, but just soaking them in denatured alcohol works just as well, and it evaporates away in a couple minutes. As others said, it yields only a temporary improvement, but it could get you that "new string" sound for a gig anyway.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

Do you guys clean your strings? I know some people use cleaners. Others wipe them down. But do you guys submerge them? Have you found a best way or best solution to out them in?

My gc is out of my strings so I've been having to order strings and it sucks waiting.

I got desperate and gave my strings a bath in plain ole hot water, then put them on the bass while still wet and used the "pop the sh+t" out of them method to knock the moisture and debris from between the windings.

It worked pretty darn good. I don't know how long it will last , but it definitely helped a ton.

Trying to see if there is something better out there?

GHS fast fret is a good product to use for cleaning strings

 

[dune]

When I was gigging full-time, I washed my strings daily to get all the sweat, smoke residue, etc. off of them. Just ran them under hot water and very gently scrubbed them with a washcloth and soap (usually some kind of deodorant soap for the suds). Dried them with a towel and put them back on. Definitely better with a quick-release bridge (Kahler in my case).

 

[BismarckHerring]

No resurrected strings sound like fresh new strings. Save on other things (eg, Starbucks coffee) and use fresh ones when necessary.

This is true, but some of us prefer the sound of strings that have been broken in over the sound of new ones. I use the ‘soak in alcohol’ method when my strings start to sound dead, and it brings back that broken-in sound that I like (I use nickel plated rounds).

 

[john_g]

I built a tube out of 1” pvc pipe. Glue the cap on the bottom. The top is the same slip cap but not glued. Fill it with denatured alcohol. Not rubbing alcohol. Denatured, get it in a can from the hardware store.

A couple pieces of Velcro on the tube and a shelving rack system to hold the tube upright. Or lean it in a corner, just try to keep it vertical so the alcohol doesn’t leak out.

Pop the whole set of strings in there, cap it, and leave ‘em until you remember them. A set can sit in there for months, but a day will do it. Pull em out, wipe em off and restring.

You could use a Tupperware as well.

It helps to put a sticky note on the tube so you remember the what strings and what bass they came off.

Old school and done in 15 minutes, boil the set in a pot of water for 5-10 minutes, wipe them off and restring. Expect to break strings after a couple times. Use an old pot you won’t want to cook food in again.

Microwaving just doesn’t work at all, sparks fly.

If you are reusing sets with any of these methods, keep cleaned spares in your case or gig bag. Old strings will break.

I too built the PVC tube with denatured alcohol years ago. I use it all the time. Just took a set out of it last night and they sound new. When I was a kid i used to boil them. Worked as well but was more work obviously.

 

[JazznFunk]

Dr. Stringfellow's cleaner and lubricant. The only thing I've used on my strings since 1997. I never boil strings, though I tried it once when I was in high school. It doesn't do anything beneficial to my ears, but YMMV. Kind of sounded like a vague approximation of 'new strings' but they never quite felt or sounded the same. Wipe down after each play with this stuff and your strings will last quite a while.

 

[covermego]

I like to clean my strings when the dinner menu calls for BBQ Chicken; I make a nice marinade out of liquid smoke, soy sauce, garlic and onion powder, BBQ sauce and a good amount of vinegar. I find the solution works great for both a marinade and a string cleaner. Of course, I wind the strings up and put them in a gallon ziploc storage bag, along with the chicken pieces. Now the wife and I marinate the legs, wings and thighs separately from the breast meat.....never in the same freezer bag. Anywayyyyyy, I marinate for at least a day. When it's time to throw them on the BBQ, I do it all at once; chicken AND strings. I baste the chicken with marinade leftover, but the strings get no additional marinade. When the chicken reaches a safe temperature of 180f, I remove them, along with the strings. I let them cool as we eat dinner, then take the strings out front and knock the marinade residue off on the sidewalk. I spray the remaining char off with our garden hose, fire up the compressor and blow them off until dry. It just works for me and playing a gig is a joy, especially when I start to sweat a bit.... I love the sound.....and sublime BBQ aroma while playing. Let's Eat!!!

 

[IPA]

Even in the leanest times (and I'm talking dead broke), I could budget for new strings.

Yeah, spending time washing strings is not something that ever seems worth it to me. Not a level of frugality I want to entertain.

 

[MynameisMe]

You only have one bass? You're obviously not doing TalkBass right!

 

[Dlew919]

Boiling strings. I’ve done it many times. The improvement is short lived but it does work.

I’ve read some well known bass player never changed his strings. This guy is a giant in the business too.

With the price of bass strings I try to get max usage out of them. When they’re new and brighter I think “hey that’s kinda cool”, as they age and get dull I think “hey that’s kinda cool too” lol

James Jamerson - he said the funk was in the gunk. Apparently made a tech dig the old strings out of the bin and put them back on his bass…

 

[groovaholic]

I built a tube out of 1” pvc pipe. Glue the cap on the bottom. The top is the same slip cap but not glued. Fill it with denatured alcohol. Not rubbing alcohol. Denatured, get it in a can from the hardware store.

This is pretty much exactly what I do & this method has let me use strings as long as a YEAR with good tone and playability.
They don't come out of the alcohol sounding new; they sound like strings that have been played in - bright, but without that raspy metallic top end, and they're more stable and hold their tuning better than new strings do.

Acetone would be even better than denatured alcohol for removing the oils, but acetone would break down the PVC pipe.
If you have pure acetone (not nail polish remover which has a bunch of additives) just put it on a rag and pull the strings through that.

Boiling in water will refresh your strings short term, but boiled strings end up deader than a doornail after a week or so - it's why I abandoned boiling and made the PVC tube setup like @singlemalt described.

 

[Dlew919]

Just for any commonwealth reader - denatured alcohol is known as methylated spirits. Excellent advice. Thanks!

 

[Killing Floor]

I’ve done many weird things in my life but I have never made tea from my sweaty bass strings. Just don’t.

 

[Aloe]

 

[buldog5151bass]

Best thing to do is wipe down your strings (and bass) with a dry soft cloth after every time you play iy, to keep @-"%#@ from building up.

 

[fhm555]

No boiling, or other revival method. I always have a set of new strings in the case with my bass, and two or three at home in my bass maintenance kit. When I get down to one set in my kit I buy more.

 

[BaltBass5]

I change my strings every 3 playing hours....More frequently in the Summer.

 

[el murdoque]

Maybe it is a good idea to look for one of those "What do you do to kill your flatwounds quicker" threads and do the opposite?

I've seen a guy taking his strings off the bass and then use them as a whip to bash some tiled floor.
He claimed this knocks the gunk out from where it sits between the windings - and the bass sounded fresher afterwards.

 

[Thumpin6string]

I use a microfiber cloth and wipe off the strings after I play. My rounds usually last close to a year. At the prices of 6 string sets, I'm happy to take the time to wipe them down.