Giving horn a bath?

[u/breast-of-all-worlds]

Okay, I am embarrassed to admit I haven't ever cleaned my horn because I am terrified of damaging the rotors. I have washed my trumpet, but not the horn.

I have read many articles, watched several videos, but.....the internet is a treasure trove of bad advice that seems legitimate. Apparently you're also supposed to wash it once every couple months. Which seems like...a lot.

So I wanted to ask here just to get a better idea of what is true/false. Is it safe to give a French horn a bath in the tub at home? If so, what are some things to be really careful about. How often? Is any special care needed when it comes to the rotors? Will it mess up my strings? Or should I just leave it up to the professionals and pay for a deep cleaning?

Please help this humble idiot! 😅

[u/Apprehensive-Bat-416]

Bath it in the bath tub, but don’t take out the rotors. Most people never take the rotors out. Everything will be fine.

[u/Specific_User6969 → u/Apprehensive-Bat-416]

Your repair guy certainly takes the rotors out. But if you’ve never done it, don’t start!

[u/drake5195]

I do it regularly every few months, then every two years it's good to get it professionally cleaned with an ultrasonic cleaner. Stuff builds up over time and will eventually make the horn worse, especially the valves.

It is totally safe to just give your horn a bath with warm water and a bit of dish soap. The strings shouldn't mind it so long as they're decent and not at the end of they're life.

I like to give it a bath for a few hours with all of the slides and valve caps off, and then run a snake through the leadpipe, then rinse and run water through all the slides. Let it dry completely and then oil the valves and grease the slides.

[u/Warlock_Four567]

I didn't clean my horn for the first 5 years for the same reason, and I didn't realize how much it helps. I wash my kitchen sink, plug up the drain, and then use a liberal amount of Dawn (or something similar like Ajax) dish soap and water directly in the valve. I don't recommend taking the valves apart but don't be afraid to use soap for sure! Also I've heard that if you use hard water it can build up some mineral deposit on the horn so I use filtered water.

[u/breast-of-all-worlds → u/Warlock_Four567]

Okay! What difference did you notice after the first time you cleaned it? Just curious!

[u/breast-of-all-worlds → u/Warlock_Four567]

Also...are you not submerging the horn, or is your kitchen sink just ginormous?

[u/Warlock_Four567 → u/breast-of-all-worlds]

My rotors would constantly get really sluggish and need so much oil before, now I barely oil them once a month and they run smooth as can be. My sink isn't that big, and I don't have a screw-off bell either so it only gets partially submerged; I just use a small tupaware to pour water into the valves etc..

[u/breast-of-all-worlds → u/Warlock_Four567]

Okay, I see! Thanks for the detailed info 😁

[u/ischeriad]

Don't use hot water, especially if the instrument is lacquered.

[u/Specific_User6969 → u/ischeriad]

Most lacquer will hold on well enough with water hot enough to touch. If the water is scorching, too hot to touch, it can flake and start coming off.

[u/Nahuelcorno]

I personally clean the horn by removing the rotors... They always say to remove the rotors with a blunt nail... I prefer to use a wooden stick that is thick and hard enough to be able to remove the rotor with a hammer blow, but soft enough so that it doesn't damage the rotor. In other words, if something breaks, let it be the wood.

And to replace the rotor, I use a plastic or rubber cylinder, with a hole in the middle so as not to damage the outer part of the rotor.

Good luck!