Flute Care
Our flutes have a durable synthetic finish and only require wiping with a soft dry cloth. If you wish to sanitize the mouthpiece area, mild sanitizing solutions such as alcohol wipes or musical instrument sanitizer can be used.
Water is the enemy of a wooden flute. While most of us don’t play in the shower or the rain, most water gets into a flute through the breath. The moisture in the breath condenses inside the flute and after a time can cause the flute to change tone and eventually stop playing. This is called “wetting out”. Place a tissue lightly over the sound hole at the end of the bird and blow vigorously into the mouthpiece to remove some of he moisture. You can also remove some of the moisture by firmly grasping the flute and fetish and vigorously swinging your arm in an arc towards the ground to force the water out through the mouthpiece. Even if you don’t play long enough to experience wetting out, moisture starts to accumulate in the mouthpiece and SAC areas of the flute and over time can penetrate the coatings and start to cause the wood to swell and possibly crack.
You should use the techniques mentioned above to clear out as much water as possible before storage.
In addition, I like to periodically relax the ties and slide the bird back far enough to expose both the TSH and the SAC exit hole to allow drying of the internals of the flute. (Overnight is usually enough).
Heat can also damage a flute. Store your flute in a cool dry place like any fine musical instrument. Do not leave it in a car on a hot summer day or in the direct sun when not playing. Sudden temperature and humidity changes can crack the body and excessive heat will weaken the glues used to assemble the flute.
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