How do I clean the keys???

[persona]

I'm in a bit of a problem here: the other day I came back from playing fussball with my hands very sweaty (to top it all, it was other poeple's sweat, since my hands hardly ever do), and went straight to the piano (which is something I had to learn not to do the hard way). I think you must all know where this story is leading: the keys became really sticky, to the piont where it truly affected my playing. So today I decided to clean the keys with alcohol and a soft tissue which, according to what I read here, would solve the problem. No major damage was done to the keys, and they're not sticky anymore, but instead, they feel very rough now. It's not impossible to play this way, but uncomfortable indeed.

Has this happened to anyone? What should I try next?

[thalberg]

Ha.  Yes, the exact same thing happened to me.  I hated that feeling!!  I don't know what to tell you to try next.  I think you'll just have to play the piano till the natural oils from your fingers make it feel normal again. 

To clean it next time, I recommend a small, small drop of dish soap in a bottle of water applied with a soft cloth.  Much milder

[slobone]

I just use plain water and a whole lot of paper towels. Takes a lot of elbow grease when they're really sticky.

Make sure you get the sides of the black keys and even down below, the unvarnished part of the black keys below the level of the keyboard.