How to clean a piano?

[Alde]

Does anybody know the best way to clean a polished baby grand piano to get rid of smudges, finger prints?  Also would you use the same to clean the keys?

Pledge?
Windex?
Water?
Soap?
Paper towel?
Rag?
Kleenex?

One last question, how does one get the dust that hides underneath the piano strings - unreachable by the vacuum cleaner?

Thanks

[pianodoc]

There are products made just for pianos.  Check with your technician.  Also, check with your technician about cleaning under the strings.  They should be able to vac/dust without the danger of scratching the soundboard.

[Floristan]

Less is best.  Products made specifically for pianos are safe.  Always avoid anything with silicone in it, as it can penetrate the surface and make the piano difficult to refinish in the future.

[anda]

for keys, i use cotton & sanitary alcohol (not dripping)

a (not so) funny story a friend (piano teacher) told me: one of her student's parents bought a second-hand old but very good piano that happened to have very dirty keys. against all advice from my friend, the mother decided she knows best when it comes to cleaning, so she used rivex spray (commonly used for washing windows), and sprayed tons on the keys. consequence: in a few hours, the keys' wood swallowed, and will not budge at all. they had to call the tuner to have all the keys replaced (which costed almost as much as the piano did in the first place) 

[alzado]

For a high-gloss black grand with polyester finish, I have finally come to use Pledge with a soft cloth. 

I did use a product called "Plush" that was recommended by the store and by the technician.  However, this lays down a wax film.  The piano looked great the first couple of years.  But recently, after owning the piano for about 17 years, I was most unhappy to behold a sort of dull, cloudiness all over the piano finish.  This "glop"looked dirty, and marred the appearance of the piano.  It turned out to be very difficult to remove, which is why I turned to Pledge.  Pledge seems to cut through gummy dirt very effectively.

What had happened was -- I think -- wax build-up.  Also, I believe some of the old wax was starting to break down -- oxidize, perhaps. 

One thing about Pledge is that it really does not lay down much of any film.  Leastwise, none that I can percieve.  Rather, it is best at removing the old wax -- or anything else.  It will also cut through and remove fingerprints and accumulated dust. 

The high gloss finish on the piano -- without any wax at all -- is quite clean looking and attractive, so I am not sure any "coating" type of polish like a wax is even appropriate.

Never spray Pledge directly on your piano.  Spray it sparingly on a soft cloth and then rub that  against the finished parts of the piano.  Keep working until you get all the old finish or old dirt completely off of the piano. 

I'm afraid I have no advice on how to clean keys.  I should also be frank in admitting that others contributing to this forum are going to have very different ideas about how to polish a high-gloss piano finish.

Good luck!

[ivrier]

We've heard of polishes for the body and vacuums to cleans the soundboard. How about using a Soundboard duster.

https://www.harmonyonline.com/soundboard-duster-p-180.html

Will this in anyway damage the board?

[gfiore]

 Never use Pledge or other polishes containing silicone. The misting has a habit of migrating, and if the solvents get around strings or tuning pins they can work their way into the pinblock which will eventually cause tuning instability, and dead bass strings.
 The best mixture to use for poly or satin lacquer is one cup of hot water mixed with one tablespoon of white vinegar. A clean soft cloth is dipped into the mixture and the piano is rubbed in straight lines until clean. The other product similar to the final polishing compounds as used in many factories is called McGuiar's Tech Wax available at many automotive supply stores.

[gerry]

When I bought my Bosey (high-gloss laquer), the dealer recommended Endust - works great as there's apparently not a lot of additives in it (spray it on the cloth - not on the piano!