Musty Case

[richardp69]

So, awhile back I picked up an older 1975 F 30. It's in really nice shape, has no neck angle issues and plenty of saddle. The seller said it hadn't been played in years and had just sat in its case for a long, long time.

The case itself has a real noticeable musty smell. The guitar, not so much, but a bit. The guitar has been out of the case and hanging on one of my walls for 6 months or so now. Still a bit of musty smell but nothing I can't deal with.

The case though, is another story. Still has that musty smell in spades. I've tried the Ozium and Hog Wash solutions. I've also kept the case outside all winter on my covered deck thinking the cold weather might help solve the problem. Then, when the weather improved I started placing it on the bed of my truck in direct sun throughout the day and then taking it in at night.

A delivery guy suggested putting charcoal briquettes inside the case to absorb the odor. I just started that yesterday so too soon to expect a huge difference. I think there may not be a great solution except possibly time but we'll see. if any of you have any other suggestions, let's hear them.

 

[GGJaguar]

The open case in sunlight has worked pretty well for me, but does not 100% get all the odor out. Since airing and sunlight are not doing the trick you can try sprinkling baking soda all over the interior surfaces, then close the lid for a few days and vacuum it out. I've done that, too. It helps, but is still not 100%. Good luck with the deodorizing!

 

[Rich Cohen]

I second Jaguar's suggestions. I dealt with such a case and an affected guitar. After many months of direct sun exposure during the summer, plus "baths" of backing soda, the case began to give up its odor. The guitar hung on my wall for a long time, and has now given up its odor too. So, there is most probably a good chance that yours will behave similarly. Just be patient. Alternatively, you can get another case, either a used one or a new one. However, I wouldn't store it in the "new" case until the odor leaves the guitar itself. All, no-brainer type strategies.

 

[Guildedagain]

Musty cases welcome in this house, it's just old guitar smell and smells ten times better than my neighbors Forester that's has two mutts cooped up in it on their trips to town. I walk over to get groceries they got us out of their car after they come home, and it knocks me out when I open the door. Their house smells the same. Musty smells like antiques to me.

What I can't stand on anything I receive off the net; The toxic smell of Febreze, Tide pods and drier sheets, and tobacco.

Fresh air and sunshine will get rid of most odors, except the ones in drier sheets with "fresh lock". The stuff is so pernicious that I've had a plaid shirt I bought off the internet completely fade on the clothes line, and it still stunk to high heaven. Can't be washed out, and lookout, because it will make the rest of your laundry smell the same, unreal. Thx Procter & Gamble. Better living through chemistry my foot. Just mostly cancer.

 

[Rich Cohen]

Musty cases welcome in this house, it's just old guitar smell and smells ten times better than my neighbors Forester that's has two mutts cooped up in it on their trips to town. I walk over to get groceries they got us out of their car after they come home, and it knocks me out when I open the door. Their house smells the same. Musty smells like antiques to me.

What I can't stand on anything I receive off the net; The toxic smell of Febreze, Tide pods and drier sheets, and tobacco.

Fresh air and sunshine will get rid of most odors, except the ones in drier sheets with "fresh lock". The stuff is so pernicious that I've had a plaid shirt I bought off the internet completely fade on the clothes line, and it still stunk to high heaven. Can't be washed out, and lookout, because it will make the rest of your laundry smell the same, unreal. Thx Procter & Gamble. Better living through chemistry my foot. Just mostly cancer.

I know what you're talking about regarding the doggy musty smell. I don't get it. We have two dogs, and there ain't no smell in our house from the dogs...maybe from cooking delicious Indian food. My wife is an excellent cook...myself okay when I'm allowed to cook! Anyway, it might have something to do with the type of dog it is. Our dogs are non-shedding and so-called 'hypoallergenic" types.

 

[richardp69]

Musty cases welcome in this house, it's just old guitar smell and smells ten times better than my neighbors Forester that's has two mutts cooped up in it on their trips to town. I walk over to get groceries they got us out of their car after they come home, and it knocks me out when I open the door. Their house smells the same. Musty smells like antiques to me.

What I can't stand on anything I receive off the net; The toxic smell of Febreze, Tide pods and drier sheets, and tobacco.

Fresh air and sunshine will get rid of most odors, except the ones in drier sheets with "fresh lock". The stuff is so pernicious that I've had a plaid shirt I bought off the internet completely fade on the clothes line, and it still stunk to high heaven. Can't be washed out, and lookout, because it will make the rest of your laundry smell the same, unreal. Thx Procter & Gamble. Better living through chemistry my foot. Just mostly cancer.

Well, my dogs smell like dogs and I like that a lot. It's what they're supposed to smell like. I can put up with a lot but I just do not like the musty smell on my guitars or cases. Others might and that's perfectly fine, but I just don't.

 

[chazmo]

Yeah, Richard, good luck with the suggestions. You've tried the tricks I've heard of. I'm a little surprised that direct sun hasn't helped enough. I do like the baking soda suggestion, but I haven't tried that. At this point, I'd just get another case for the guitar and store it in that, or better yet keep it on a stand. What I found in most cases is that the guitar wouldn't stop stinking until I kept it away from whatever smelly case it came in.

Again, good luck.

 

[ruedi]

Yeah, dogs and their smell.... In my experience, not all breeds smell the same. My dog smells only when wet... And nutrition has an influence I guess.

As for the guitar case: You can get rid of a lot of smells with coffee powder, which is very smell absorbant. Maybe you can try this when the baking soda does not show sufficient effect (it should do the job though)... Good luck!

 

[GardMan]

Charcoal briquettes MIGHT work (and would be cheaper), but I used a week of summer sunshine (case open), followed by a several months with a (old, discardable) sock filled with granulated activated charcoal used for aquarium filters PLUS a box of baking soda closed in the case of my DV-73 for a few months. The musty/smoky smell is almost unnoticeable now.

 

[richardp69]

hmmmm. Interesting, thanks!!!!

 

[GardMan]

Just to clarify... I did NOT mix the baking soda and charcoal. The charcoal was in the sock. I got one of those boxes of baking soda made to be put in a frig to absorb food odors...

 

[Guildedagain]

I had the strangest experience with a Telecaster neck I got off the net, an older Japan Allparts neck. It just reeked like old lady perfume when it got here. I realized the smell was coming from the fingerboard, Rosewood... I put it out to air. We live in the boonies, I can put stuff in the woodshed or on the back porch for weeks (but sometimes one tries to hide guitar parts), and I did. Could not get rid of the smell.

I washed the fingerboard with different oils, lavender, peppermint even, and I couldn't get rid of it, it would come back.

I somewhat guiltily realized that Rosewood smells like roses, that's why it's called Rosewood, and decided to just live with it.

If any of you have Peones and you brought a big bouquet in the house, you know just how powerful flowers can be, wow... Make a whole house smell pretty nice actually.

The Telecaster with this neck is like that. It makes a whole room smell.

I ended up liking it because of the smell, it's like aromatherapy when I play it.

The smell actually comes off on your fingers when you play.

In contrast to the OP's experience, I have a dreadnaught case quite old with green velvet that smells very enticingly old, a bouquet I though you could sell to people missing out on the experience, and while I wasn't able to bring it to market quite yet, I realized long ago that I could take other guitars that don't smell right and stick em in this case for a while and problem solved.

My DC5 was one of those guitars, because of the case, somebody did a perfume job in there. The case still isn't quite right, will never be, but I remember leaving it open in my jam room with a stick of Nag Champa burning in a way to saturate the case - don't start the house on fire - and leaving the door closed. It worked for a while and the smell came back.

Also, there are a lot of great smelling essential oils out there. I've been know to experiment with those as well.

I actually tried Patchouli in the D5CE case...

It's actually fairly easy to make activated charcoal at home, especially if you have hardwood chips and a dutch oven.

A teaspoon of activated charcoal has the surface area of a football field?

 

[bobouz]

Had good results using a car air freshener called something like “clean sheets” - but still eventually got rid of the case due to a sticky residue that also was problematic.

Wooden cases are not my favorites for a variety of reasons - odors being one of them, and I don’t have a thing about needing to keep vintage or original cases. So I’ve switched most of my instruments over to thermoplastic cases & have never looked back - love ‘em!

 

[Guildedagain]

Dang, I just realized I still have a package of the Little Tree Pine Fresh air fresheners you'd hang somewhere in the car way back when. I had to have one in my Duster, Challenger or Roadrunner like right now. Too much smell for me now, but they'd straighten a guitar case our in a hurry, if you like Pine Fresh ;}}

 

[SFIV1967]

Also, there are a lot of great smelling essential oils out there. I've been know to experiment with those as well. I actually tried Patchouli in the D5CE case...

Just make sure none of that stuff reacts to nitrocellulose finishes of a guitar. Some guitar cases have created "nice" burn marks in guitars after such treatments with chemicals. Oild might be different.

Almost like people who bubble wrap guitars for shipping...

Ralf

 

[Guildedagain]

Yes, absolutely, don't let an oil contact the guitar's finish. I did light applications to areas that do not come in contact, below the headstock, inside the case pocket, etc.

I've taken to using paper around a vintage guitar when I ship, like the old days before bubble wrap.

Will that rub out I wonder?

 

[HeyMikey]

Lay the case flat on a table or other surface where it won’t be disturbed. Place in 2 boxes of open or punctured baking soda. Close it for 2 weeks. If there is still smell replace with 2 fresh boxes and repeat.

If there is still an odor try a couple hours outside in the sun, which may cause some color fade. Also a couple open baggies of coffee in the closed case might help but it will pick up the coffee smell for a while.