[LAU] water-damaged rhodes ?

[Fons Adriaensen]

On Sat, Aug 25, 2007 at 08:27:30AM -0400, Dave Phillips wrote:

> So, how should I clean this thing ? My thought is to simply open it up 
> and hose it down to get any crap out of its box, then I'll let it dry 
> and try firing it up to see if it works. Any other advice or suggestions 
> for this project ?

Assuming the water that went in it wasn't really clean, the most important
thing is to get the all the dirt out.

I would disassemble it into as many pieces as is possible by unscrewing 
and unplugging things, clean all the parts with clean water (and nothing
else), dry them, then let those that have absorbed water dry out for a
long time in a warm and dry place.

The latter is important for electric components that may have water
inside (no matter how little): switches (including the power switch), 
potentiometers, etc. A particular case is the power transformer - if
it's not an an impregnated type it will require a long time to dry.

Printed circuit boards and connectors should be cleaned carefully,
as any residue left may be conducting.

When you reassemble, first rebuild the power supply, test it for
isolation, then try and see what happens if you switch it on.
Only if there's no smoke, funny smells, etc. after an hour, and
voltages seem OK, retest isolation and if OK connect the rest.

I went through this once for a power amp that had several liters of
beer poured into it. It worked perfectly again afterwards.

Good luck !

-- 
FA

Follie! Follie! Delirio vano è questo !