Guzheng Care and Maintenance

The guzheng is a precious musical instrument and should be respected and cared for accordingly. Store it well and keep it clean. If an issue arises deal with it quickly. Ignoring a problem can lead to greater problems.

Do's and Don'ts of Guzheng Care

Do:

Handle with care and respect.
Keep in a stable temperature and humidity, about 50-70% Relative Humidity.
Wipe the soundboard with a soft cloth or brush after playing to remove dust.
Tune and play it frequently.
Cover it with a cloth or return it to its case when not in use.

Don't:

Don't leave it in direct sunlight for long periods of time.
Don't place it next to windows, heating/cooling vents, radiators, and other sources of sudden temperature changes (European-style ambient water heaters aren't as much a concern as long as they don't get hot).
Don't get it wet.
Don't let cooking oil get onto it, directly or through the air (keep it out of the kitchen).
Don't let dust build up.

Humidity

Your instrument should spend most of its time at a stable temperature and a relative humidity of between 50%-70%. This prevents the instrument from cracking. I'll answer your inner doubts right now: Yes, you DO need a hygrometer (humidity meter) and some form of humidity control. My personal favorite to date is the Govee H5072, pictured, but there are thousands to pick from. (2021 note: the replaceable AAA batteries on my Govee ran out for the firs time - lasting 1 year, 5 months, and 10 days. That’s about $2-3/year in batteries).

As wood dries it shrinks and shrinking pieces will pull away from each other. That builds up stress that WILL find a way out either by pulling a seam open or cracking. Prevent that shrinking by keeping wood as close to the equilibrium moisture content it had when it was produced. For a technical discussion visit the Wood Drying page. Below are practical options:

Option 1: Humidify and monitor the instrument in a hard case. Store it in a hard case whenever you aren't playing it.
- Pro: unobtrusive, mostly set-it-and-forget-it. You can check every time you take the instrument out.
- Con: You need a hard case. Hard cases are expensive ($500 USD and up).
- If you stop playing for a while (and let's be real, at some point you will) you might forget to check the humidity for a long time.

To follow this approach, get a small hygrometer or humidity gauge at a music store and some in-case humidifiers. Hygrometers range from about $3 USD for analog models to $15 and up for digital models. The in-case humidifying products run in similar ranges of $10 for what is effectively a sponge in a plastic holder to $20, $30 and up for devices with a bit more design savvy to them. One community member uses humidifying packs from a company called Boveda; there are many other companies and products as well.

Option 2: Humidify and monitor the room the instrument lives in.
- Pro: Easy to keep track of regardless of how much you play. Also good for your health as the humidity range for an instrument is also ideal for humans.
- Con: requires near-daily maintenance.

This is my preferred option because I maintain multiple instruments, plus I enjoy living in a humidified environment. I place a humidifier in a room next to a hygrometer, set the desired humidity level on the humidifier, and monitor and tweak until the humidity stabilizes. A room hygrometer is about the same cost as one for an instrument case ($10-$30) but room humidifiers tend to be more expensive, trending towards $50.

Humidity Packs

Humidity packs are salt and water solutions inside special bags that lets water vapor in and out, but liquid water and salt are kept in. A cool thing about salt water solutions is they keep a very predictable humidity. Table salt for example, NaCL, seeks to keep 75% relative humidity. As in, if the air is drier, the salt lets water evaporate. If the air is wetter, the salt pulls more water in. Different salts keep different relative humidity.

Table of the relative humidity each salt solution will create at different temperatures. NaCl is table salt. Source: Engineering Toolbox. Used under Fair Use.

Companies can combine different salts to create solutions that balance at a specific humidity. NaCl, table salt, likes things a bit too wet for safe instrument storage, but mixed with others we can get that 50-70% range.

The nice thing about these packs is that they are two way - meaning they will dry out wet air and help moisten dry air. That’s good. Something to be careful of is that some makers package instrument-case humidity packs with excess moisture. This is intentional; most packs are used in areas that are too dry, so preloading with a bit too much moisture means they will quickly help improve the ambient air. For big spaces like a guzheng case that’s not an issue; for small spaces that could mean your RH is higher than you want.

Humidity packs do dry out; eventually they run out of moisture to give. The official rule is to discard them at this point. The unofficial rule is that people will always break the official rules. Here is one article about humidity packs with three ways to try and refresh them. I have not tried any of these and can’t speak to the risks.

Humidifiers

There are four (4) types of humidifiers: Evaporative, Impeller, Ultrasonic, (known as Cold Mist) and Vaporizer (known as Warm Mist).

Evaporative humidifiers let the water evaporate at room temperature. Typically they have wicks and fans to help accelerate this process.
Impeller humidifiers fling water at an internal target to break it into a mist.
Ultrasonic humidifiers vibrate the water until it separates into vapor. Since the ultrasonic element is very small, this is the device most commonly used in interesting designs that popup in the drier months.
Vaporizers boil water to create steam.

Evaporative and Vaporizers humidifiers build up mineral deposits in the device that must be cleaned off, either by soaking in vinegar or replacing an internal filter. Ultrasonic and Impeller humidifiers don’t build up deposits as much, but do push those minerals into the air with the water. That isn't harmful but it can add to the dust in the room. As dust dampens the sound of a guzheng I'd recommend using a Vaporizer, an Evaporative humidifier, or making sure your guzheng is covered when you're not using it.

Alternatively, you can prevent that dust creation by using distilled water in your humidifier. That comes at a cost. A whole-room humidifier can easily consume more than one gallon of distilled water per day. With distilled water typically $1 per gallon or more that’s $30+ per month in water alone. In the US, the most expensive tap water is about $0.03 per gallon, or $1/month.

Temperature

Instruments are happy in the same temperature range that humans are happy in. The biggest issues for guzheng are the rate of change of temperature and total change in temperature. Sudden changes lead to stress buildup and cracks as materials shrink (cold materials are typically smaller than warm materials). Some instruments can weather the changes, others will experience lots of negatives effects. Its best to avoid the changes entirely.

Less severe but still annoying is that changes in temperature detunes strings. It's frustrating to retune your instrument frequently, so avoid retunings by keeping temperatures stable.

Avoid temperature changes by storing your guzheng away from windows, heating vents, and direct sunlight. Avoid exterior walls if possible. All of these places can have surprisingly large temperature variations during a normal day and night cycle.

Sunlight causes two extra problems: it causes focused, localized heating which both causes temperature change issues and dries out the wood it is heating, and it can bleach and fade the color of the decorations on your instrument. The less direct sun your instrument gets the better.

Cleaning:

A wipe with a soft cloth will take care of most of your cleaning needs on the soundboard, paneling, and frame.
- DO NOT use a cleaning chemical, oil, or spray on the soundboard even if there is something you want to remove. Take it to a guzheng luthier for an assessment before trying anything yourself.
Furniture-grade Orange and Lemon oil can be used to clean finished, sealed wooden surfaces on the instrument such as the sides and framing of the head and tail.
- Any cleaning oil should be tested on an unobtrusive part of your instrument first. Your instrument's finish may react differently to different oils; test them to avoid unfortunate surprises.
- These orange and lemon oils should be used straight. Do not mix them with water.
- Their cleaning power is limited to smudges and fingerprints.
- Don’t wipe cleaning agents over decorations such as fabric panels, paintings, or stone inlays.
For a complete clean, remove the movable bridges and use a soft cloth or brush to remove dirt from the entire soundboard.
- If your soundboard is smoothed or lacquered, a simple cloth wipe should take care of everything.
- If your soundboard is textured or was otherwise roughened by the manufacturer, take care to avoid trapping dust in the nooks and crannies of the wood. You may need a special brush.
Dust stuck to string holes and captured near the fixed bridges can be removed by brushing with an extra-soft toothbrush while holding a vacuum nozzle nearby.
- Specialty vacuum adapters like this set from StewMac might also be helpful though I haven't used it.
For more extensive or intensive cleanings, seek the advice of a guzheng luthier.
- If you cannot find a guzheng-specific luthier, violin and cello luthiers and related repair professionals can give you some general musical instrument tips. Some may even be willing to perform simple maintenance and repairs but speak with them first.
- Luthiers who are unfamiliar with guzheng may not be comfortable working on your instrument. Don't try to force them; listen to their professional advice and respect their self-imposed limits.

Dust

Dust muffles sound. Instead of string vibrations making the soundboard vibrate and produce the sounds you love, a dusty instrument spends all of its energy vibrating dust particles. Prevent the dust from accumulating and enjoy your instrument's brilliance.

The difference is profound. I once received an instrument that looked beautiful but sounded atrocious. Truly, it was as if I had a blanket wrapped around my head. Fearful I had wasted my money I took out the bridges and used a dry cloth to wipe up the dust. It instantly sounded better. Keep your instruments free of dust!

Water / Oil

Liquids soak into wood and change their physical structure and acoustic properties. Even after liquids evaporate those changes can stay. Avoid placing or using liquids around your instrument. Wash your hands before playing to avoid transferring oils. Allow your hands to dry completely before playing.