Getting rid of musty smell

[W3RSW]

Read all your comments to my non-radio daughter y'day and we both cracked up.

Place the rig in one of those bio isolation chambers and operate it with the pass-through rubber gloves.  More suggestions from the ridiculous to the sublime. We hardly made it past the, "Pick Me! Pick Me!"

Maybe the darn thing is just ordained to smell.
 ..no wait, just put the plastic bag over the receptor instead of the offender.

[W1RKW]

Rick, not a bad idea. 

I ordered some ozium. I'll give that a try. 

[Opcom]

Not sure if this will work,  YMMV,  all the usual disclaimers.

1.  Ozium aerosol.   It's the hospital smell.   It kills the odor causing bacterium or particulate.   Not sure if it's plastic safe....   I can vouch for its effectiveness,  my mother used it to get RID of her colostomy bag odor.   Not mask it,  get RID of it.


--Shane
KD6VXI

Ozium is working on the wretched chain-smokers' chair here. Sprayed deep into it, repeated weekly.

Was an ozone generator tried? For a radio, maybe putting it with a generator in a 30x24x24 box for a day?  The consumer units are known as " Living Air Purifier, Mountain Air or Fresh Air." brands. Beware they are not to be used constantly, except on very low, as ozone is harmful in concentrations. They also cost a fortune but can be borrowed or bought used.

[W1RKW]

OK, got my Ozium spray. Sprayed in my truck first to see how it would work for the dog smell that came with the truck.  Dog smell is gone after a couple of days and a few extra hits of spray each day.  Seems to work so sprayed it in a rubbermaid container and waited a few minutes to let any droplets evaporate then threw the rig in a container.  will provide some results in a few days.

A side note: I thought about trying the ozone thing but generating an arc to produce pure ozone I don't think is such a good idea near ESD sensitive electronics.

[KD6VXI]

Opium knowledge was one of the only good things to come from my mother's cancer.   I use it a lot now,  always dredged up mom's memories,  good ND bad.

Hope it gets rid of the smell...   My mom would be none too happy.....   She hated the neighborly issues my radio hobby gave her...   Lol

--Shane
KD6VXI

[WBear2GCR]

Ozone generation does not required an "arc" at all.

What you need is enough voltage, usually negative voltage, at the end of a point or points.

All that requires is a solid state "brick" HV supply like the ones found in copiers, or sold by the many surplus dealers for a few bux.

The ideal type of "points" would be an old tyme brass brush - hey like the one used to clean the bore of a shotgun?

                 _-_-

[W1ATR]

I've used 91% or higher isopropyl alcohol in a pump bottle, and an assortment if small brushes to clean up radios and pc boards in the past. Rinse the whole thing down with DI water (also in a pump bottle), and toss it out in the sun.

It'll either come out perfect, or completely destroyed. Either way, it'll be destinkafied.    

[W1RKW]

I think I might have success.  I took the rig out of the container and gave it a wiff. So far so good.  I'll let it sit for a day and see what happens. If it's diminished I'll repeat again until gone otherwise, plan B.

[W2PFY]

I am beginning to wonder if more is known about the past operator? Was he in contest and died? Was his body was found decomposing in his ham shack after a very hot summer with  high humility? If this is the case, put in an very hot attic and let it bake out the bad smells.....

[W1RKW]

Hi Terry,
I picked up the radio "locally".  I went to the ops QTH and noticed a musty smell in the house but didn't think much of it until I got the rig home. No, the op was alive and well. Obviously the house has a water/dampness/mildew problem. Probably not healthy to say the least.

So update: I pulled the rig out and let it sit for a day.  There is a definite improvement but still the odor is there.  So back it went into the container for another round.  I figure 1 or 2 more treatments and it should be good.