Mould inside acoustic - any suggestions?

[frankiepresents]

I recently bought this Eastman E20OM (2013) from EBay - it plays beautifully and sounds awesome. But upon taking off the strings and looking inside the soundhole, I found what appears to be some mould (British spelling ) that has developed inside, mostly on the back of the guitar.

I've done some Googling and found a few possible solutions. So far I've tried cleaning inside using a cloth with some distilled white vinegar but the layer of mould stills seems to be there. I might even be wrong but I took it to a guitar tech who seems to agree that it is mould.

Wondering if anyone has experience of this? And if so, did you find a good way to resolve it without damaging the guitar? Thanks!

[Jamolay]

No expert here, but it looks like it is in the grain a bit. You probably already killed it with the vinegar, so why worry?

The only way I could think to get it out would be something like a toothbrush. Doubt it is worth it.

[Henning]

It doesn't look like mould to me. But I am far from any mould expert. It looks as though the rosewood had been "degreased" though.

[phavriluk]

My first reaction - - - dust/grunge from storage..How old is this guitar, and did it get parked/stored somewhere 'out' and not in a case or gig bag?

[ssstewart]

this does not look like mould at all to me. looks like the guitar got too dry and white spots are the result as the moisture inside the wood escaped. common to see it on the unfinished wood (inside of guitar) in a guitar that was not humidified properly...but im also not an expert, i just have a bought a whole lot of improperly humidified guitars in my life.

[Earl49]

That vaguely looks like the kind of staining that occurs when a HumidiPak leaks -- I've seen it happen. If it was a minor leak and they wiped up the salt solution promptly and thoroughly, it would not leave much residue other than the stain. Not sure if it is really mould.

[kirkham13]

I just posted a similar thread and was told to try adding baking soda. I did that and the mold smell has almost vanished- unfortunately the baking soda is happily taken residence in the guitar. My mold was black spots on white wood- not sure what I see in your pics- smell will indicate mold.

[frankiepresents]

Originally Posted by phavriluk

My first reaction - - - dust/grunge from storage..How old is this guitar, and did it get parked/stored somewhere 'out' and not in a case or gig bag?

Good to know! It’s about 10 years old, and I’m not sure where it was stored before it came into my possession but I do know that the cardboard box it was transported in got wet overnight during shipping. When I opened it up, none of the moisture seemed to have gotten into the hard case but who knows.

The interesting thing is that when I cleaned it with white vinegar, the lighter coloured “dusty” effect disappeared for a few minutes and then came back again when the wood dried.

[Howard Klepper]

Has that area of the back ever had any finishing oil, such as linseed oil rubbed on it?