Why handpan maintenance is important
A good handpan can really take a beating, so being frenetic with it is definitely not necessary! But a certain amount of protection and care will help you enjoy your handpan for as long as possible. Below, we give advice. However, these are guidelines and not strict rules.
Protecting your handpan from damage
Preventing bumps and falls
It is important to avoid falls and bumps so that no tone field becomes detuned. Therefore, always store your handpan properly and use a decent display stand or standing stand.
Contamination by salt, acids and dirt
Remember that your hand pan can also be damaged by certain (liquid) substances. Think of salt and acids, for example. Therefore, it is always best to wash your hands before playing.
Misuse and what to avoid
A tone field can also become detuned through misuse. A handpan is meant to be played with your fingers. Preferably do not play with your flat hand like you play a djembe, for instance. Sticks can damage the surface, affecting the tone. Also remember to remove any rings and other metal objects from fingers and hands. And be careful with (small) children; if a metal spoon hits the hand pan hard, it can ‘de-tune’ a tone field.
Influence of climate and temperature on a handpan
To prevent rust, it is important that the pan stays in damp conditions as little as possible. Here are some tips:
Do not store the hand pan in a damp case
Avoid condensation by not keeping the pan in the handpan bag or handpan case for longer than necessary, but place the pan on a stand or cushion.
It is no big problem if the pan gets a little wet once in a while, e.g. due to rain. Make sure to dry the pan well again immediately afterwards (also on the inside)!
Exposure to salt can accelerate rusting or cause staining. If you play on or near a beach, treat the handpan with oil beforehand. And clean the handpan immediately after playing.
A hand pan by itself can withstand high or low temperatures (-30 to or +30 °C) just fine. A temperature change will always cause the tuning to change slightly with it. This is normal and will not result in a permanent tone change or damage to the instrument. The tuning will return to its original frequency and key when the temperature returns to normal.
However, extreme temperature differences can be a problem. Therefore, we recommend never leaving the handpan in direct sunlight (behind the window or in the car) or next to a heat source (radiator, stove, fireplace, etc.) If the handpan becomes so hot that it is painful to hold your hand on it (such as a motorbike head that has been in the sun for a while in summer), the handpan may change sound.
However, if you cannot avoid having the handpan in the car, make sure it is out of the sun and cover the handpan. Maybe the handpan will still get a little warm, but it can tolerate that just fine.
Taking care of your hand pan with oil
Why treat a hand pan with oil?
To keep the look and sound of your instrument beautiful, it is a good idea to wipe down your handpan every time after playing and treat it with a natural oil. The oil protects the material from external influences such as dirt, acid and grease.
How do you apply oil to a hand pan?
Step 1: To remove any dirt residue, first clean the hand pan with a separate cloth and alcohol (70-96%), available at the drugstore or pharmacy (this is called Alcohol Ketonatus).
Step 2: After the pan is thoroughly dry, apply a few drops of maintenance oil to the hand pan. Spread this gently and evenly with a microfibre cloth over the entire surface, including the edges. Leftover oil can be removed with a clean cloth. NB. At some point your cloth will become fairly saturated and you won't need much oil anymore. If you notice that the cloth has become really dirty and sticky, you might want to start with a new one.
Step 3: If you play with bare legs, for example in summer, take the bottom of the hand pan as well. You won't have to clean the inside of the pan then.
CAUTION: Both cleaning and applying the oil should be done carefully. Do not apply too much pressure on the hand pan.
Which oil is suitable for a hand pan?
It is important that your maintenance oil consists of natural oil and does not contain aggressive substances such as turpentine. A good oil is Chaya® hand pan oil or Phoenix oil.
With us, when you buy a hand pan, you get free oil and a suitable cleaning cloth.
Cleaning and stain removal
Remove dirt, stains or old oil residues with alcohol (70-96%) available from drugstores or pharmacies (this is called Alcohol Ketonatus). Then treat the pan again with oil (see above for instructions).
Maintenance by metal type
The above advice applies to all hand pans. We would like to give a supplement for the different types of metal.
Nitrided steel
Nitrided steel is well protected against external influences, including rusting. Nitriding positively influences the timbre, makes the metal dimensionally stable and also provides good protection.
Stainless steel
This metal is well protected from external influences, especially from rusting. Nevertheless, there is a small chance that this may still happen. So it is important to properly protect and maintain these instruments as well.
Ember steel
Ember steel is a type of stainless steel developed especially for hand pans. Due to slightly different chemical and mechanical properties, this steel does react much faster to dirt and moisture. If this is not cleaned in time, stains will appear. Therefore, always clean with alcohol after playing and then treat with oil. However, stains that develop are purely optical and have no influence on the durability and/or sound of the handpan.
Over time, all ember steel hand pans will discolour slightly. Some people call this “patina” and find it beautiful and others find it unfortunate. People who like to keep a ‘sleek’ handpan are better off choosing a different type of metal.
Blue steel (bluesteel)/RAW-steel/untreated steel
This metal is the most susceptible to deterioration such as rusting and therefore deserves extra attention in terms of maintenance and protection. In fact, this type of steel is still hardly used.
High Chrome Titanium Stainless Steel
This metal requires the same maintenance as Ember steel.
