I agree with Fred's post, and question whether there is any basis at all for any insurance claim as a result of this episode. How could one document that soundboard cracks were not present before the current episode? Even the broken strings might have been avoided with "normal" pitch corrections known to be needed for harpsichords and other historical instruments when subjected to high humidity. Kent Swafford On Jan 3, 2011, at 8:45 PM, Fred Sturm wrote: > In general, five weeks of 80% humidity followed by 2 weeks of 20% is normal - not advisable, certainly not ideal, but conditions that perhaps the majority of pianos in the midwest experience every year, except that the periods of high and low are longer. Does this cause damage? Probably, especially in repeated cycles. Is it quantifiable for insurance purposes? Probably not, unless you have soundboard cracks. I guess I would say it is unlikely that anything "major" will show up in the future due to this one time occurrence. (The string breakage i the historic instruments was probably from the pitch going extremely sharp, far sharper than in pianos with metal plates)
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