Pinblock Treatment Humidity Question

[Randy Potter]

When I began learning piano technology 20+ years ago, we were taught
(both by the home study course I started with and the local technicians I
worked with) to drop "pinblock dope" around the pins.
While it did not "repair" the problem, per se, it did make them "a little
less bad", as Joe Garrett, my main mentor, says. The pianos (usually)
became tunable, though the feel was real mushy (meaning the pinblock was
essentially ruined, now), and pinblock torque never exceeded 35-40 inch
pounds in ANY of the couple-dozen pianos I used it on.
With time, I began rebuilding pianos, and began cutting up the pinblocks
I removed (at Joe's suggestion) and learned an interesting thing - that
the "dope" we put in there only went into the top layer of the block.
Despite the "loose" pins, they were tight enough to keep the goop from
going past the glue lamination.
"No wonder it does not work very good", we said.

About that time, the Dampp-Chaser systems were coming into full
development, with the addition of the low water warning light and water
fill kit (which solved the problem most technicians and owners had, which
was the owner having to open the bottom board to check the water level,
and to remove it to fill the tank).
So, at someone's suggestion, I installed a Dampp-Chase Five Part system
(humidistat, humidifier, dehumidifier, low water warning light and water
fill kit) in a Kohler & Campbell spinet that had been put in a dry
environment where the block had gone from about 90 inch pounds to under
30 in a few months. The piano was so dry that the system took a gallon of
water a week for the first 14 weeks before it finally would go two weeks
before needed a gallon. The piano was again tunable within 3 weeks of
installing the system, and by 12 weeks was up to about 90# torque.

Since that time, I have never used pinblock dope - and recommend to our
students that they not buy any or begin using it.
And since that time I have installed something close to 400 complete
systems in pianos.
Not all for loose tuning pins, though. Only about four dozen of them for
loose tuning pins - in each case it restored the piano to tunable
condition, and in many, many cases these formerly untunable pianos
because some of the best, most stable instruments in my stable.
I have never had a single piano that was not restored to good tunability
after the installation of a five-part system. Not one, of about 50
installed for this reason.

Somewhere along the line I realized that it doesn't make sense allow an
excellent piano to dry out in the first place, when this can be prevented
by the installation of system when it is new, or almost new. So we
install a lot of systems, and I have had a lot of experience servicing
them. Not only will it tighten up (restore) loose pinblocks, but
oftentimes cracked, buzzing soundboards expand enough for the buzzes to
go away, and wobbling action parts improve as the wood and felt take on
the proper amount of moisture once again.

Well, I will let Dampp-Chaser do their own advertising. The amazing
thing, in today's world, is that what they say in their adverts and
testimonials is, mostly, UNDERstatement. If my product had the kind of
success restoring dried out, "ready to die" pianos as they have, I would
tout it more than they do.

P.S. This question was asked by Paul Fernandez, paulfer@dircon.co.uk, who
noted that the humidity where he lives is mostly 30% R.H. or less - which
is the same as it is where I live in Central Oregon. The systems are
available from Fletcher-Newman in the UK, or from Odd Aanstad in
Vesteroy, Norway. I don't have Odd's e-mail address, but you can get it
from Bob or Gail Maier at Dampp-Chaser, via DAMPPCHASR@aol.com.

Randy Potter, R.P.T.

Randy Potter, R.P.T.
Randy Potter School of Piano Technology
"Training Competent Piano Technicians for the 21st Century"
New Address: rpotter@bendnet.com
New Area Code: 541. Phone: 541-382-5411. FAX: 541-382-5400.
See Us on the Net at: http//:www.tuningschool.com