Silica Gel Packs

[Ron Nossaman]

> Opened a ten year old Belarus upright piano and found three cloth bags 
> of silica gel hanging from the lid hinges resting on the felt silencer 
> bar against the tuning pins.  Later found three more "pillows" in the 
> bottom of the piano.  They had been there since the piano was new.  When 
> I mentioned to the owner of the uselessness of these old bags, she 
> stressed that the last two tuners of the piano told her they were still 
> beneficial and had been keeping it in tune all these years.  I dutifully 
> replaced them in their original places after the tuning and left.  Am I 
> nuts? (Be nice)  

Yes, and no. You mentioned the uselessness of the bags, so 
you're covered in the real world. Congratulations, you're 
already ahead of the pack (as it were). Replacing them was 
purely political, so you're honest, diplomatic, and (yes, 
utterly) nuts, but kind and considerate. I'm not sure what 
that boils down to, but you did no harm and didn't lie to the 
owner, which scores as a net gain.


>We used to throw these away at the dealer at prep 
> time.  Have times changed?  

Times certainly have, but physics still hasn't, for most 
folks. See "reality".


>Are ten year old silica gel sacks still viable?  

Viable? Describe what they are supposed to do in the first 
place lying in the bottom of the piano, given the physical 
characteristics and limitations of the material, and we'll see.

Ok, the real stuff. Yes, ten year old silica gel packs are 
still viable. No, they won't do any good whatsoever lying in 
the bottom of a piano that's not wrapped in an air tight 
enclosure. They also won't do any good as a desiccant in a 
giant baggie unless the moisture has been cooked out of them 
before entombment. In the open air, they have similar humidity 
control potential of a generic sweat sock.


Can they harm a piano, other than falling into the action?

No, but like two inches of gravel in the bottom of the piano, 
they will do no good either. Realistically, there's probably 
not much of anything positive you can do with a bag of 
anything, including tools and parts, for a Belarus upright.
Ron N