Waterbound

[JOHN ROSS]

How about digging a hole in the low spot, hopefully a corner,  and 
installing a sump pump.
Then as Terry says, a good dehumidifier.
John Ross
Windsor, Nova Scotia, Canada
jrpiano at win.eastlink.ca
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Farrell" <mfarrel2 at tampabay.rr.com>
To: "Pianotech List" <pianotech at ptg.org>
Sent: Sunday, February 24, 2008 3:24 PM
Subject: Re: Waterbound


> Hi Annie - sounds like a mess! Sorry to hear about it. You can put an 
> upright on a dolly for as long as you want. I wouldn't worry about it. 
> Might be best to just put it up on blocks though - you might need the 
> dolly for something else. Put some heavy plastic between a couple blocks 
> on each side to prevent water from wicking up the wood.
>
> I would run, not walk, to Sears or some similar store and buy a good room 
> dehumidifier. I highly recommend getting one with the "electronic 
> humidistat". I've had two of them now and they seem to regulate humidit 
> much better than the old type.
>
> Man, I don't know what the heck to do about your floor though. Is your 
> shop that low compared to the surrounding land? Do you know where the 
> water table is at? What is the water source? Maybe a nice deep ditch 
> filled with gravel around the shop? Do you have enough ceiling height to 
> simply put in an elevated floor? You could either fill it in with concrete 
> or build an elevated wooden floor. Sounds to me like you definitely need 
> to take some serious action though (but I think you know that!).
>
> Terry Farrell
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> One thing (among many) that I've learned from this List is that y'all 
>> always
>> have good ideas and different perspectives.  So, here's my newest 
>> dilemma,
>> with which I'd appreciate your help.
>>
>> The initial question is:  if I put a big ol' upright on a dolly, how long
>> can I leave it there safely?  Will it stress the piano (assuming it's not
>> afraid of heights)?
>>
>> The reason...
>> When I bought this place, I was warned that I might see "some moisture" 
>> on
>> the shop floor in the spring.  Now that the shop is full of pianos and
>> tools, I know that "some moisture" actually means "enough to float a 
>> small
>> boat".  And here are the general conditions:
>> 1)  there's no place else to go with the pianos, which include one grand,
>> the BOU, and four consoles
>> 2)  water has already come through the foundation and up through the 
>> jointed
>> concrete slab floor
>> 3)  the shop is currently surrounded by several feet of snow and ice
>> 4)  I'm nervous about trying to seal the foundation/floor now, before I 
>> have
>> any idea what will happen -- I'd hate to crack or buckle something 
>> because I
>> tried to block water that I could redirect with drainage later
>> 5)  I work and live alone
>>
>> So, water's bound to come in.  And the question is:  how can I best 
>> protect
>> the instruments and still be able to get the water out of there?  I have 
>> two
>> dollies, but I'm also looking for more ideas.  Much as I hope none of 
>> y'all
>> has ever been faced with this kind of problem, I suspect at least a 
>> couple
>> of you have.  What did you do and how did it work out?
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> Annie Grieshop
>>
>
>