[CAUT] Humidity Damage

[Dennis Johnson]

Professor McKeever-

It would be difficult from where we are this list to give an accurate
assessment of damage that is suitable for negotiation in your insurance
settlement.  My recommendation would be to contact one of several good
Wisconsin techs within reasonable distance of Kenosha.  The agency will
likely prefer a statement from someone who is independent of your school.
If they want to settle asap perhaps a good place to start is at least
restoration cost of the historic instruments and better grands with visible
damage. Unless you find corrosion on the wires of the newer uprights, or
warped keys, or bridge cracks, and they tune up fine now, then damage on
these is probably not so bad. Considering the costs and potential settlement
it would be the effort to hire a through appraisal.

Hope that helps,

Dennis Johnson
St. Olaf College

______________

On Sun, Jan 2, 2011 at 2:28 PM, Mckeever, James I <mckeever at uwp.edu> wrote:

>  Hello,
>
>
>
> The University of Wisconsin-Parkside has had extreme humidity issues the
> last six months.  In the course of connecting utilities to our new building,
> our air handling equipment has been shut down without notice.  During the
> summer, the humidity was 80% for at least five weeks, and this fall it
> dropped to 20% for at least two weeks.  The damage to historic reproduction
> instruments is obvious—snapped strings and soundboard cracks.
>
>
>
> But our 30 modern pianos are a problem.  I have been told that damage may
> not be apparent for a year or more, but the insurance adjustor wants to
> settle now.  We have 38 year old Yamahas and Baldwin Hamiltons.  Other
> pianos are a mixture of pianos newer and rebuilt from the last 25 years.
>
>
>
> I am in need of statements from technicians concerning the invisible damage
> that could have happened.  I need to be able to propose a settlement which
> will take into account future damage.
>
>
>
> Thanks for any assistance you can provide me!
>
>
>
> James McKeever
>
> Professor of Piano
>
> Chair, Music Department
>
> University of Wisconsin-Parkside
>
> Kenosha, Wisconsin
>
>
>
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