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What type of room humidifier are you using? How many watts does it use? =
I think the H2 humidistats are rated up to 600 watts. I have ran a Sears =
basement-type dehumidifier off a humidistat in the past. That would =
solve your troubles for when you travel.
Terry Farrell
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Andrew & Rebeca Anderson=20
To: Pianotech=20
Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2004 10:34 AM
Subject: Re: Where did the RH Go
My wife and I regulate humidity (in winter) through the whole house =
with two humidifiers and a gauge on a bookshelf by the piano. This =
requires some attentiveness, and is affected by outdoor weather. The =
problem comes when we travel. We were away over the holidays for two =
weeks and when we returned the humidity was in the high single digits. =
The piano sounded horrible. We got humidity up in a few days and in two =
weeks I retuned. We have developed a rather low-tolerance for =
out-of-tune. =20
The issue is practicality. Most customers will not go through the =
trouble of monitering RH and refilling, turning on/off their humidifiers =
on a daily basis. Once a piano is up to humidity, the DC will usually =
last a week often more, it only has a small environment to keep-up. The =
humidity migrates through the wood, even in a grand piano pin torque is =
affected (closed lids do help in extreme environments). Buying a room =
humidifier that has a remote-control humidistat will cost more than a DC =
system, although it would benefit all the wooden furniture too. I have =
discussed this with clients and some have chosen to get a cheap =
hardware-store hygrometer and start running a room humidifier. They =
last about halfway to the next tuning and then want a DC system or =
believe they can tolerate the effects on the piano.
Andrew Anderson
Las Cruces, NM
At 06:40 AM 1/13/2004 -0500, you wrote:
I don't think anyone is questioning the effects of RH changes on the =
tuning of a piano.
=20
I'm with Sarah and feel that proper full environment humidity =
control is the best way to go - better than a full DC installation.
=20
I think where the arguement comes in is the fact that probably 99% =
of full environment humidity control systems are improperly designed, =
poorly functioning, turned off and windows opened up, turned off over =
the holidays and summer, etc., etc.=20
=20
But this does not change the fact that if one installs a proper full =
environment humidity control system that holds the RH constant within a =
few percent, it will be more effective than a full DC.
=20
And don't forget that even if you hard-wire the DC system into the =
wall, who is ever going to notice that the circuit breaker tripped 15 =
months ago and the piano hasn't had any humidity control since that =
time?
=20
In my shop I have a Sears basement-type dehumidifier. It keeps the =
shop right at 45% RH (within a percent or two). I never varies. How in =
the world is a DC unit on a piano in my shop going to work better, or do =
anything at all besides vapor, dry, vapor, dry, vapor, dry, etc., etc.?
=20
So I guess the bottom line is that if one is willing to set up a =
proper full environment humidity control system that holds the RH =
constant within a few percent, that is the best way to go. From a =
practical standpoint, knowing that 90-some% of full environment humidity =
control systems are not going to be real effective, the full DC-type =
system is the way to go (they DO work quite well). And as someone =
pointed out, from a practical standpoint a full DC-type system in a =
piano which is in an environment modified by a full environment humidity =
control systems is the best around.=20
=20
Flame Suite Tighly Zipped,
=20
Terry Farrell
=20
----- Original Message -----=20
From: "DIANE HOFSTETTER" <dianepianotuner@msn.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Tuesday, January 13, 2004 2:51 AM
Subject: Re: Where did the RH Go
> Sarah,
>=20
> For fourteen years now my partner and I have been measuring and =
graphing the=20
> tuning on every piano immediately before we tune it. We also =
record the=20
> relative humidity and temperature most of the time, whether it has =
a=20
> Damppchaser installation or not, and if it is functioning =
correctly.
>=20
> Then when we next tune the piano and record all the data again, we =
have a=20
> way of understanding how to service the piano to make the tuning =
as stable=20
> as possible.
>=20
> Over the years I have had fun with a variety of experiments. One =
day I=20
> arrived to tune a piano in a room that is routinely kept unheated =
with no=20
> climate control in the piano. The maintenance people had just =
turned on the=20
> heat before I arrived and a stream of warm area was shooting out =
of the=20
> register about ten feet away.
>=20
> I was dismayed; the heat should have been turned on hours before. =
I knew=20
> the tuning could not be reliable. I went ahead and graphed the =
tuning. As=20
> soon as I finished that graph, I remeasured the tuning and graphed =
it again.=20
> Then I remeasured and regraphed, and then once again. I ended =
up with a=20
> graph showing four distinctly separate lines of the tuning as it =
changed=20
> with the relative humidity and temperature for each line carefully =
recorded.
>=20
> There is no question in my mind that changes in relative humidity =
affect the=20
> tuning dramatically and that a Damppchaser system does an =
excellent job of=20
> helping control that. I have numerous graphs to show it does.
>=20
> Diane
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
> Diane Hofstetter
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
> >From: "Sarah Fox" <sarah@gendernet.org>
> >Reply-To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org>
> >To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
> >Subject: Re: Where did the RH Go
> >Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2004 21:48:30 -0500
> >
> >Hi Don,
> >
> > > I did not say your system didn't work. What I said was a DC =
system would
> > > work even better.
> >
> >Perhaps. Perhaps not. I don't mean to be argumentative on this =
point. =20
> >I'm
> >really asking a question here: Have you (or has anyone else) =
done
> >measurements with a good, accurate hygrometer on a complete DC =
grand
> >installation, during dry ambient conditions, showing that =
humidity is=20
> >indeed
> >evenly distributed all over the soundboard, both under and on =
top, and in
> >the action cavity? Also, have the same measurements been done =
inside the
> >piano with a closed lid and inside the action cavity during =
predominantly
> >dehumidifying periods? In other words, are DC's claims fully=20
> >substantiated,
> >as determined empirically with a hygrometer? I've heard lots of =
claims
> >regarding stability of pitch. That's all well and good, of =
course.
> >However, how well does the DC system regulate humidity (in =
contrast to
> >pitch)?
> >
> > > I do recommend room type humdifiers as well--but only to =
"assist" a DC
> > > unit. If it is a choice of one or the other the DC provides =
much better
> > > year round control than is generally possible with a room =
type. There=20
> >are
> > > exceptions, but they are very rare.
> >
> >This sounds like a reasonable approach.
> >
> > > Do you have measurements for the summer time? Where I am I =
have=20
> >documented
> > > as low as 4% and as high as 84%.
> >
> >Without humidification, humidity levels inside my house vary from =
27% in=20
> >the
> >winter to 67% in the late fall. I have forced heat and =
refrigerated A/C,
> >BTW. I suspect humidity levels are far different in other parts =
of the
> >state. I'm in Central Ohio. In the lake areas, humidity is =
undoubtedly
> >much higher during moderate weather. Also, I have no idea what =
humidity
> >levels occur in other people's homes here in Columbus. (I don't =
service
> >their pianos. <grin>)
> >
> > > I would love to have a controller for a DC type system that =
had much
> > > narrower limits. I know, for example, that rare bird =
hatcheries have=20
> >units
> > > that are calibrated to 1/10 of one percent humidity that power =
an
> > > "electronic" fan (read no blades--some sort of vibrating =
plate) combined
> > > with an ultrasonic humidifer. I'd love to get my pinkies on =
one!
> >
> >Well, I can't boast 0.1% limits with my system (WOW!!), but I do =
quite a=20
> >bit
> >better than the specs DC boasts. I did a 100% non-DC-brand =
installation on
> >my concert grand, using a GE humidistat that cycles the system =
adjustably
> >between 40 - 44% (or occasionally as widely as 39 - 45%) when the =
ambient=20
> >RH
> >is in the upper 40's. The installation is fairly recent, so I =
haven't yet
> >been able to observe its behavior at higher humidity levels. =
I'll give you
> >an update in the spring if you're interested.
> >
> >Peace,
> >Sarah
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >_______________________________________________
> >pianotech list info: =
https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________
> Scope out the new MSN Plus Internet Software - optimizes dial-up =
to the max!=20
> http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=3Den-us&page=3Dbyoa/plus&ST=3D1
>=20
> _______________________________________________
> pianotech list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives
>
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