Humidty Control

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Rudy Mueller
Posts: 603
Joined: Thu Sep 08, 2011 8:33 am
Location: Grafton WI 53024 RMUELLERMKE@GMAIL.COM

Re: Humidty Control

Post by Rudy Mueller »

Still in near perfect tune on a day to day basis, and that is after nearly one month. My next table will have removable dowel/rod (s) upon which to hang moist towel(s) directly below (~10 cm) the instrument in winter, removable in summer** and when not playing. Remember, my tables are "open top", described elsewhere on this site.

....and the Meinel-Herold can only be described as having an entirely different soul.

Remember, your music area is really a micro-environment. If playing on a massive table, that table is a massive, (and perhaps near anhydrous) sponge, sucking the moisture out of everything around it.

....and Happy New Year to all.

Rudi

**...when summer comes, I must remember it's just 2+ miles to lake Michigan, and I may have the opposite situation.
kenbloom
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Location: Pilot Mountain, NC
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Re: Humidty Control

Post by kenbloom »

Happy New Year to you Rudi. I remember when I lived in Chicago, Evanston actually, the summers were intensely moist, the opposite of the very dry winters. As the humidity increased I had to remember to tune my zither and bandura down as they began to go sharp as the humidity swelled the wood. My Meinel was always extremely sensitive to humidity changes. That meant a lot of tuning when I was traveling from town to town. Having a more stable place to play is indeed a blessing. I hope this year hold nothing but good times and good music for you and your family.

Ken Bloom
http://www.boweddulcimer.org
Andy
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Re: Humidty Control

Post by Andy »

Happy New Years Everyone!

Earlier in December, during a long practice session with the heat on, all of the strings on my Wünsche went flat. I decided then to take the advice of the forum and turned my office into a humidity controlled music room. I’ve put in a hygrometer, room humidifier and case humidifiers and the door is kept closed. With the heat running I’ve managed to keep the relative humidity in the room in the mid forties and in the cases at high forties / low fifties. Besides strings staying in tune, the room itself is generally more comfortable to be in. Almost feels like a little musical sanctuary.

- Andy
Rudy Mueller
Posts: 603
Joined: Thu Sep 08, 2011 8:33 am
Location: Grafton WI 53024 RMUELLERMKE@GMAIL.COM

Re: Humidty Control

Post by Rudy Mueller »

The "two damp hand towels" remedy has worked for a couple of year now, and will continue in future winters.

rudi
NutmegCT
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Re: Humidty Control

Post by NutmegCT »

Hi Rudy. Have you thought of just putting a small floor humidifier in the room? We used those when I lived in South Milwaukee years ago. Something like this:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/AIRCARE-6-G ... /205997943

On a related tack, in nineteenth century or pre-war Bavaria or Vienna, when rooms were heated by wood or coal stoves ... how did people regulate humidity? Just setting a kettle on the stove doesn't provide much at all.

Tom M.
Rudy Mueller
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Joined: Thu Sep 08, 2011 8:33 am
Location: Grafton WI 53024 RMUELLERMKE@GMAIL.COM

Re: Humidty Control

Post by Rudy Mueller »

A word of caution on "room humidifiers": One "high output" room humidifier I tried several years ago put so much water, and dissolved salts, into the air (and over most interior surfaces) that our furnace filters plugged up, shutting down the furnace.

rudi
NutmegCT
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Joined: Fri Aug 01, 2014 10:31 pm
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Re: Humidty Control

Post by NutmegCT »

Hi Rudy. Sounds like your water is full of minerals! Most folks with that problem use distilled water in their humidifiers. And certainly, use a hygrometer so you know the humidity level.

Question to the group: how did 19th and early 20th century musicians deal with the humidity problems (tuning, warping, cracking, etc.) when winter heating was wood fires and coal stoves?

Tom M.
Kennethpauls
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Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 8:45 pm
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Re: Humidty Control

Post by Kennethpauls »

I know that when I visit my mom in Kauai and bring a zither with slipping pegs, they magically become tight again (although the heat and humidity also play constant havoc on keeping the instrument tuned).
I keep little guitar humidifiers next to my zithers or in the case with them as precaution here on the mainland.
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