> After years of complaining about the environment in the Music Building > at a school that I service, there finally seems to be some movement > towards at least exploring a solution to the problem. I have been asked > to provide a range of both humidity and temperature that would be > considered the minimum requirements for the pianos. Right now, humidity > swings between 20% and 70%, measured with my radio shack digital > thermo/hygrometer, although I have a hard time believing that it doesn't > drop lower than that. Temperatures in the heating season frequently > reach into the upper 70's, with a few rooms hitting well above 80F on > occasion! I have suggested that anything outside the 30% - 60% range is > bad for the pianos, with an ideal of mid 40%'s, but I don't know how to > answer the temperature question. Any suggestions? > > Mark Dierauf, I'd suggest that you make a heroic effort to explain the difference between temperature fluctuations, and humidity fluctuations. I've known a number of country churches that set the thermostat at 50° during the week. it's hard on the tuner's fingers to pound on keys at that temperature, but the pianos tend to stay in tune way better than they do in places where the temperature is conscientiously kept at 70°. The difference is that the 50° storage is at 40% RH, and the 70° storage is at 25%RH. RH% trumps temperature big time. So given the choice of emphasis on temperature control or RH% control, take the RH% control every time. Be aware though, that no matter how you stress RH% control, they will likely hear temperature, and won't have a clue why the pianos still won't stay in tune after installing an expensive new heating system with absolutely no provision for humidity control. Wait for it... Ron N
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