Climate-control temperature FX

[Ron Torrella]

On Wed, 23 Nov 1994 k.swafford@genie.geis.com wrote:

>       At first I thought it was a real hassle to open every piano in
>  order to fiddle with the plugs, but we should be checking the correct
>  operation of these units on a regular basis anyway.  Most of the
>  climate-control systems in this area are complete with both
>  dehumidifers and humidifiers.  When I find a humidifier operating, I
>  simply unplug the dehumidifier from the humidistat, insuring that it
>  cannot come on during the tuning.  My assumption is that the 8-watt
>  dehumidifier's going off during a tuning has little effect.
>  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

You meant HUMDIFIER here, right? (Lest anyone thinks there's an 8-watt
dehumidifier bar out there!)

>       There are other implications here that are worth mentioning.  I
>  have heard customers with good ears for tunings, tell tales of their
>  pianos going out of tune all at once.  D-C cycling could provide an
>  explanation here.  What if two pianos are side by side and both have
>  climate control systems.  What happens when the pianos are being
>  played together and one cycles and the other one does not?
>
>       And while we're at it, when one is tuning two (or more) pianos
>  together and climate control systems are present, wouldn't it be a
>  good idea to make certain that the tunings are done with uniform
>  climate control systems, that is, with all the dehumidifers on, or
>  with all the dehumidifiers off?

Actually, wouldn't it be a good idea, with two pianos side-by-side, to
attach both pianos to the same "brain"?  I've seen this configuration and
it seems to work just fine.

Maybe I'm one of those "deaf" tuners, but I don't recall ever hearing a
difference--well, not that I was *looking* for--between the cycles of the
dehumidifier bars!  Gee, guys!  Should I hang up my tuning hammer?  Now I
feel left out!  :-)

Ron Torrella                  "Dese are de conditions dat prevail."
School of Music                           --Jimmy Durante
University of Illinois