A light being on or being not on is passive, in that it requires someone to look at it. I like an idea related to what someone else suggested... an obnoxious intermittent beep every 10-15 seconds similar to a smoke detector with low battery. That way, if a church or school has to move a piano, it only beeps three or four times before the piano is in its new location, but the mover(s) had a consistent reminder during the entire move time. Powered by a 9V battery which is changed every year (like a smoke detector) when the rest of the DC unit is serviced. In the event of a power failure, the battery could be removed and laid atop the instrument until power is restored. The unit stays plugged in, so the battery being out doesn't worsen the exposure of the power outage. This could also be an enhancement to the "Pads" warning light, which of course is also activated when the tank is dry. I have also suggested to DC that they have a detachable power cord à la computer for pianos that are moved with any regularity. A box securely mounted inside (preferably!) the rim that the humidistat would plug into, as would the power supply cord. It would provide a break-away cord, rather than having the piano rolling over the cord and ripping out all the clips and/or bending tank hanger rods (where the cord was routed over/around them by someone else!) Paul Bruesch Stillwater, MN On Sun, May 2, 2010 at 3:44 PM, John Ross <jrpiano at win.eastlink.ca> wrote: > *You can see there is no power, as the green light would be off, > indicating no power.* > *John Ross* > *Windsor, Nova Scotia* > > ----- Original Message ----- > *From:* Ryan Sowers <tunerryan at gmail.com> > *To:* pianotech at ptg.org > *Sent:* Sunday, May 02, 2010 5:29 PM > *Subject:* Re: [pianotech] Dampp-chaser improvement > > That's not a bad idea, but a flashing light telling you that there's no > power to the humidstat would be useful. It would also work in cases where an > outlet is controlled by a wall switch. And sometimes it may be important to > temporarily unplug the DC for a short period and the light would remind the > owner to plug it back in. I can't imagine this adding more than 5 or 10 > bucks to the cost of the system > > Ryan > Olympia, WA > > On Sun, May 2, 2010 at 10:02 AM, John Ross <jrpiano at win.eastlink.ca>wrote: > >> *How about a clamp that attaches to that screw holding the faceplate.* >> *A longer screw may be required.* >> *John Ross* >> *Windsor, Nova Scotia* >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> *From:* Ryan Sowers <tunerryan at gmail.com> >> *To:* pianotech at ptg.org >> *Sent:* Sunday, May 02, 2010 1:53 PM >> *Subject:* [pianotech] Dampp-chaser improvement >> >> Hi list! >> >> I thought I would post this idea here, since I know that Dampp-chaser >> occasionally pipes in on these discussions. >> >> One of the biggest problems of DC systems is that they occasionally get >> left unplugged. I tell my clients that having them unplugged for a few hours >> doesn't hurt anything, but if they regularly get left unplugged for extended >> periods, it can be worse than having no system at all. >> >> I contacted Dampp-chaser a couple of years ago with a simple solution: a >> "system unplugged" warning light. It would just have to be a simple battery >> powered LED that would flash when the system is unplugged, reminding owners >> to plug it back in. I think it would be way more effective then the "Stop!" >> sticker on the plug. >> >> Maybe if a few of us made this suggestion to them it could at least be >> offered as an optional component. >> >> -- >> Ryan Sowers, RPT >> Puget Sound Chapter >> Olympia, WA >> www.pianova.net >> >> > > > -- > Ryan Sowers, RPT > Puget Sound Chapter > Olympia, WA > www.pianova.net > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20100502/4911fa62/attachment.htm>
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