Watch out with that Central Heating

[Mike Franch]

1 hour ago, David Barnert said:

And, of course, we often have no control over the conditions in the rooms we play in.

So you add to the list of things your bring--your instrument, your music, your music stand, etc--you bring your own air!

[Don Taylor]

1 hour ago, David Barnert said:

And, of course, we often have no control over the conditions in the rooms we play in.

True, but I would not have thought that the wood would dry out excessively in a few hours.

 

45% to 55% RH is recommended for humans and I think that is a good range for wooden instruments.

 

I have a 'Govee' hygrometer that I bought off Amazon that broadcasts its data over bluetooth.  I can put it in the case with my concertina and keep an eye on the humidity inside the case with an app on my phone.  It  shows me graphs of temp and humidity over several weeks. 

 

A bit (or a lot?) geeky, but there you are.

 

 

[Jody Kruskal]

8 hours ago, Ruairi said:

Jody, that's good to knonononononononow

But on a serious note, can I just clarify that you're saying that the tension/tightness of the end screws is that relevant to helping with expanding/contracting frames? Are they not at risk of being stripped if they're not sufficiently tight? And I don't mean really tight, but just more so than you mention? Or is it the opposite case? I'm returning to my natural state of confusion with this instrument....

Thanks

Ruairi

I'm just saying that I don't want the end screws to be super tight or too loose either, so a seasonal adjustment bringing them just snug enough is in order. I like to check them twice a year in early summer and winter.

[Sohcahtoa]

This is good advice Jody. I live in Canada, and between the very cold dry winters and quite humid warm summers, I've noticed end bolts on my Jeffries become very tight in the summer months if I haven't backed them off.

 

In the winter, without a humidifier it can get excessively dry in the house. I once had a banjo head self-destruct because of the dryness. I run two humidifiers and can keep the main floor around 40% humidity. The instruments are much happier these days. 

[Ruairi]

That's very helpful; I think I live in the same kind of environment in Ohio, very hot and humid summers and very cold and dry winters, so I will definitely follow this advice. Sohcahtoa, my tenor banjo has never exploded despite my wife's wishes, but we'll see how summer treats the new concertina (which she loves!)

Also, it was mentioned in a related discussion that certain woods react differently to humidity and such, which I assumed to be true but I don't know the extent of their reaction; my concertina has Rosewood ends, mainly due to my preference for it on guitar necks which is probably not the best reason for picking it; does anyone have any thoughts on how this affects these issues?

Many thanks,

Ruairi

[Marcus]

Humidity here in Bermuda hangs around about 85% most of the time and during the hottest times around 95 to 99%. 

[alex_holden]

10 hours ago, Marcus said:

Humidity here in Bermuda hangs around about 85% most of the time and during the hottest times around 95 to 99%. 

 

With that much humidity I would be concerned about mould on the leather parts.

[SIMON GABRIELOW]

2 hours ago, alex_holden said:

 

With that much humidity I would be concerned about mould on the leather parts.

I wonder if that happened, if leather cleaning wipes ( readily available) could prevent such an issue ?

[wes williams]

I remember reading something about action end warping many years ago, and the solution was said to be putting a layer of damp sawdust on the end, and leave it until the warp righted itself. Anybody like to comment?

[alex_holden]

6 hours ago, wes williams said:

I remember reading something about action end warping many years ago, and the solution was said to be putting a layer of damp sawdust on the end, and leave it until the warp righted itself. Anybody like to comment?

 

I'm dubious that it would be a permanent cure. If you add moisture to one side of a board, it expands unevenly and causes it to bend, the wetter side becoming more convex. Eventually it will dry out and bend back again, unless you've mechanically prevented it from moving. Clamping a warped board flat can sometimes create a lot of tension, potentially causing glue joints to fail or even splitting the wood.

[SIMON GABRIELOW]

I wonder, on this issue of "wood warping,".. if in fact having metal face plate is advantage over wooden facing on concertina?

I imagine it has that advantage; whatever metal sheeting used.

I wouldn't say using sawdust is a good idea for absorbing damp or correcting warping .

Edited May 29, 2022 by SIMON GABRIELOW

[Chris Ghent]

The material the end is made from will make no difference as the potential warping is in the reed pan and pad board. As far as the sawdust goes, you have misunderstood the use of it. 

[Ruairi]

On 5/29/2022 at 3:39 PM, Chris Ghent said:

The material the end is made from will make no difference as the potential warping is in the reed pan and pad board. As far as the sawdust goes, you have misunderstood the use of it. 

That's a relief to know, thanks Chris, only 999 concertina problems left to solve,,,,

[Fdracula110]

I live in So. California and own a 1919, wooden ended Wheatstone. I often spend time camping in the Mojave Desert. 

As you can guess there can be nearly unbearable heat and zero humidity. 

I also restored, refurbished and refinished violins for many years. A simple method used by violinists for centuries is to roll up a small piece of cloth, say two by four inches, moisten it lightly at both ends and tuck it in the case. Doesn't take long to adjust the number of drops to put on the cloth and how often. 

Of course, a cheap hygrometer is a good idea.

Edited July 7, 2022 by Fdracula110

[David Barnert]

6 hours ago, Fdracula110 said:

A simple method used by violinists for centuries is to roll up a small piece of cloth, say two by four inches, moisten it lightly at both ends and tuck it in the case.

 

Violins don’t have steel reeds. Read Frank Edgley’s  post from a month and a half ago:

 

 

[Fdracula110]

Understood. I'm not talking about a wet rag. The nature of hide glue, in both the violin and the vintage concertina, is subject to problems in either direction. That is, hide glue does not react well to either too much or too little humidity. But if you keep the glue in, "it's" comfort zone, the wood will do generally well. 

I don't think I would use that method in London but in the southwestern US it can be helpful.

PS violins do have steel, silver, gold and platinum strings.

Edited July 7, 2022 by Fdracula110

[SIMON GABRIELOW]

Maybe a good measure of what to do is consider the instrument very much like yourselves; its got lungs [bellows] for air to breathe, and reeds like vocal chords to speak with. And a body to enclose everything within.

In other words just think how you would react [yourself] to excess environmental conditions and adjust your musical friend also accordingly!