Will the Emerald Isle turn my concertina green?

[Syncopepper]

In October I will be traveling to Ireland for several weeks and bringing a wood-ended Aeola with me.  At home my concertinas live in a climate controlled music room. October will likely be cool and wet in Ireland and I'm wondering if I should be doing something to keep it from picking up too much humidity. I have read that silica gel packs may overly dry the wood and, of course, taking it out to play will quickly expose it to whatever conditions are in the room.

 

I have a hydrometer to keep in the case for monitoring purposes and could use silica gel with discretion to control humidity. Does this sound like a good idea? Also is it possible I may run into too dry conditions? I would appreciate any advice from those who have travel experience.

[Geoff Wooff]

I  seriously  doubt  you  will have  any  problems  with  your Aeola   in Ireland ..... unless you  play  in the rain.  Most  people  play  indoors  with  a  humidity  range  of  70- 90%RH.  and  temperatures  of  18 to  24°Centigrade  I  have  very very  rarely  had  a problem  with  any  of  the  old  concertinas  I've  owned  whilst travelling  or  living  in Ireland  .   One  has  to  remember  that  an old Aeola  was  made  in London   in  similar  climatic  conditions  to  those  encountered  in Ireland.

 

Decided to  edit  to  add  the possible problem of  condensation. Most  smaller  buildings  (bars  etc.) will  not have  air conditioning  so  when  intending to  enter  such an  establishment  to  play  your  instrument  it  is  best to arrive  early  and  get  your  concertina out of its  case to  acclimatize, bringing it  up to  room temperature .  Bars  and the like  can  be  quite  humid  and  cold  concertina  reeds  can  condense moisture. Usually  not  much of  a problem  unless the instrument  is  returned  to  a  well sealed  case  whilst  still  damp.

 

Hope you  enjoy  your  Ireland  trip.

Edited August 4, 2022 by Geoff Wooff
To add the condensation paragraph.

[Peter Laban]

It is very unlikely you will run into conditions too dry. That said, while October is more likely to give you a larger chance of periods of  heavy rain, summer is likely to have higher humidity. Right now I am sitting here with a window open, airing the place at 18 Celsius  and hygrometer indicating 83%. A few days ago it was up to the mid 90s with mist sitting low on the hills. Rust and mould on the leather parts are the more long term worries for various instruments here. Even with a dehumidifier doing a turn every day and a woodstove going in midwinter I have yet to see humidity go below 55 inside the house (but then, it's an old house in the West).

Edited August 4, 2022 by Peter Laban