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Topic: Temperature And Instrument Storage |
Lawrence Lupkin
From:
Brooklyn, New York, USA
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Posted 22 Aug 2005 5:34 am |
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How hot is too hot to store a steel or a six-string? The top floor of my house can get really hot during the summer, but it is an idea storage space. Is there some consensus as to where the top end is without causing damage?
Thanks!
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Ray Minich
From:
Bradford, Pa. Frozen Tundra
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Posted 22 Aug 2005 9:31 am
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| I've not had the attic temp hurt any musical instruments but it gets pretty warm near the roof sheeting, and the temp did kill a cdrom drive in a tower PC I had setting on my workbench too close to the (uninsulated) roof. On a hot sunny summer day, it gets stifling (sp?) in the attic. Gotta run a ventilation fan to keep the temp down. It would definitely soften tar. |
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Hook Moore
From:
South Charleston,West Virginia
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Posted 22 Aug 2005 9:36 am
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My rule of thumb is, if I`m not personally fairly comfortable in the room, then my guitars aren`t going to be either.
Hook
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www.HookMoore.com
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John De Maille
From:
On a Mountain in Upstate Halcottsville, N.Y.
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Posted 22 Aug 2005 9:39 am
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Wood, metal, and plastic finishes, all expand and contract at different temperatures. Humidity will affect wood, no matter how long it's aged. So, I would try to store my musical instruments, where the temp and humidity stays rather constant, or close to. Severe temp changes can drastically damage a finish or crack wood members. Also, if you leave the instrument tuned to pitch, and the temp takes a severe change, you might find yourself with a warped neck or body. If that happens, it's almost impossible to change back. Severe temps also make lacquers, enamels, and polycoats check (crack) terribly.
I would be careful where I store my instruments for a long term stay. It's not always convenient to have them laying around in the living room, but, the other outcome can be heartbreaking. TALKING FROM EXPERIENCE. |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 22 Aug 2005 1:22 pm
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Hook took the words from my mouth, and this is the most common advice I've heard given by luthiers.
Some things are more sensitive than others. Anything with thin wood and a lot of glued wooden joints, like an acoustic guitar, violin, or mandolin, is particularly sensitive to high heat and humidity. I've seen hide-glue acoustic guitars literally come apart under hot-car or hot-attic temperatures.
For example, a friend completely trashed one of the best D-18s I ever heard by leaving it for just an hour in a hot, unventilated pickup truck. It just came apart like a cheap suit - the bridge and a bunch of braces came unglued, the neck dovetail joint came loose, etc. On something like this, the margin for error may be small. On the other hand, my metal-bodied Sierra S-10 has gotten quite warm with no ill effects, except once having to reglue the mica on the pedal bar - the glue softened enough that it came loose.
Sometimes, there's no way to keep an instrument from getting quite warm, like on a long ride in a trunk/trailer on a hot day. In this case, I slacken the strings and do my best to keep it as cool as possible with good ventilation. Direct sunlight and no ventilation can be a prescription for disaster.
How about adding insulation to the roof/walls, a ventilation fan, and/or a small air conditioner? It's possible to get A/C units which are free-standing in a room, and are ventilated like a clothes dryer, with flexible pipe into a small ventilation hole. |
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Lawrence Lupkin
From:
Brooklyn, New York, USA
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Posted 23 Aug 2005 10:16 am
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Thanks for all your replies. Dave, a ventilation fan doesn't really do much good and I can't see running air conditioning 24/7 in a otherwise unused room. I guess everything stays downstairs until the snow flies.
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