Piano in a Basement

[MzrtMusic]

Not sure where to post this, so I'll try here too...

Hello all...

My parents are thinking about having a new house built for us to move into. They are planning a full basement, which would be given to me for my bedroom, and a full studio. (I teach almost full time... As school allows) When they asked me what I thought about it, I was grateful for the space, but I had some serious doubts about putting my grand piano in a basement. It's an 8 year old 6'1" Young Chang G-185. My mother says that it would be OK because it's a brand new house, built using some sort of moisture protection, and because it would be a walk-out basement. So we wouldn't have all of the mildew problems. New construction aside, I still have some qualms about putting it down there. I live in the Ohio Valley, and there is some pretty serious humidity in the summer, some pretty serious dryness in the winter, and lots and lots of rain in the spring. Any thoughts or experiences out there?

Thanks!

Sarah

[minsmusic]

Only that I'm jealous Sarah.  

There's this product - goes under lots of different names- but it comes in a container which you can put in the cavity of the piano, and it sucks up moisture.  When it is full you get a new one.

The only other thing I can think of is make sure the piano isn't too close to walls and especially windows.

sorry I can't be of much help.  Hopefully someone will come along with better advice.  

But congrats on your piano.  

[dchaikin]

A room dehumidifier would also work in the summer.  The basin fills with water extracted from the air, and you just dump the basin when it gets full.  I think they're relatively inexpensive.

There is a humidifier unit made by Dampp-Chaser (www.dampp-chaser.com) that can help during the dry months.  This unit needs to be installed in the piano, but your tuner can probably do that easily.  An LED display flashes when it needs water.

Dan

[MzrtMusic]

Thanks for the ideas... I currently have a humidifier for in the winter. I also know about the Dampp Chaser. I guess that my real concern is how is this going to affect my piano long term? There are ways to control the climate around the piano... But after one or two or five years of being down there, will things be getting messed up? My parents keep saying it's going to be just like any other space, but the concrete floor, and half of the space having concrete walls right up agains the ground still kinda bothers me...

Sarah

[Bob]

I've seen devices like a thermostat that monitor humidity.  Once it becomes too dry, it turns on the power to the humidifier.

Just make sure you can control the temperature and humidity.  Windows can be a problem for the sun warming up the room and then having it cool down -- the strings go out of tune faster.

And, of course, that your basement never floods...

I'd also be worried about my ears with concrete walls...