Tim,

It isn't the temperature as much as sudden changes in relative humdity
that you need to be concerned about. In looking at any off-site
storage space you need to look at all the risks - is there adequate
fire alarm and suppression? In there a security system that restricts
access? Also, is there a history of roof leaks or flooding (use the
brightest flashlight you can get and physically examine the structure
to look for signs of water staining, etc.) Also with wooden objects
pests are an ever present threat - so developing an integrated pest
management program for offsite storage is important too (especially
setting out rtaps and doing regular monitoring).

Since you are in Rhode Island, in Newport, the threat from
northeasters and hurricanes are very real (they wouldn't be in Kansas)
so you'd be well served by constructing two tier dollies to place the
furniture on so that they are well off the floor in case of a storm or
flood event.

A dedicated storage room inside of a warehouse is a good idea that has
been successfully done many times. You'll need to construct it so you
have it solid and also well insulated to buffer any sudden changes in
relative humidity. Monitor the environment (there are some excellent
and inexpensive environmental dataloggers around these days) and have
several portable dehumidifiers and fans on hand in case your relative
humdity spikes. For your area on the east coast you pretty much want
to keep furniture and wooden artifacts around 50% and be concerned if
the RH suddenly jumps over 10% up or down in any 24 hr. period. Of
course there will be changes in the RH due to the changes in the
seasonal environment, but those changes should happen over weeks, not
hours. There are also moisture meters that you can buy to monitor
whether you have rising damp on the floor and walls.

Mold and mildew are real problems when you start getting over 50% RH,
so you want to keep that in mind too.

Of special concern would be objects that are glued and laminated -
such as tennis racquets themselves. When I lived in Denver extra low
RH was more of a concern because it would cause glues to fail and
veneer to pop off, and upward spikes in RH would cause wood to swell
and joints to crack. So in a semi-arid climates you want to keep wood
and organics accilmated more on the lower side to 20 to 25% RH.

Of course the big caveat is what are the collections in question and
their current condition?

There should be some excellent conservators there who you can consult
with on this.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Conservator
Los Angeles, California  USA

On 10/10/06, Tim Wade <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> Dear List;
>
>
>
> I am in the process of establishing an off-site storage unit for some of our
> furniture collections. Unfortunately we don't have the money to rent a
> climate-controlled unit, so we have to go for one with an external door.
>
>
>
> My concern is humidity and temperature fluctuations…of course it is better
> than what we have now (an empty theatre that has openings to the elements!).
>
>
>
> My question to the list is this: what should I do to minimize the damage
> that could be done? I was considering making a room-within-a-room, out of
> 2x4's and insulation, and maybe moisture barrier…but then I would be
> concerned with trapping moisture on the concrete floor…
>
>
>
> So thoughts anyone?
>
>
>
> Tim Wade
>
> Associate Collections Manager
>
> International Tennis Hall of Fame
>  Newport, RI
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