Temp/RH Data Loggers for Pipe Organ Monitoring

Case Studies

Tinytag data loggers monitor temp/RH to help preservation of a church pipe organ

Monitoring temperature and relative humidity helps ensure the correct conditions are maintained to aid in the conservation of an historic church organ.

Maintaining the correct temperature and humidity in the church is critical to help ensure the ongoing care of an historic church pipe organ. A Tinytag data logger recording environmental conditions over time proved to be a cost-effective solution.

Tinytag temperature and relative humidity data logger for church pipe organ conservation monitoring

St. Matthews Church in Buckley, North Wales, is home to a traditional pipe organ built by Bishop & Sons of Ipswich in 1905. It is worth many thousands of pounds, and the organist raised concerns about the heating conditions in the church not being suitable for the organ. It was suggested that the heating circuit should be increased, however this action would have been costly and not necessarily wise: hard facts about the actual conditions in the church were needed before any decisions could be taken.

The British Organ Builders web site suggested the correct temperature and humidity limits, and a Tinytag Ultra temperature and humidity logger was chosen to monitor the atmosphere in the vicinity of the pipe organ. It was hung at about head height at the rear of the organ, recording every 30 minutes.

After reviewing several months' of data, the Church Maintenance Committee was optimistic that the conditions were within those recommended for traditional pipe organs. The monitoring will continue until they are satisfied that a sufficiently long enough period has passed to be confident about the results. However, since the Tinytag is so unobtrusive and easy to operate it can simply be left in position to record.

Gerald Shone, Chairman of the Church Maintenance Committee, comments "The Tinytag logger provides the hard evidence we needed about the conditions the organ was exposed to. Using the logger should save us a lot of unnecessary expense, and was very worthwhile in ensuring we continue to care for the organ correctly."

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