Humidity while building?
#1
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From: White Rock,
NM
I just had a thought. It has been really humid here recently due to all the rain we've had. On top of that, the houses here are equipped with swamp coolers, which means the house is loaded with moisture, so much so that the door frames expand (contract). My building area is downstairs in the basement, but that doens't keep the humidity entirely out of the air.
Does anyone think that excess moisture will affect the balsa and potentially cause warping of the structure when it is finished and dries out?
Does anyone think that excess moisture will affect the balsa and potentially cause warping of the structure when it is finished and dries out?
#2

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I've built in 'damp basements' for a long time and hated it...the wood would get 'mushy' and the plans were damp - UGH!
But to answer your questions, yes, unglued wood will warp, especially sheeting. But it seemed once the wood was 'fixed' into place, it stayed there. Of course when you brought your plane out of the damp basement into the warm sun, the covering was a wrinkled prune in no time.
Maybe the great humidity change caused some aerodynamic changes I didn't see and could explain the crashes....naw, it was pilot error all the way
But to answer your questions, yes, unglued wood will warp, especially sheeting. But it seemed once the wood was 'fixed' into place, it stayed there. Of course when you brought your plane out of the damp basement into the warm sun, the covering was a wrinkled prune in no time.
Maybe the great humidity change caused some aerodynamic changes I didn't see and could explain the crashes....naw, it was pilot error all the way



