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  • 1.  humidity problems in historic log cabin

    Posted 06-05-2015 10:54 AM

    One of our county historical societies is having humidity problems in its historic log cabin. According to the society, moisture levels reach near 100% in this small building. They have worked on the building in the past making it fairly tightly sealed. Complicating matters is the lack of electricity to the building. Does anyone have any suggestions for lowering the humidity inside the building? They were thinking of installing some type of exhaust fan on the chimney.

    Kelli

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    Kelli Bacon
    Preservation Archivist
    Nebraska History Museum - Nebraska State Historical Society
    Lincoln NE
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  • 2.  RE: humidity problems in historic log cabin

    Posted 06-05-2015 11:12 AM

    Air circulation is important in any building, but I'd guide against "over protecting" the building by trying to achieve something it wasn't designed to provide . . . namely some modern standard of consistent relative humidity.  If you artificially make it too dry in the building, you can cause as many problems as if it's routinely too damp.  My inclination would be to make sure that air is circulating as freely as possible, and let the building adjust naturally to outside conditions, the way it has been doing since the day it was built.

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    James Mackay
    Director
    The Lyceum
    Alexandria VA
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  • 3.  RE: humidity problems in historic log cabin

    Posted 06-05-2015 11:13 AM

    "Guard against" I meant to say . . . :-)

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    James Mackay
    Director
    The Lyceum
    Alexandria VA
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more