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Help with a suggestion for using audio equipment in extremely humid climate conditions

I had never before such question as the climate conditions where I live are normal.

But I am thinking to move part of my audio stuff to a coast, very close to the sea (100 meters or so). I think some audio/digital stuff (CDs, for instance) are not so tolerant to high humidity. I wonder if there are can be some special suggestions, say special audio brands, tube or solid state is more resistant,  speakers, etc.

Thanks, in advance, guys for your input!


Nodari

128x128niodari
erik_squires
5,268 posts
 
So this may not have been clear. The OP was talking about SALT WATER.

That is particularly corrosive. It doesn't have to rain on the gear to suffer from it. As I've read over the years, it will quickly corrode bare boards. You really want to use only masked printed circuit boards here, and even then, you are still going to suffer a loss of life span.


Best,
E
elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
Millions of folks live next to salt water here in the USA too. I do not read any long whines about audiophile equipment destruction because they live next to the ocean. and at least a third of them also have high humidity..  More about cars... But that also pales compared to the auto rust caused by Northern salted in Winter roads.So I am beginning to think the worry is more theoretical... Sure be careful. But worry? no.
larryi
1,972 posts
 
I lived in Hawaii in a house on a hill where strong winds carried air laden with both moisture and salt (coconut trees would die from salt damage).  Any equipment left outdoors would be subject to accelerated corrosion.  But, indoors, corrosion was not that big a problem.  The salt settles out of the air pretty readily if it is not moving very vigorously.  To be extra safe, I would keep the gear away from direct exposure to a breeze from the outside, and perhaps, a cabinet would help too. 

As for humidity, it is hard to say how much it would affect the life of your gear and your CD's.  I suppose certain kinds of gear are more sensitive than others.  For example, I know that Martin Logan electrostatics are somewhat prone to failure from the wires leading to either stator or the diaphragm corroding in high humidity environments (a friend's speaker failed this way after a little more than a year of storage in his garage in the Washington DC area (a VERY high humidity environment)).
niodari's avatar
niodari OP
33 posts
 

Thanks guys, for your input!

Surely, I meant more or less expensive gear, otherwise there would be no concerns. I have heard from the people leaving on the coast that electronics like TVs, DVD players do suffer from being close to a sea. This was the reason of my initial concern. Using dehumidifier or even just a towel to protect the equipment from an extreme moisture and salt is, for sure, useful and perhaps necessary (surprisingly, this didn't come to my mind). I personally do not like to leave the gear on when they are not in use, or even leave them plugged in even if they are used everyday (after all, the safety considerations) - I have seen amplifier bare boards with a constant electric current (because of the stand-on mode) after a few years of use, in an essentially poorer conditions than the rest of the boards in the same amp.

It is interesting whether an extreme heat or an extreme humidity is worse. In fact, I didn´t know there are bare boards made without solder masks, or did you mean another type of a mask (my tube amp (Manley) does have a solder mask). But did I understand correctly that, in general, tube stuff might be more sensible to the humidity (independently of how the bare boars are made,  or  because of tube sockets?).  In an audio system, there are two necessary components, amplifiers and speakers, one cannot avoid them. Then one wishes to make an optimal selection for a given climate conditions.

P.S. Why a class D amplifier would be more resistant to the humidity(because it keeps inside the voltage, but tube amps also)?

 

elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
I would think that sealed cases on your equipment would be far less prown to damage than open or cases with ventilation holes. Thus ues a cals D amp with a sealed case would be much safer and protected from the salt air breeze, than say a tube amplifier with a large screen, or open to the air tubes. 
On the other hand, you have to discover for yourself where, and how you can place your equipment so it does not get harmed.
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