Based on a suggestion over at the Model Railroad Hobbyist blog, I got a "Breathe Easy" humidifier from WalMart on my way home from work last night, set it up under Goff Brook, and left it on for 24 hours. And Did Nothing Else. That's all I did. Behold!
I guess increasing the humidity from 15% to 35% (or, rather, allowing the the air to get so dry in the first place) really does make a difference. Not that I doubted any of the feedback I got, but it's amazing how profound the difference is.
I guess increasing the humidity from 15% to 35% (or, rather, allowing the the air to get so dry in the first place) really does make a difference. Not that I doubted any of the feedback I got, but it's amazing how profound the difference is.
Now the only downside is that I won't know whether any expansion gaps I cut will have made any difference. Looking back on it, I might have been better off cutting the gaps first and seeing if the rail would shift back into place before doing anything with the humidity.
But based on Joe Fugate's "Chester Principle" (belt and suspenders) as well as feedback from others, I'll probably go ahead and cut the gaps anyway. That should certainly prevent anything like this from happening in the future. And, having seen how the rest of the layout copes with "worst case/humidity scenario" now, I'm pretty confident it should all be ok.
Chris
ReplyDeleteExcellent! I did wonder how this would be sorted without a humidifier..Isn't wood grand? I keep my modules/layout in a room in the apartment where the environment stays the most constant. Do you think it's best to avoid making any cuts if the problem remains sorted?
Paul