? I live in Philadelphia. For my spring break im going to Tucson, AZ to visit a friend for a week. He Really wants me to bring my pipes. My question is will the change in climate ruin my reeds? Thanks for any advice
Patrick
Yup. AZ is unbelievably dry and hot and reeds will not survive there unless they are made there or in similar conditions.
PD.
I’ll let you know in a couple of weeks. 
Reeds both travel better and play more consistantly than many people seem to believe or want to let on. You’ll find dryer consitions and hotter conditions in many other locations across the US and abroad. It’s a complex equation that governs the playability of reeds, and only looking at one or two components isn’t going to give an accurate picture.
There’s as good a chance as any you can go and return with your pipes and the greatest difficulty you may have will be with the TSA guys. Reeds are affected by climate change certainly, but they don’t wiother into nothingness with any shift in relative water or temp of the air.
In extreme conditions they do and I would consider Arizona to be just that. I have played there and it took four humidifiers going at once to keep the reeds going. Where I live in Southern California it’s very dry also and I have played my pipes in just about every state (both drunk and sober) so have a fair bit of experience dealing with these issues. The worst I’ve ever experienced was Telluride, CO. The dryness was one thing but it was the altitude (10,000’) that caused me to play the whistle instead.
You’re making reeds now Brian right? I bet one made in your locality would work for Patrick?
Pat.
Arizona can vary as much as any other state. I’ve had reeds in the Pacifit north west that didn’t play well and reeds back east that didn’t play well. And I’ve heard reeds that played in Ireland, east US coast, west coast, and many MANY points in between with little difficulty in the shift (SAME reeds mind you). It can happen that way yes. Extremes will exist anywhere you go.
I think as much has to do with the characteristics of the chanter and the methodology of the assembly and scrape of a given reed as anything to do with climate in general. Arizona is more moist than many people seem to think. Same with Utah. Same with Idaho, Nevada, Colorado etc. etc. It can get dry, but it is not dry all the time. You can also find widely varying conditions at different altitudes - as Pat mentioned here. Though having played myself at altitudes approaching 13,000 feet - it can be done and the change in tone etc., while noticeable, didn’t make anything unplayable.
Be aware of your surroundings, but don’t be afraid to travel with your pipes. It’s not as bad as all that. Truly.
P.S. Yes Pat, been at reeds for a few years now. Not as active as I’d like but that’s what happens with life, family etc. right? I’m as likely to have reed issues with the ones I make as anyone else’s - probably more as I’m no master. But I’ve learned a great deal about what works and doesn’t in regards to climate. Adjustments are needed from time to time of course, but that is true anywhere you live. All the best!
Hey Brian,
In case you weren’t aware - David Power will be out here over the weekend of March 31st and April 1st www.socalpipers.com
Pat.
I was indeed - and very sorry I won’t be able to join you all. What with the starving kids at home and all… 
Tell the man his fish are waiting the next time he cares to grace us! You all will have some mighty times to be sure!!
Well Arizona is really dry. I disagree with the fact that it is moister than most people think, even the high elevations are bone dry. Look at our rainfall and humidity. I do agree it is not dry all the time, just almost all the time. Hoping to visit with some humidity for your pipes is generally just a pipedream.
I think most pipers who consider their climates dry would be surprised what happens to their reeds when they sit here a while in AZ. Today it is 34% humidity and this is a good day in more humid Phoenix with moderate cloud cover. Next week Monday it should be around 90 and even drier. Tucson will be drier because there is less vegetation. In the short term 1 to 3 days the reed may be fine and should perform with adjustment. An extended period our here could prove fatal to the reed as I have seen in many makers chanters from more humid climates. Brian, when you sold your Pat Murray set to a fiddler here the reeds were all closed up and totally shot from what was considered a dry climate to begin with, our dryness just killed those reeds from Salt Lake. AZ humidity for an extended period can be very damaging to reeds in the long term “IF” they don’t acclimate well, and most reeds don’t. Softer cane that is thicker tends to make the transition better in my experience. Do a nail or dunk test and find that good soft cane for your dry reeds.
I find that dry reeds tend to take both wet and dry conditions more favorably. While reeds made in a more humid climate tend to take the dry transition poorly. Arizona is very dry and reeds that tend to stay here for an extended period close down and generally go downhill in my experience. The ideal solution is to make a reed for this climate. Though if a reed is really well made to begin with it certainly can survive and have excellent performance.
I do advise pipers who take their pipes into the desert to use some form of humidification. Put the pipes in some kind of container and add a wet rag or humidifier to keep the humidity up. I am always surprised at how fast wood shrinks out here pulling glue away from ferrules and loosening hemped rings. When playing, aim a humidifier at the bellow’s intake. I have seen many good pipers use this with good results. You can also put a wet rag over or near the bellows intake to keep the reeds going. If none of these are available. A last resort is to pour a little water in the bellows and swish it around.
Arizona desert piping is not all gloom. A little preparation and you can avoid a headache. I do think reedmaking in a dry climate is a definite plus.
- Jason
The reeds that were sent with the chanter weren’t playing well (one not at all as it was cracked, the original reed from Pat I believe) up here either and I had hoped to make a new one but never heard from her again after that. Didn’t have anything to do with the climate.
When I had my pipes down there the last two years I never had any troubles near what some claim to experience. Are there changes in how everything plays? Sure. But not on the scale or irreversible depths of hellish damage that seems to be alluded to. Must be a bunch of unlucky pipers??
I am definitely not saying that all reeds will not work out here. The Pat Murray reeds looked like they just did the normal dry climate close up out here. I am not blaming the reed close up on you or anyone else, just the dry climate. Though I just got to look at the reeds quickly and had no time to try to bring them back. I cannot fully speak for them, but it did look like climate shock.
What I am saying is a short visit out here for a few days and you should be ok if you are going from dry - dry. Also remember that your reeds were coming from a dry climate to another dry climate not a wet to dry climate like the original post stated. I have a friend in Colorado who has brought his set out here twice for concerts and they performed fine. This is because he was already coming from a dry climate. Taking a wet to dry climate reed out here can a quite troublesome right away.
- Jason
stlcurtain6n5, don’t go by hearsay or guesswork. Get a hygrometer and measure what is actually going on in your own home or wherever it is you play your pipes. I got one last fall, and I have noticed all winter that the humidity has never risen above 27-28% in my house. If you measure the winter humidity in your home you may find it is similar, so in that case AZ shouldn’t be a big change at all.
djm
I appreciate all of your inputs but the reed i have now although sounding very good has a small stress crack in it so im going to play it safe and leave the pipes at home. I would rather be pipeless for a week then reedless for a couple of months. On a side note David P. was my teacher for a couple years and i can’t express enough how much he has helped my piping and I know he’ll do the same for you folks over their on the warmer side of the US. So be a sponge and soak up the knowledge he has to offer.
Thanks again,
Patrick
Hey Jason,
I think you are making the right choice in leaving the pipes at home, given that the reed may be damagedalready. When a reed acts up due to climate/elevation changes, I think what typically kills the reed nine times out of ten is the hasty attempts to adjust it to get playing. When it closes down due to the dryness, it is easy to contort the reed beyond hope be trying to force the lips open with the bridle. I think what typically happens is that you create leaks in the sides of the reed, or cause the edges to colapse slightly when trying to get it playable. A robust reed may withstand the abuse and return to normal once you return to the home world, but a marginal reed is a real crap shoot. Speaking of David Power, he has had only very minor difficulties with his reeds the two times he has visited Salt Lake. Obviously, since David makes his own reeds, so he has a good idea what they will and won’t tolerate adjustment wise, plus he obviously has a few extras in his quiver when travelling. I was asking him about how he makes his reeds and I think the sum of it is that he prefers to use softer cane so the reed does not have to be scraped as thin, also he definitely plays a stiff reed. I think this type of reed is not as sensitive to climate changes as a very thin and easy to play reed.
There is a lot of unfounded fear-mongering about how reed un-friendly the (relatively) dry climate is in our neck of the woods and I would just point out in defense of the climate in the great basin that there are far worse places to be stuck playing the pipes (climate-wise, not liqour law-wise) subject to extremes in relative humidity and temperature, many populated by a great number of players (and a few makers). A case in point: I took my pipes to Maine and Quebec last July when it had been raining non-stop for a month and the day time temperatures were in the nineties. The pipes were unplayable. Low an behold when I asked local pipers they said they had the same problem when the weather gets this way - they just play the whistle! My reed never recovered. Allah be praised for the stability of the humidity here in Zion. Now If he could just do something about those infernal Llamas!
I think that DJM has an excellent point that many people do not think about and that is being aware of the relative humidity in your local enviroment, as well as places you plan to travel to. Relative humitity determines the moisture content of wood (not absolute humidity), moisture content in turn drives the dimensional swelling/contraction of wood. Cabinet makers and the sort take this into account when making wood-on-wood joints so they won’t undergo compresive failure in high RH and won’t fall apart under low RH. Cane responds to RH in a similar fashion, being made from cellulose and lignins like wood. Relative humidity is the amount of water in the air relative to the maximum amount of water the air can hold at a given temperature and pressure. Cold air can hold less moisture so this is why relative humidity typically drops in the colder areas of the country in winter, and goes up in the summer. Elevation is also a factor. So a hygrometer is a good thing to have on hand when comparing climates.
BTW, friar D’Arcy, Brian may not be coming to socal for Mr. Power’s visit, but the worse element of the Salt Lake Piper’s Club will be descending upon ye in mass! lock up your liqour and hide your women folk, the Utard pipers are coming! Actually, Brian can’t come because he has to clean up the club house while we are away as a punishment for not consuming the proscribed number of pints 'o Guiness at the regular Monday sessions
John.
Damnit. I hate cleaning that flippin toilet too. 
Who’s brilliant idea WAS it anyway to toilet train [u]Baxter[/u] anyway???
Toilet? we have a toilet?
I’ve just going behind that tree out back 
Wish you could make it Brian, we’ll toast a pint in your memory (before we lose our memory).
John.
Is that a Quinn chanter on Baxter’s page??
i am inclined to agree with brian. I just had a chanter come to me from. St. Louis MO, and now its in new mexico. thats about an 80% humidity change. It still seems to be in tune. If it is sharp its only a fraction so. Thats about as extreme of a change as you can get and it seems to be holding up fine.
Also i have heard that harder cane stays more consistent from climate to climate. (makes sence)
alex