Min max speaker temperature/humidity range

blofse

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Hi, relatively simple question but I'm sure it's not a simple answer. We have recently constructed a garage like building (it's a room not connected to the house) which is currently lacking a pvc door because that will be arriving in the new year. It has a temporary door which means the room is around 6 degrees and humidity about 65% on a wet day. The room doesn't get damp and it's watertight, so I'm more worried about the temperature.
I have an option of leaving the heater on to keep the speakers at a minimum temperature, however that will cost a small fortune in electrical heating.

The main question is what are the range limits for speakers without damaging them? During operation, I will be expecting the room to be about 20 degrees so that should be fine. When I'm not using them, is it bad for them to be at 4 degrees for instance? my guess is it would be worse to increase and decrease the temperature rapidly, so leaving at a low temperature until I use the room might not effect the glue fixing the speakers in place etc.

Worst case I can not setup the speakers until we get the door and store them in the house - however I would rather set everything up and then leave it in the room without having to turn the heater on until I need to use them.

I suspect I know what the answer will be after typing out, but please let me know your thoughts - cheers.
 
I suspect the humidity will be more likely to do damage - but bear in mind that speakers have sensitive moving parts, particularly flexible seals around the coils which will go hard at low temperatures. If you're actually using them as opposed to storing them then unless you get the room up to temperature well before you do (hours - maybe days) to ensure the speakers themselves are warm, you run the risk of splitting the seals.

That and condensation (especially on the electric components, leading to corrosion and maybe shorts) would be my big concerns.

I'm writing this as someone who currently has some (old and not valuable) hi-fi equipment in un-heated storage - but it's not something I'd choose to do.
 
I certainly wouldn’t store my speakers in the garage. According to Google, 18-25 degrees is the recommended temperature.

Since the speakers are made out of wood, I can only imagine it’s not ideal.
 
If you are really worried about humidity there's a simple solution. Wrap the speakers in polythene sheeting and include a moisture-absorbing tub to collect any residual moisture. Temperature should be no problem.

I say this in full confidence as my boat is winterised in the sub-frexzing Netherlands (and has been for the last 12 winters) with windows closed, and tubs of moisture-absorbing crystals to keep humidity low. No damage to any of the 8 loudspeakers, or bedding or anything else that's stored on board. The air temperatures around the boat have been recorded as low as -22 degree Centigrade (-7 deg F).
 
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I certainly wouldn’t store my speakers in the garage. According to Google, 18-25 degrees is the recommended temperature.

Since the speakers are made out of wood, I can only imagine it’s not ideal.
so what happens when its 30C in the summer and overnight temps in winter drop below 18c? I would ask the speaker company, my TV manual stated 5-50C. I tried checking online for what companies say in thier manuals and interestingly none give any sort of usage conditions
 
so what happens when its 30C in the summer and overnight temps in winter drop below 18c?
Doesn't matter. The trees that the speakers are made of could cope with big seasonal temperature fluctuations. Avoid very rapid changes, but over time, no problem. Boat interiors don't suffer 40C to -22C over an entire year - it causes no harm to fancy wood interiors - or the speakers in the ceilings!
 
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I'll second avoiding sudden temperature changes - I've cracked a wooden toy before by bringing it in from a cold (below freezing) workshop into a central heated house. However, that shouldn't be a serious issue where the building is being heated part time, as the temperature changes will be gradual.

I think the OP is talking about having his speakers set up to use, rather than just stored? If so, wrapping them up with a dehumidifier isn't going to be very practical...
 
Doesn't matter. The trees that the speakers are made of could cope with big seasonal temperature fluctuations. Avoid very rapid changes, but over time, no problem. Boat interiors don't suffer 40C to -22C over an entire year causes no harm to fancy wood interiors - or the speakers in the ceilings!
Thanks. Your posts have given me some assurances that what I'm doing won't be the worst case scenario. In theory, it's only a few weeks before they fit the doors, then the room will be a normal room.
I will follow your guide for the days during the week when we are not in there, then slowly increase the temperature a day or so before I get there for playing.
 
I'll second avoiding sudden temperature changes - I've cracked a wooden toy before by bringing it in from a cold (below freezing) workshop into a central heated house. However, that shouldn't be a serious issue where the building is being heated part time, as the temperature changes will be gradual.

I think the OP is talking about having his speakers set up to use, rather than just stored? If so, wrapping them up with a dehumidifier isn't going to be very practical...
If it makes sure the speakers remain decent until the short term is done, then it's fine for now.
 
so what happens when its 30C in the summer and overnight temps in winter drop below 18c? I would ask the speaker company, my TV manual stated 5-50C. I tried checking online for what companies say in thier manuals and interestingly none give any sort of usage conditions
This was my experience with the manuals for speakers, hence the ask here. Annoying, which suggests they may not even be testing for that.
 

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