Hi. I think I agree with all the responses--cold being better than warm, but also and especially with Mark who reminds me that the inside of my refrigerator is always going to have a higher relative humidity than the rest of the kitchen because the ambient kitchen moist air is cooled down. In the wintertime, the ambient air is drier...but you might still want to measure the refrigerated air (the relative humidity), especially inside sealed containers of metal or plastic. 

Mary W. Ballard
Senior Textiles Conservator,
Museum Conservation Institute, Smithsonian Institution
4210 Silver Hill Road, Suitland MD 20746 U.S.A.
tel: 301-238-1210 fax: 301-238-3709 
email [log in to unmask]
-----Original Message-----
From: Textile Conservators [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Mark MacKenzie
Sent: Thursday, November 16, 2006 1:48 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Textile storage conditions

Hello.  In general, the lower the ambient temperature the lower the amount
of water in the air mass to achive a particular RH.  Sometimes the lowering
of the average ambient temperature or better still the mean tempareature,
enables marginal humidification/environmental systems to hold the desired
RH.

I prefer to try and hold the ambient collection storage temperature toward
the lower end of human comfort.  I expect that it is easier for collections
people to wear a thick lab coat and work in a cooler environment.

Of course, you have to be careful about "dew pointing". Having a humidistat
controlled heating system which comes on if the RH edges up into dangerous
country, drying out the ambient air mass and thus lowering the RH is often a
good idea.

Regards

Mark MacKenzie 
-- 
Mark MacKenzie, M.A.C. (Queen's)
Conservator, Saskatchewan Western Development Museum
www.wdm.ca
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> From: Diana Zlatanovski <[log in to unmask]>
> Reply-To: Textile Conservators <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2006 11:05:42 -0600
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Textile storage conditions
> 
> 
> Hello
> I manage a collection of textiles.  The HVAC system in our storage
> areas is programmed to keep the temperature between 60 and 65 degrees. 
> Often, it is on the low end of that.  I've always been taught that
> between 68 and 72 degrees is, in general, the ideal temperature for
> collections storage.  Can anyone tell me if the lower range is for any
> reason more appropriate for textiles?  Or if it is detrimental to them?
> 
> Thanks,
> Diana
> 
> *******************
> Diana Zlatanovski
> Assistant Curator
> 
> Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection
> University of Wisconsin
> 1300 Linden Drive
> Madison, WI 53706-1575
> (608) 262-1162
> [log in to unmask]