Accordion · 6 min read

Keeping an accordion alive in the tropics

At 80 percent humidity reeds rust, wax softens and leather valves curl. Practical storage, dehumidifier settings and servicing intervals for the tropics.

2026-06-29

What humidity actually does to the inside

Three materials in an accordion object to moisture, and they fail in different ways.

The reeds are steel, and steel rusts. Not dramatically, but a fine film of oxide on a reed tongue changes its mass and its clearance in the slot, which puts it out of tune and eventually makes it slow to speak or silent. Rust in the slot gap is worse than rust on the surface, because the tolerance there is a fraction of a millimetre.

The reed plates are held to the blocks with a wax and rosin mixture. Warmth softens it, and a soft joint can sag or leak, so a reed sits slightly crooked and its pitch drifts. Extended heat in a car boot or a room that reaches thirty-five degrees is worse for wax than humidity alone.

The valves are thin leather or plastic strips lying over the reed slots. Damp leather swells, dries unevenly and curls, and a curled valve leaks. This is the most common cause of the complaint that an instrument feels breathy, unresponsive and heavy on the bellows.

Where to keep it

Upright in its closed case, off the floor, in a room you use. That last part matters: an air-conditioned bedroom that is occupied every day is far more stable than a spare room that swings between thirty-two degrees and eighteen.

Aim for 45 to 60 percent relative humidity. Buy a small hygrometer, they cost very little, and put it in the case. Guessing is useless; most people are surprised by what their cupboard actually reads.

Use rechargeable silica desiccant in the case rather than loose salts or anything that can liquefy. The reusable tins that change colour when saturated and recover in an oven are ideal. If you run a room dehumidifier, that is better still, because it protects the case, the sheet music and the leather straps at the same time.

Avoid the two obvious mistakes: never store an accordion lying on its back, because the weight rests on the reed blocks and the bellows pleats deform, and never leave it in the direct blast of an air-conditioner, which is dry, cold and moving, a combination that dries out leather fast.

Daily habits that matter more than equipment

Play it. An instrument used for half an hour a day moves air through every chamber, keeps valves flexing and stays in noticeably better shape than one that sits for a month. The worst-condition accordions that come in for repair are almost always the ones that were treated carefully by not being played.

Do not take a cold instrument straight out of an air-conditioned room into thirty-two degrees and open the case immediately. Condensation forms on cold metal reeds in humid air, which is precisely the situation you are trying to avoid. Leave the case shut for twenty minutes and let it come up to temperature.

Wipe the keys and the bellows frame with a dry cloth after playing; skin oils and sweat do quiet damage to celluloid and nickel over years. Close the bellows fully with the straps before putting it away, so the pleats rest in their folded position rather than half open.

Servicing intervals in a tropical climate

In a temperate climate the usual advice is a tuning and check every three to five years. In a place that sits near eighty percent humidity most of the year, that is optimistic. One to two years for an inspection is more realistic, even if no tuning is needed.

What a technician looks at: valve condition across all ranks, wax integrity, reed tuning against a reference, bellows leaks, pallet felts, and the state of the bass machine. A valve replacement across a whole instrument is a long job because every plate has to come out, but it transforms a tired accordion.

Between services, watch for the early signals. A note that speaks late at soft dynamics, a wheeze that appears only on the pull, a bass note that sounds thinner than its neighbours, or a slow drift where chords stop sounding clean. None of these fix themselves.

If it has already sat in a cupboard for ten years

Do not force anything. Open the bellows slowly with the air button pressed; if the pleats have stuck, pulling hard tears the gussets. Do not spray anything inside it, ever, and resist the urge to oil the mechanism, which attracts dust and gums up the linkage.

Get it looked at before deciding what it is worth. A great many instruments that seem dead need valves and a tuning rather than anything structural, and a great many that look pristine have wax problems you cannot see. We service and sell instruments at A&G Academy in Singapore, and the tropical failure pattern is predictable enough that we can usually tell from the first minute of playing which of the three problems you have.

Frequently asked

How do I stop my accordion rusting in a humid climate?

Keep it in a closed case with rechargeable silica desiccant, aim for 45 to 60 percent relative humidity, and put a cheap hygrometer inside the case so you know the real figure. Play the instrument regularly so air moves through the reed chambers, and never open a cold case straight into hot humid air.

Can I store an accordion lying flat?

No. Store it upright, standing on its base as it sits when you play. Lying on its back puts the weight of the reed blocks on their mountings and lets the bellows pleats deform over time. Fasten the bellows straps before closing the case so the folds rest properly closed.

How often should an accordion be serviced?

In a temperate climate every three to five years is normal. In tropical humidity, have it inspected every one to two years. A technician checks valve condition, reed wax, tuning, bellows leaks and pallet felts. Warning signs between services include slow response at soft dynamics and air leaking on one bellows direction only.


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