question for quilters in humid areas
 

I live in the northeast, so high humidity is not a problem for me...until this summer. I have actually gotten rust on some of my scissors! How do people that live in high humidity areas deal with this? My scissors have always been stored in a caddy, kind of like a pencil holder, only larger. All I can think of is to put them in a plastic shoebox with a dessicant! Also..what do you do to deal with rust on scissors once you've gotten some?? Thanks all.

Can't help with storage, but to clean the rust already on the scissors, gently "polish" the scissors with a light oil (sewing machine oil, 3-in-1 oil, etc). Keep polishing until the rust comes off. I do this with my husband's tools using WD-40. If you absolutely have to, use an ultra fine steel wool (not SOS/Brillo pads) with the oil to remove the rust. If rust is on the cutting edge of scissors, you may want to have them professionally sharpened which will also remove the rust. Hope this helps.

You may need to keep a dehumidifier running in your home.

I run dehumidifiers on every floor in my home 24/7 during the warmer months. The one in the basement (where my studio and longarm are) drains directly to a floor drain so I never have to empty it. It also helps my HVAC system run more efficiently since its not always trying to cool moist air. I have zero issues with rust or musty smells, I could not live without them.

We lived in the deep south for over 40 years. I think central a/c helps but realize that is not an option in some houses in the northeast. Also suggest a dehumidifier. Maybe a minisplit if feasible.

I live in northern Minnesota. When I was a kid...nobody had air-conditioning. We would just open the windows in the evening and by morning, the house would be cooled down. we would then close the windows and the shades on the sunny side of the house....well...all the began to change about 20-30 years ago and now all but one house in my neighborhood has installed central air....thank goodness we had forced air for heating as it made installing the central air so much easier as the air ducts were already installed. Yep....Climate change is real folks. See changes in the vegetation around here too...getting too warm for conifers, being replaced by maples. We can now grow plants from zone s 4-5...used to be zone 3, 4 was very iffy and usually would only last a year or two. Oh, I am living in my the house I grew up in so have seen the changes over that past 70 years.

Climate change is real. Climate has been changing since the beginning of time. We were not populated as much during the last big changes to be concerned over it. I live in the south and the sometimes the humidity makes the air like a steam bath. I've never had a problem with rust on items inside my home. Our AC comes on when the temp gets in the low 70's and stays on until the temp gets to the high 60's. AC in the south summer is as important as heat in the north winter. Most homes in my area have the in house generator not for winter so much as for ac in the summer if the power goes out. In winter we have to add moisture to the air. It's always something no matter where you live.

I live in Vermont, where most houses don't have AC either. But I have it in my sewing room and run it on the dehumidify setting on humid days, just to dry things out.

When I lived in Florida the central air kept my house from getting too humid inside. I rarely ever opened the windows down there. Now I live in Iowa where I find the humid conditions to be almsot nil except during are rainy season. Then I turn my dehumidifyer on. I have whatever it's called gadget that shows me the humidity in the room I keep all my machines and if its too dry I fill a washtub with hot water when I go to quilt and/or sew so I don't get zapped. In my garagae worshop with power tools I keep a cover over all my power machines to keep the dust, bugs and moisture away from them. Did this in Florida and it seemed to work find. No rust on any of my tools.

I totally agree. We have 3 a/c units in our home and 2 a/c vents in my sewing room because of the iron and steam. I've never had trouble with my scissors rusting. My husband uses the little bag of dessicant on things in the garage and he never has trouble with rust.