You may have not thought specifically of creating climate control sewing machine, but even in the house, there are things you can do to keep your piece of machinery in top working condition.
A sewing machine is exactly that…a machine. It contains internal components that can rust, break, and shrink/expand as a result of changing temperature and humidity. Just as your fabrics and other soft-goods materials should be protected from moisture and UV exposure. So, your sewing machine should be mindfully stored to protect it against elements that may damage its mechanisms over time.
- One obvious solution is to keep the machine in a climate controlled room all of the time. If you keep it inside the house all the time, this shouldn’t be too much of an issue. If you are one to heat the different rooms in your house only when you are in them. For example, you might consider moving the machine to the most central room that is most consistently climate controlled.
- Keep the machine away from irons, heaters or hot lights (especially halogen bulbs). While these may not damage the machine directly while you are using it, it does create a huge difference in temperature when you have the light/heater off.
- Avoid storing your machine in the garage…Unless the garage is climate controlled. If this is the case, be sure to use a hard cover that will discourage moisture, dust and curious critters from getting into it.
- Keep it clean. A regular cleaning to remove dust, lint, and loose fabric/thread from both the inside and outside of the machine will help keep everything even keel through the changing weather. Replace rusty parts (like needles or tension plates) as soon as you notice them.
- Create your own climate controlled space: Is your workshop not quite up to snuff in terms of climate control? There are ways you can improve it. The most important elements to a climate controlled space are well insulated walls, effectively sealed windows/doors, and centralized air flow. If you can improve upon these elements, you will make large strides toward regulating temperature and humidity, and preventing corrosive build up of moisture and dust.
We’ve talked about lots of ways to create an ideal sewing space and care for your machine in our blog. We hope this is helpful! Comment below and let us know any tools or tricks you have discovered to create the perfect, climate controlled sewing machine environment. You know what else responds well to a climate controlled environment? Custom labels to put your signature on all your work…We can help you out with that part.
