Re: Longcase clock glue

Thanks for the reply James. I asked the restorer who worked on the case a few months ago to take a look. He confirmed that he had not re-glued any blocks so the glue must be many decades old, even original dating back to c1770. He thought the glue had become soft due to high temperature and humidity and work would eventually be required to re-glue with a modern glue. For six months of the year the temp is around 30-35C (90-100F) and 70-80% humidity. Judging by the runs of glue it must have been quite liquid during our hotter spells. It has now firmed up with cooler weather but is still sticky. We do have air conditioning but it is not on 24/7 so I guess there is nothing I can do to protect the clock from high humidity and it will eventually require extensive work? Will beeswax make matters worse, trapping any moisture in the wood?

Geoff.