What happens when the snakeskin gets too loose?

[d̗̰̗͆͘ǎ͔̱͈̰̬̫ͨ̌ͮͥ͗ͭ̕vid]

So...I was practicing erhu for a while outside, and I accidentally left it overnight, where the weather here is very humid. Usually I keep my erhus indoors to protect the snakeskin, but impulsive me forgot about it. Now, the snakeskin appears to be more loose, and is starting to sag. I've read some blog posts about the lifespans of erhus, where makers intentionally adjust the snakeskin tighter for it to "last longer/increase its lifespan," where it will "disintegrate..." Does this just me a that the skin will slowly deteriorate? Is there a way to dry/tighten the snakeskin, without paying a fortune on a reskin/new instrument? If the erhu continues to get even more loose, would there be more seriously negative effects? Could I still use it in that condition?

[ric]

David,
May I suggest you dry out your erhu slowly! Without the strings and bridge. This will allow the skin to contract to a more natural position rather than under tension.
You may want to replace the bridge with slightly higher one, this will give you a little more tension if the skin is still sagging.
As for the sound, only you can be the judge if that.
I understand the frustration of poor sound, haha! yes, some of it down to my poor playing. However, when my erhu is setup properly and I play well it sounds sweet, full and fat!
Hope you can rescue your erhu, we become attached to our instruments ....... Although any excuse to debate a new ethu is always welcome!

[d̗̰̗͆͘ǎ͔̱͈̰̬̫ͨ̌ͮͥ͗ͭ̕vid]

Aug 26, 2018 16:45:24 GMT ric said:

David,
May I suggest you dry out your erhu slowly! Without the strings and bridge. This will allow the skin to contract to a more natural position rather than under tension.
You may want to replace the bridge with slightly higher one, this will give you a little more tension if the skin is still sagging.
As for the sound, only you can be the judge if that.
I understand the frustration of poor sound, haha! yes, some of it down to my poor playing. However, when my erhu is setup properly and I play well it sounds sweet, full and fat!
Hope you can rescue your erhu, we become attached to our instruments ....... Although any excuse to debate a new ethu is always welcome!

Thanks for the reply, ric

In what way do I dry out the snakeskin? As for the current sound, it's quite muffled, tired, and sad...lol Hopefully I can rescue it soon enough before the weather gets even more warm and humid here. I'll have to pay a lot for air conditioning.