Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2013L01343:reg:16:p2
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2013L01343
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 16 (pt 2/51)
Character Range: 201506–204304

of the hut. While the structure itself is now strengthened, the cladding timbers are still subjected to the effects of wind

Wind is also causing the removal of painted lettering on the Transit Hut plinth that states the latitude and longitude of the site.

Vibration data loggers have been used to determine the effects of ice removal on the stability of the buildings, and timber thickness measurements have been taken to gauge the rate at which timber is being abraded from the cladding and historic wooden structures at the site.

The wind severely constrains outside work by greatly lowering the perceived and effective temperature on exposed skin, even during the relatively mild summer. Weather conditions may disrupt plans for work to protect the site's values for days or weeks.

Snow/ice/melt water

Wind-driven drift snow can include very fine particles (0.1 - 0.4 mm) that penetrate even minute gaps, filling buildings and covering their contents. Seasonal variation in drift snow and ablation can make it difficult to record and monitor cultural heritage objects.

Snow and ice on, in and around the huts exert various forces on the structures and their contents. Compacted snow and ice build-up inside the Main Hut (an estimated 301 m3) has broken roof and platform structural members, warped and broken shelves and shelving brackets, and obscured or damaged artefacts. However it has also added a thermal and physical mass to the building that may have assisted in resisting wind loads and suppressing daily and seasonal variations in temperature and relative humidity. While obscuring artefacts, the main effect of ice in the verandahs has been to help to stabilise the structure.

Water appears to have no deleterious effect on the structural capacity of timber. Both the bending and compressive strengths of timber are enhanced by low temperature and high moisture content. In 1998, the structural timbers inside the Main Hut were recorded at a high moisture content of around 20%. The low temperatures and high moisture content may assist the structural capacity of the internal framing of the Main Hut.

Temperature, relative humidity and salt

While the snow and ice associated with cold temperatures have some adverse impacts on the fabric of the huts, the cold also has several advantages. In particular, the cold reduces fungi and does not support insects. While various stain and mould fungi are found at low temperatures, and moulds have been recorded on fabrics, foods, timbers and papers in the Main Hut (the moulds probably arrived with the AAE), they do not cause structural damage. Assorted yeasts including Rhodotorula (pink yeast), moulds and occasional mixed fungi were identified from swabs taken from assorted sites in the living quarters of the Main Hut (2009).